The 10 greatest Super Bowl performances by Texas high school football players

Photo by Keith Allison

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It's time for the biggest game of them all — Super Bowl LIII, pitting the Los Angeles Rams against the New England Patriots. And while there's plenty of Texas flair on both sidelines, including Richardson Berkner's own Aqib Talib for the Rams and Odessa High's Marcus Cannon for the Patriots, the Super Bowl has us remembering other Texas high school football players who made a big impact on the big stage.

So, we decided to rank them: the 10 best Super Bowl performance by Texas high school football players!

10: K Garrett Hartley, New Orleans, Super Bowl XLIV
After New Orleans went down 10-0 to Indianapolis, the Saints needed a spark. Their kicker gave it to them. Hartley came into the game and nailed field goals of 46 and 44 to cut the lead to 10-6 at the half. Late in the third, the Southlake Carroll product added a 47-yard field goal to cut the Colts’ lead to 17-16. New Orleans eventually caught fire to beat Indianapolis 31-17 for its first championship. Hartley became the first kicker to hit three 40-yard field goals in one Super Bowl. — Shehan Jeyarajah

9: LB Mike Singletary, Chicago, Super Bowl XX
It was already a great year for the Houston Worthing and Baylor product, who was named NFL Defensive Player of the Year, anchoring the league’s best defense. He recovered two fumbles (a Super Bowl record) and patrolled the middle of the field for a unit that held the Patriots to just 7 rushing yards. — Max Thompson

8: WR Max McGee, Green Bay, Super Bowl I
You have to go all the way back to the beginning for this one, and we don't just mean the first Super Bowl. You have to go all the way back to the first touchdown ever in Super Bowl history, which belongs to White Oak grad McGee, who caught a 37-yard strike from Bart Starr to pop the cork on the inaugural game. But he didn't stop there — McGee finished the game with a game-high 7 catches for 138 yards and two scores in the Packers' 35-10 win over the Chiefs. — Greg Tepper

7: DB Thomas Everett, Dallas, Super Bowl XXVII
Two interceptions and a sack off of Hall of Fame quarterback Jim Kelly is enough to get Dallas Cowboys safety Thomas Everett on the list. Although the former Daingerfield player narrowly missed out on the famous 1983 team (he graduated the year before), he’s regarded as one of, if not, the best player to come from the program. — Ishmael Johnson

6: WR Ricky Sanders, Washington, Super Bowl XXVI
The pride of Belton High School and a Texas State grad saved arguably his best game for the biggest moment. Sanders hauled 9 catches for 193 yards and two long touchdowns from QB Doug Williams, and his 193-yard performance is second-best in Super Bowl history behind only some guy named Jerry Rice. Williams was named MVP, but you could make a strong argument that it should've been Sanders. — Greg Tepper

5: DE Harvey Martin, Dallas, Super Bowl XII
You’ve got to be an old school Cowboys or South Oak Cliff fan to recall that the defensive end was once named co-MVP of Super Bowl XII with Randy White, a 27-10 win over Denver in which Martin was part of the suffocating Doomsday Defense. Famously, the press wanted to give the whole Cowboys defense the MVP award, and when they were denied, it was given to White and Martin. It capped a nice year for Martin, who had 23 sacks, and would collect 3 total sacks in 3 Super Bowl appearances for Dallas. — Max Thompson

4: RB Thurman Thomas, Buffalo, Super Bowl XXV
The Bills may have lost the Super Bowl, but don’t blame Thomas. New York dared the Fort Bend Willowridge product to beat them, and he almost did. Thomas exploded for 135 yards on the ground, 55 yards through the air and a rushing score in a crushing 20-19 loss to the Giants after the Bills missed a field goal with eight seconds left. Regardless, the third-year running back put the league on notice. — Shehan Jeyarajah

3: QB Drew Brees, New Orleans, Super Bowl XLIV
The Westlake product was one of four Texas high school football alums to win MVP honors, and the first of two from his alma mater. Brees completed 32 of 39 attempts for 288 yards, two touchdowns and finished with a stellar 114.5 rating in a 31-17 win over Indianapolis in Super Bowl XLIV. He also had the second highest completion percentage in Super Bowl history, and broke the mark for completions with 33, with the 33rd coming on a two-point conversion. — Max Thompson

2: QB Nick Foles, Philadelphia, Super Bowl LII
For a guy who didn't take over the job until midseason, the Austin Westlake grad sure looked at home in the biggest game of them all. Foles carved up the mighty Patriots to the tune of 373 yards (5th-most in a Super Bowl) and three touchdowns en route to MVP honors. But his most memorable play — and the reason he won't be worrying about buying a meal in Philadelphia for the rest of his life — was his stunning 1-yard touchdown catch on the so-called "Philly Special" halfback pass right before halftime. He's popular in Austin; he's a legend in Philly. — Greg Tepper

1: LB Von Miller, Denver, Super Bowl 50
The most dominant defensive effort in a Super Bowl belongs to a former DeSoto Eagle. Von Miller’s 2.5 sacks, six tackles and two forced fumbles were enough to earn him Super Bowl 50 MVP and give the Denver Broncos their third crown. The game-turning play came with under five minutes left to play when Miller stripped Carolina Panthers’ quarterback Cam Newton when Denver held a six-point edge. — Ishmael Johnson

What did we miss? What are your must-see Texas high school football stadiums? Let us know on Facebook and on Twitter!

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