Montana, Joe

Joe Montana, in full Joseph Clifford Montana, bynames Joe Cool and the Comeback Kid, (born June 11, 1956, New Eagle, Pennsylvania, U.S.), American gridiron football player who was one of the greatest quarterbacks in the history of the National Football League (NFL). Montana led the San Francisco 49ers to four Super Bowl victories (1982, 1985, 1989, 1990) and was named the Super Bowl’s Most Valuable Player (MVP) three times. He also ranks among football’s all-time leaders in passing yards (40,551) and touchdown passes (273). Montana was known for his ability to calmly bring his team to victory from the brink of defeat during the final moments of the game, earning himself the nickname “Joe Cool.”

Montana was raised in Monongahela, Pennsylvania, and excelled at baseball, basketball, and football in high school. He was offered a basketball scholarship to North Carolina State University in Raleigh, North Carolina, but instead went to the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana, to play collegiate football. Montana began his junior year as the Fighting Irish’s third-string quarterback but was elevated to starter after coming off the bench to lead Notre Dame to a comeback victory in the third game of the 1977 season. He finished that season by guiding once-beaten Notre Dame to the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I-A national championship. After a successful senior year that ended with a Notre Dame victory in the Cotton Bowl, Montana was selected by the 49ers in the third round of the 1979 NFL draft.

Montana became the 49ers’ starting quarterback midway through his second season in San Francisco. His field vision and keen decision making were ideal for head coach Bill Walsh’s “West Coast offense,” which relied on a series of short, accurate passes to move the ball downfield. Montana led the 49ers to their first Super Bowl victory in January 1982, earning game MVP honours in the process. His team’s play-off run was highlighted by a game-winning touchdown pass from Montana to Dwight Clark with 51 seconds remaining in the National Football Conference championship game, a play later known as “The Catch.” The 49ers won a second Super Bowl title (and Montana a second Super Bowl MVP award) in 1985, defeating the Miami Dolphins. The following spring the 49ers drafted wide receiver Jerry Rice, who teamed with Montana for six seasons to form one of the most prolific passing combinations in NFL history. In 1989 Montana led a dramatic late-game drive against the Cincinnati Bengals to win a third Super Bowl. Despite losing Walsh to retirement in the off-season, the 49ers repeated as champions the following year while posting the largest margin of victory in Super Bowl history (45 points), and Montana took home his third Super Bowl MVP trophy. In addition to his postseason accolades, Montana was named NFL MVP in 1989 and 1990.

An elbow injury forced Montana to miss all but one game over the course of the 1991 and 1992 seasons, and by the time he was ready to return to the field, future Hall of Famer Steve Young was entrenched as the 49ers starting quarterback. In 1993 Montana was traded to the Kansas City Chiefs. He earned a trip to the Pro Bowl in his first year in Kansas City (his eighth and final career selection) and led the Chiefs to play-off berths in his two seasons with the team. Montana retired in 1995, finishing his career with 31 fourth-quarter comeback victories and 10 play-off appearances in his 11 full seasons as a starting quarterback in the NFL. He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2000.