Why 49ers Legend Steve Young Slept on Teammate’s Floor the Night Before Iconic Super Bowl Performance
This might be the secret behind the quarterback’s six touchdown passes in Super Bowl XXIX.
Hall of Fame quarterback Steve Young watched from the sidelines as Joe Montana led the San Francisco 49ers to two Super Bowl titles to cap off the 1988 and ‘89 seasons.
In January 1995, however, it was his time to shine.
Young steered San Francisco through the 1994 NFC playoffs with double-digit wins over the Chicago Bears and Dallas Cowboys, punching a ticket to Super Bowl XXIX against the San Diego Chargers.
The night before the big game, Young didn’t want to change a single thing from his routine.
“Back in the day, we all shared a room when we were on the road,” Young told Sports Illustrated in a recent interview. “My roommate for 13 years was [tight end] Brent Jones.
“In the Super Bowl, they gave us our own room. ... When it was time to go to sleep, I was like, ‘I need [to hear Jones] snoring.’ I literally took my mattress, dragged it down the hall, banged on his door and woke him up. He goes, ‘What are you doing?’
“I’m like, ‘Shut up!’ I brought my mattress in and laid down. He started snoring. I’m like, ‘I’m good.’ ... I had a great night sleep.”
Guess what? It worked.
Young woke up refreshed the next morning and unleashed perhaps the most dominant outing for a quarterback in Super Bowl history. Young threw for 325 yards with a Super Bowl-record six touchdown passes and no interceptions on 24-of-36 passing as the 49ers defeated the Chargers 49–26.
All thanks to Jones’s snoring.