Where were you for every Super Bowl?

A Joshumentary: Tracing my life and testing my memory as I try to remember exactly where I watched every Super Bowl

The idea for this post began as I chatted with friends about where we are watching this year’s Super Bowl. I started to think about memorable Super Bowl parties I’ve attended over the years. Then I wondered if I could remember exactly where I watched every Super Bowl.

The more I started typing and remembering, the more I realized that where I watched each Super Bowl, and who I watched games alongside, really is the story of my life.

[Friendly reminder I’m listing the actual year of the game, which is different than what the NFL declares as the season.]

1981 – Raiders 27, Eagles 10

This is the first Super Bowl that I vividly remember watching. I was 7 years old. My family lived in Littleton, Colo. I remember watching all the Raiders playoff game with my Dad in the downstairs living room. I’m pretty sure the TV was still black and white. My Dad jumped for joy when Mike Davis intercepted a pass from Brian Sipe to secure a victory over the Browns in the Divisional Round. My dad had a business trip to New Orleans, the site of this Super Bowl, and came back with a program and a poster. I kept the poster on my bedroom wall for close to a decade. I remember the screen pass to Kenny King for a touchdown and Rod Martin intercepting three passes.

1982 – 49ers 26, Bengals 21

Our family had moved back to California. We watched from my maternal grandparents house in Riverbank, Calif. I remember the 49ers goal line stand more than anything else from the game. My grandfather was a lifelong 49ers fan who finally saw his team win a Super Bowl. He was lured outside after the game and champagne was poured over his head. I thought it was super cool and vowed to do that as an adult one day.

1983 – Redskins 27, Dolphins 17

I remember watching it somewhere, but can’t recall the exact location. I think it was at our house in Pleasanton. There was a strike that year that cut the regular season from 16 games to nine. The 49ers weren’t very good (3-6). It was the Raiders first year in Los Angeles. I really wasn’t into football that much.

1984 – Raiders 38, Redskins 9

Pretty sure we were at the house of my parent’s friends, Ann and Dan, in Livermore. This was the Raiders second year in Los Angeles. A lot of talk, back then, centered on whether we should still support the Raiders. It was easy to stay with the Raiders when they had this type of success. The house went ballistic on the Marcus Allen’s legendary 74-yard touchdown run. By the way, this is the closest the 49ers and Raiders ever came to facing each other in the Super Bowl. The 49ers lost in the NFC Championship Game.

1985 – 49ers 38, Dolphins 16

My dad was in Japan on a business trip. I watched at our home in Pleasanton with my Mom. Just the two of us. I don’t know where my older sister was. What I remember most was just how amazing it felt that the Super Bowl was played in the Bay Area, at Stanford Stadium, and the 49ers won it. The A’s, Giants and Warriors were all terrible back then. These are the years when football took over the Bay. Thinking back, I was pretty spoiled. Out of the first six Super Bowls I was old enough to remember, the 49ers or Raiders won four of them.

1986 – Bears 46, Patriots 10

My parents were now separated. My dad and I went to a party at one of his friends, I think in San Jose or somewhere around there. I remember we thought it would be funny to show up wearing white headbands, just like Bears quarterback Jim McMahon wore. I wrote “Rozell” on mine, just like McMahon did. My dad wrote “Cuervo” on his. I had no idea it meant tequilla.

1987 – Giants 39, Broncos 20

Another party that I attended with my Dad at the house of his friends, maybe Mark and Angela, or Pam and Chuck. I remember the game was fairly boring and that’s about it.

1988 – Redskins 42, Broncos 10

Seriously can’t remember where we watched this one. My parents were now officially divorced. Six months earlier, we moved from a house in Pleasanton to a condo across the highway. This was the era of Super Blowouts. I was a freshman in high school. I remember that I wrote a column about the game that was published in the high school newspaper. My lede was, “Hogs, hogs, hogs” about Washington’s dominant offensive line. The sports editor, a senior, chopped the column in half and I was pissed I didn’t have a say in what was eliminated. I’m pretty sure we watched from the new condo.

1989 – 49ers 20, Bengals 16

We definitely hosted at our condo this year. Late in the fourth quarter, I went to my room, turned on the radio, and pressed record to have a copy of Lon Simmons’ radio call of the ending. I remember exactly where I was standing when Joe Montana led the game-winning famed “John Candy drive.” We all screamed and hugged in joy together. I created a message on our answering machine that started with Simmons’ call on the final touchdown and said, “sorry we missed your call. We’re still celebrating the 49ers winning the Super Bowl” We kept that message for a long time on the answering machine.

1990 – 49ers 55, Broncos 10

We also definitely hosted at the condo that year. It was a blowout early. The 49ers were basically invincible all season. This was the peak of being spoiled as Bay Area fans. The previous World Series was the A’s and Giants. Man alive, it was fun to be in the Bay back then.

1991 – Giants 20, Bills 19

At least the third straight year we hosted at the condo. I was a senior in high school. I remember Whitney Houston singing before the game. I remember not caring about the game because the 49ers and Raiders both lost in the Championship Games. I watched most of the game in my room and slept through a lot of it. Pretty sure I was sick from drinking alcohol for the first time in my life the night before.

1992 – Redskins 37, Bills 24

I’m a freshman in college at San Diego State. I watched from the Olmeca Hall dorms from my actual room with my roommate Jason Turner, my high school friend Jamie, her roommates, and a constant string of people going in and out of everyone’s tiny rooms. The game was another blowout. I took very few photos throughout my entire college years. But we did that day that showed the random Bud Bowl signage we somehow acquired. Good times.

1993 – Cowboys 52, Bills 17

Can’t remember for sure, but almost positive I watched this game alone from my apartment just off campus. Maybe I had to work at Chili’s for half the game? Maybe the new semester hadn’t started and my college friends were still back home? I don’t know. I just remember because depressed that I was watching the Super Bowl alone and thinking I had to make changes because this was no way to experience college. Within the next two weeks, I moved into an apartment with this super cool dude Damon across the street from campus, started at The Daily Aztec, and quit my job at Chili’s. My life improved immediately.

1994 – Cowboys 30, Bills 13

One of my favorite memories. Watched the game with a bunch of my closest Daily Aztec bros at somebody’s apartment, probably Eric Winter or Jacob Dalton’s place. Then afterward, a bunch of us played pickup basketball on campus at Peterson Gym. The good part: we weren’t hungover the next day because we sweated out all the booze we drank during the game. The bad part: the odors on that basketball court were disgusting. I remember everyone had bad gas from the food and booze.

1995 – 49ers 49, Chargers 26

My first Super Bowl of legal drinking age. The night or two before, I was walking alone on El Cajon Blvd in the SDSU College Area and a limo pulled up next to me. The door opened and two hot girls offered me a shot and a ride to this new bar. True story. Swear to you. We did the shot in the limo and I went inside the bar. The limo kept circling around the neighborhood looking for other dudes like me. [Helluva marketing plan, huh?] The bartenders told me about their Super Bowl special. I convinced a bunch of the Daily Aztec crew to go back to the bar for the game. We had a blast. I remember for sure my friend Joanna Schmitcke was there because I said, “the rout is on” after the 49ers first touchdown and the San Diego fans weren’t happy with all the Bay Area people in there.

1996 -- Cowboys 27, Steelers 17

I was interning at KFMB, the CBS affiliate at San Diego. I watched the game inside the studio, logging the game to help put together the highlights. I can’t remember the producer’s name. I think it was Ted. He was awesome. Rick Powers was the weekend host. He was awesome too. I wish I’d have been bolder to ask to practice doing the local sports myself on the set before or after the real news was over. I totally should have done a “mock” sportscast that night. Lesson learned.

1997 – Packers 35, Patriots 21

I was out of college, had spent the summer with a minor league team in Watertown, NY and was back in Pleasanton for about five months. The day of the Super Bowl was the day I moved to Modesto to live with my aunt and uncle. I watched the game at their house. My cousin Grant volunteered to sleep on the floor so I could use his bed. I started my new job the next morning with the Modesto A’s. Little did I know the job that would only last three months.

1998 – Broncos 31, Packers 24

I was now working at The Oakland Tribune and living in San Ramon with my friend Jamie. I’m pretty sure she took us to a house party with some of her family members. Cool side story: Jamie and I barely knew each other in high school, but a bunch of her closest friends worked with me at Chili’s. We both went to SDSU without planning it. We both got assigned to the same dorm without planning it. We both lived in the same apartment across from campus, while only kinda planning that. Then we mostly lost touch for like three years. No cell phones back then. Then I’m back in Pleasanton, working at fucking Chili’s, again, trying to figure out if my career is ever going to get started, and Jamie comes in for lunch. We trade numbers. A few months later, I leave Modesto, get hired at the Trib, call her to see if she needs a roommate, she does, and we found this place in San Ramon. Oh yeah, I don’t remember anything about the game or the party, except that John Elway helicoptering through the air on a scramble and he finally got his ring.

1999 – Broncos 34, Falcons 19

I went to a party hosted by my friend Joanna Schmitcke in Dublin. Or maybe San Ramon, it was one of those suburbs. She worked at The Daily Aztec with me and was my coworker at what’s now called the Bay Area News Group. A bunch of BANG people were there. I remember it was a fun party and a boring game.

2000 – Rams 23, Titans 16

One of the wildest weeks of my life. The specific dates are a little hazy. But it actually starts the previous October when I drove to Los Angeles for my friend Eric Winter’s birthday. I remember telling Eric that weekend I was frustrated because I’d now been covering high school sports for three years and didn’t know when I’d ever get a chance at a professional beat. I intentionally drove home the long way, along the ocean on I-101, to watch the sunset and do some soul searching. A few months later, Eric told me about a job with DirecTV doing some type of sports video production. I applied for the job, got it, and put in my two-week notice. Eric connected me with a girl who I’d met at his birthday party to be my roommate in San Diego. I was scheduled to start the new job the day after the Super Bowl. About five days before, I’m at my apartment in Walnut Creek, literally packing boxes, when Sports Editor Don Coulter called me. A’s beat writer John Hickey was leaving to cover the Mariners up in Seattle. The Sports Editor asked if I would consider staying put to cover Major League Baseball. The next day, we talked in his office and I decided to stay. I remember trembling when I told my friend Eric that I was staying. I didn’t want him to look bad because he recommended me for the job. Eric told me to follow my heart for the job I wanted and he’d take the heat. I remember trying to contact the guy who was supposed to be my new boss with DirecTV. He was in the Super Bowl host city at a party. I’d just gotten my first cell phone a few months earlier. We could barely hear each other. I told him I changed my mind about the job and why. He wasn’t happy, but what could he do? I’ve never regretted that decision. My life was changing. Instead of moving back to San Diego, I was staying in the Bay Area. But first, I drove to LA to watch the Super Bowl at Eric’s apartment. This was special because SDSU’s own Marshall Faulk was on the Rams, so of course we were rooting for them, and it was a celebration of my new job. Two weeks later, I left for spring training in Arizona and started a seven-year run as a traveling baseball scribe, four years on the Giants beat, then three years on the A’s beat.

2001 – Ravens 34, Giants 7

I seriously have no idea where I watched this game. None. I remember that I was temporarily staying at my Mom’s house. Maybe I watched it at her place? Maybe I went to a relative’s place? Maybe I was in Hawaii with Kevin Lock that weekend? I know I was pissed the Raiders lost to the Ravens in the playoffs — I watched with my Cousin Tom at my paternal grandmother’s house in Livermore — and didn’t care about the Super Bowl. I’m still pissed at Tony Siragusa for a cheap move to injure Rich Gannon. Where the heck did I watch this game?

2002 – Patriots 20, Rams 17

I remember watching this game back at my Dad’s condo in Pleasanton. This was the year that Super Bowl halftime shows changed forever. It was no longer B-list and has-been musicians that performed. It was freakin’ U2 at the peak of their popularity. An emotional Super Bowl, about four months after the 9/11 terrorist attack. I know that I really wanted the Rams to win because of Marshall Faulk and the stupid “Tuck Rule” fiasco is the only reason the Patriots beat the Raiders earlier in those playoffs (I have quite the story from that night, but that doesn’t need to be shared with the world.)

2003 – Buccaneers 48, Raiders 21

The only Super Bowl that I’ve ever covered. The game was in San Diego. I somehow convinced my new Sports Editor, Jon Becker, that as a former SDSU student, I needed to write “the color” of the Super Bowl festivities. For six straight days, I went to a bunch of Super Bowl parties and wrote about the overall scene in America’s Finest City. Marshall Faulk hosted a charity golf tournament. My friend Eric Winter, who had published my first book about Barry Bonds about nine months earlier, sponsored one of the holes to promote the book. Eric also got us tickets for the famed Playboy party the night before the game too. (Yes, Eric really is as amazing a friend as he seems.) For the game, I wrote two sidebar stories about the Buccaneers for the Trib. It was one of the greatest weeks of my life. Maybe the best ever.

My press box view for the 2003 Super Bowl.

Promoting my book at Marshall Faulk charity golf tournament, thanks to Eric’s idea

2004 – Patriots 32, Panthers 29

I’m now living at the Funston House in San Francisco, three dudes and two girls who found each other on Craigslist, basically all strangers. [Think “The Real World” without the cameras.] The previous renters of this house had one of those large square box TVs that weighed 500 pounds. They didn’t have a method to transport their TV, so they sold it to us for like $100. One of my roommates bought something called TiVo. You had the ability to rewind the TV immediately. Earth shattering technology that became legendary during the halftime show. We were all kinda watching. Somebody says, “did Justin Timberlake just expose Janet Jackson’s boob?” We weren’t sure. But, we had TiVo! WE HAD TIVO! We re-winded and re-watched that like it was the Zapruder Film. The only other thing I remember about the game was it went from really boring in the first half to really exciting in the second half. Finally, an entertaining Super Bowl! And TiVo was the greatest invention.

2005 – Patriots 25, Eagles 21

For whatever reason, most of the roommates were out of town or doing something else for the game. I ended up watching the game with my female roommate Shae and another female friend Janae. The girls spent the entire game drooling over Tom Brady and making comments about which player’s butts looked the best in football pants. Sexist pigs.

2006 -- Steelers 21, Seahawks 10

We hosted another party at the Funston House in San Francisco. I remember that I was proud of whatever I grilled on the BBQ and was annoyed that my roommate Nicole’s cats kept jumping on the counter to try to eat it. Then I got annoyed at myself for not covering up the food better, like a normal human. The game was boring and everyone complained about the refs, right?

2007 – Colts 29, Bears 17

Oh yeah, this was an interesting month in my life. I’d been thinking of leaving the newspaper industry and switching to broadcasting. I heard about something called the Texas Winter League in Harligen, TX and basically took a one-month sabbatical from my job to go work there for a month doing broadcasting and media relations. The GM of the team, Cory, let me stay in his guest bedroom. Cory watched the Super Bowl from a Buffalo Wild Wings. I stayed back at his house because I had a freelance magazine story to write and phone calls to make about a potential new job. What I remember most about the game was the rain and Prince delivering the greatest halftime performance ever. About a week later, I quit the Tribune/BANG – this time, for good -- and took a job with the Modesto Nuts as their play-by-play announcer.

2008 – Giants 17, Patriots 14

I was back in Modesto about a decade after initially moving there to work for the same team, only it had a different nickname (A’s to Nuts), different management, and a different affiliation (A’s to Rockies). I’d been in Modesto about 10 months at this point. I applied for a job as the embedded reporter for the Los Angeles Dodgers Radio Network and the co-host of Dodger Talk. For the Super Bowl, I was in Los Angeles for a three-hour live audition that aired after the game. I stayed the weekend at my friend Eric’s apartment, of course. I watched the game in studio with Ken Levine, we did a three-hour show, then I immediately drove the five hours back to Modesto. On a couple hours sleep, I was back in studio to work the Modesto Morning News from 7-10 am the next day. Ken and I had immediate chemistry, we both got the two jobs that were open, and I moved to LA a few weeks later.

2009 – Steelers 27, Cardinals 23

In the offseason, Ken and I hosted a three-hour show on Sunday nights. Ken was out of town for the Super Bowl. I think he was in Hawaii with his family, so I needed a pinch hitter. I convinced former 49ers wide receiver JJ Stokes to drive down from the Bay and work with me. JJ and I had worked together a little in Modesto on a talk show. I remember our show started just as the Steelers were driving for the game-winning touchdown. A memorable fun night watching the game with a former Super Bowl champion and reacting in real time on live radio.

2010 – Saints 31, Colts 17

They discontinued the Sunday show, so I could just enjoy the game. My friend JD hosted a party in his apartment, down the hallway from my apartment. We carried chairs from my apartment into his, giving us more seats. I created a “Props Pool” that I made up with various point levels based on silly questions like “first penalty” and “color of the Gatorade bath.” The winner came down to whoever was the first person the MVP thanked in the live interview. It was intense drama. Nobody left the party early. Two people had a chance at winning the money, based on whether the MVP answered “God” or “teammates.” I don’t remember the answer, but I know it was hysterically funny at how intense we watched the postgame interview.

2011 -- Packers 31, Steelers 25

Once again at my friend JD’s apartment. But he moved, so instead of walking down the hallway, I drove some combination of Vermont to Sunset to Western and then a bunch of other turns I can’t remember. It probably took 45 minutes to drive 10 miles. I organized the same Props Pool, but it didn’t have the same drama this time. I remember I brought a date and she had spent most of the previous week in the Super Bowl city working on coverage for Yahoo. I thought I was going to spend the rest of my life with her. A few weeks later, that relationship was over. Boooo.

2012 – Giants 21, Patriots 17

I’m newly unemployed at this point and not too worried. It’s only been three months. The Dodgers switched radio stations. I was employed by KABC Radio. They didn’t need me anymore and the new station didn’t hire me. I went to a party in Santa Monica where my old SF roommate Nicole and her then-boyfriend Winston were hosting. A month earlier, I threw a Christmas party at my place and woke up next to a blowup doll. For the Super Bowl, I deflated the doll, snuck it into their apartment, went into the bathroom to blow it up, then hid the doll in their shower. Nobody noticed it until the next morning. Sweet revenge. What I remember most about this game was watching The Voice afterward, liking the show, and watching the entire season.

2013 – Ravens 34, 49ers 31

I’m still unemployed at this point and very much worried. It’s now been 15 months. I was doing a lot of freelancing. I was also running out of money. I’d recently applied for a job with the Albuquerque Isotopes and was nervously awaiting word on whether I got the job or not. I vaguely recall around this time that I needed to put in a 30-day notice at my apartment. I’d either vacate to move to New Mexico, or I’d move into my friend’s guest room in Santa Monica before I went broke. My location for the Super Bowl is a blur. JD told me he was at the game, so I wasn’t with him. Hmm. It’s possible I hosted a party at my apartment in LA. I vaguely recall hosting one at that location. Or maybe I was in Santa Monica again? What I remember most about the game was the delay caused by the blackout. I’m gonna say that I hosted.

Update: Friend of this Substack Matt Hayes reports I did, indeed, host in Los Feliz. He and his wife Suzanne drove up from Long Beach to watch and says the chili was delicious.

2014 – Seahawks 43, Broncos 8

My first Super Bowl in Albuquerque. I went to a party at my cousin Geoff’s house. I did the Props Pool again. It was a tradition by now. It was also a pain in the ass because I’m collecting money and picks from people all over the country who want to be in it. I used a Spreadsheet, instead of doing it old school by hand. I won the pool. A bunch of people I didn’t know accused me of cheating. I swear, I didn’t cheat.

2015 – Patriots 28, Seahawks 24

A second straight Super Bowl party at Cousin Geoff’s house. I did the Props Pool, again, but didn’t win this time. I do remember the tiebreaker was the combined beers that Geoff and I would drink. This was kinda cheating, but I selected a very low number and drank wine. We didn’t need the tiebreaker. The game was epic. I still can’t believe they didn’t give the ball to Marshawn Lynch on the goal line.

2016 – Broncos 24, Panthers 10

The years are getting closer to present day, but my memory is getting foggier. I’m mostly certain this was a third straight Super Bowl party at Cousin Geoff’s house and I’m also mostly positive I got tired of organizing the damn Props Pool. This game was boring and Peyton Manning kept giving plugs to a beer in his postgame interviews, right? Yes, yes, I was definitely at Cousin Geoff’s.

2017 – Patriots 34, Falcons 28

Pretty sure my coworker Ryan Maxwell hosted us at his house for this game. Ryan hosted multiple Super Bowls at his house. I remember that one of the years, I spent the entire first half of the game in the hot tub, watching the game from a TV that Ryan setup outside. We celebrated anybody scoring a touchdown by taking cold plunges into the pool. It was super fun. I think it was this year.

Pretty sure this was the year I watched the entire first half in the hot tub.

2018 – Eagles 41, Patriots 33

Remember how in 1982 I watched my family pour champagne over the head of my grandfather when his favorite team, the 49ers, won a Super Bowl? Well, it was time for me to do it. The party was definitely at Ryan Maxwell’s house. After the game, I lured my friend and coworker Kevin Collins outside after his favorite team, the Eagles, won the game. I poured champagne all over his head. It was rad.

2019 – Patriots 13, Rams 3

This was five years ago and I don’t remember. I blame the Patriots. They were in so many damn Super Bowls it all blends together. Hmm, let’s see. Maybe it was Ryan’s again. I’ve texted some people over the last few days and they can’t remember either. My phone is no help. My email is no help. It was probably Ryan’s house. We were on a roll with good parties at his house.

Update: Ryan says he was in Phoenix for the Waste Management Open and didn’t host. I read the Wikipedia entry and saw Maroon Five performed at halftime. I remember my ex-girlfriend remarking that a shirtless Adam Levine definitely does his pushups. Almost positive that I was at her house.

2020 – Chiefs 31, 49ers 20

This was definitely at Ryan Maxwell’s house. I remember it was weird that I didn’t feel very excited about the 49ers, even though the entire 1980s was dominated by my devotion to them. That was an indication of how long it’s been since I lived in the Bay Area. I vividly recall us talking about this Coronavirus thing and debating whether it would impact the start of the Isotopes season. My running theory, at the time, was the first month of the season would be played at empty spring training facilities, then we’d play games in front of fans around May. Never in my wildest nightmares did I imagine what happened next.

2021 – Buccaneers 31, Chiefs 9

I was furloughed by the Isotopes and had moved to Reno to live with my Mom, so I wouldn’t go broke, and took a part-time job broadcasting University of Nevada women’s basketball and baseball games. I have zero memories of this game. None. According to my iPhone calendar, Nevada played a 1 pm game in Boise that would have ended right around kickoff and then I had two flights home. The Super Bowl was played as I flew from Boise to Las Vegas to Reno. Maybe I watched from the plane? Maybe I didn’t care. The world was weird back then.

2022 – Rams 23, Bengals 20

I was back in Albuquerque and had just bought my first house two months before. I threw my first Super Bowl party at a house that I actually owned. I felt like a real grown-up. Incredible game. I remember the weather was warm enough we played Cornhole in the backyard after the game ended. One of my top-five favorite Super Bowl memories.

2023 – Chiefs 38, Eagles 35

I had people over at my house again, but a smaller group on purpose. As a general rule of thumb, the more I care about the game, the fewer people I want around me. Another epic game and finish. It’s fascinating to me how Super Bowls used to always be blowouts and now we’re consistently getting all these dramatic finishes.

2024 – Chiefs vs 49ers

I’m heading over to my Cousin Geoff’s new house in Rio Rancho to watch the game. Unlike four years ago, I’m super excited about the 49ers again. It’ll just be a few of us. That’s better. I’m old now and don’t want to be distracted by people I don’t know making dumb comments.

In summary

Whew, that’s 42 Super Bowl since I was old enough to remember them. I know with 100% certainty where I was for 38 of them, a mostly solid memory three more (including a plane), and absolutely no clue for just one year.

I’ve watched from four states, seven times at my parent’s house/condo, six times in LA, five times in SD, and nine years here in Albuquerque. Not surprisingly, I’ve still watched most often with my Dad, even though it’s been two decades since our last viewing together.

My favorites: the second 49ers-Bengals with The John Candy Drive; the second Cowboys-Bills with my Daily Aztec bros; the Bucs-Raiders as a credentialed reporter in San Diego; Eagles-Patriots to pour champagne on Kevin’s head; and the Rams-Bengals hosting from my own new house.

What are your favorite Super Bowls and why?