SUPER BOWL FACTS AND FIGURES

* This is the second Super Bowl that will take place in Detroit. The first was Super Bowl XVI in Pontiac, where Joe Montana led his 49ers to a 26-21 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals.
* The AFC, specifically the Patriots, has won each of the three Super Bowls played in the month of February.
* Is Matt Hasselbeck a lock to win the Super Bowl? Starting quarterbacks wearing the No. 8 are 5-0 in Super Bowls (Trent Dilfer 1-0, Steve Young 1-0, Troy Aikman 3-0), while starting quarterbacks wearing No. 7 are just 3-7.
* Pittsburgh’s Ben Roethlisberger and Seattle’s Matt Hasselbeck have the longest combined last names of any Super Bowl starting quarterback duo in history (24 combined letters, bests the 17 set three different times).
* Two of the game’s best young defenders, Pittsburgh safety Troy Polamalu and Seattle LB Lofa Tatupu, both played at USC. This will be the 24th Super Bowl with multiple Trojan alumni. It was 30 years ago that Lynn Swann was MVP of Super Bowl X.

PITTSBURGH STEELERS (14-5)

* The Steelers will be making their sixth Super Bowl appearance, their first since Super Bowl XXX. With a win the Steelers would join the Cowboys and 49ers as the only five-time Super Bowl Champions.
* The Steelers have won seven in a row, including five wins on the road.
* The Steelers have won their last eight games played against NFC opponents.
* Pittsburgh is 2-0 all-time in playoff games played indoors, with wins in Indianapolis two weeks ago and in Houston back in the 1989 Wild-Card game.
* The Steelers have averaged just 11.6 points in their last five meetings with the Seahawks, scoring fewer than 17 points in each contest.
* Pittsburgh has had seven different players score a touchdown this postseason.
* Since 1970, the Steelers are 23-1 in the playoffs when allowing less than 20 points in a game.
* Steelers offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt could become the Raiders new head coach after the game. He would become the sixth offensive or defensive coordinator under Bill Cowher to become a head coach, joining Jim Haslett, Dom Capers, Mike Mularkey, Dick LeBeau and Chan Gailey.
* Detroit native Jerome Bettis plays in his first Super Bowl. Bettis has scored a rushing touchdown in each of his last five postseason games, tying Franco Harris’ team record (Harris did it two times).
* Steelers WR Hines Ward has caught seven touchdown passes in his last seven postseason games.
* Ben Roethlisberger has a chance to become the youngest QB in history to win a Super Bowl at the age of 23 years, 340 days.
* Steelers RB Willie Parker will become the fourth undrafted running back to start a Super Bowl (with Miami’s Woody Bennett in SB XIX, Denver’s Bobby Humphrey in SB XXIV and Baltimore’s Priest Holmes in SB XXXV, not counting blocking backs).
* CB Willie Williams is the lone Steelers player who was a member of the 1995 squad that lost to the Dallas Cowboys, 27-17, in Super Bowl XXX. Williams played with the Steelers from 1993-96, played the following seven seasons in Seattle (1997-2003) and re-signed with the Steelers last season.
* Pittsburgh kicker Jeff Reed is 10-for-11 on field-goal attempts in his last six postseason games.

SEATTLE SEAHAWKS (15-3)

* The Seahawks make their first Super Bowl appearance in their 30th NFL season. They look to bring the first pro sports championship to Seattle since the SuperSonics won the NBA title in 1979.
* Seattle has won four of the last five meetings with the Steelers, including the last two.
* The Seahawks have lost their last five postseason games played away from home. They have been outrushed by a 858-212 margin in those contests.
* The Seahawks have allowed just 58.6 rushing yards per game and 2.5 yards per carry over the past seven games (including playoffs).
* Seahawks head coach Mike Holmgren is looking to become the first coach to win a Super Bowl with two different teams (he won with the Packers in 1996). Holmgren’s teams are 4-1 all-time vs. the Steelers.
* Sidelined defensive coordinator Ray Rhodes has now been an assistant coach or coordinator on six Super Bowl teams (he was on the staff of all five of the 49ers’ Super Bowls).
* Shaun Alexander is the fifth NFL rushing champion (3rd different player) to play in a Super Bowl. The previous four all won their games (Emmitt Smith 3-0, Terrell Davis 1-0). The Seahawks are 29-5 when Alexander rushes for 100+ yards in a game, including 9-0 vs. the AFC.
* Matt Hasselbeck has nine touchdown passes and no interceptions in his last seven games played away from Seattle, recording a rating of at least 94.4 in each contest.
* Hasselbeck and teammate Lofa Tatupu join their fathers, Don Hasselbeck (Raiders in XVIII) and Mosi Tatupu (Patriots in XX) as the sixth and seventh father/son combo to be on a Super Bowl team, joining Julius and Keith Adams, Frank and Frank Jr. Cornish, Tony and Anthony Dorsett, Bob and Brian Griese and Manu and Marques Tuiasosopo.
* The Seahawks are 6-0 this season when TE Jerramy Stevens catches a touchdown pass (including playoffs).
* Seattle WR Darrell Jackson has a touchdown catch in each of his last three postseason games.
* Seattle WR Joe Jurevicius will become the sixth player in NFL history to reach the Super Bowl with thee different teams, joining Darrien Gordon, Rod Woodson, Bill Romanowski, Preston Pearson and Harry Swayne. Jurevicius played for the Giants in Super Bowl XXXV and for the Buccaneers in Super Bowl XXXVII.
* Seahawks kicker Josh Brown is 11-for-12 on field-goal attempts in his last five games played indoors.