[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1998, Book I)]
[June 16, 1998]
[Pages 970-971]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Remarks to the Super Bowl XXXII Champion Denver Broncos
June 16, 1998

    Good afternoon. Thank you very much. Commissioner 
Tagliabue, Mr. Bowlen, 
Coach Shanahan, friends of the Broncos, I'm 
delighted to see all of you here. I want to especially acknowledge the 
presence here of Governor Romer and Senators 
Allard and Campbell and Hatch, 
Representatives DeGette, Schaefer, and Schaffer, and Mayor 
Webb, Ms. Martinez. And I'd like to say a special word of appreciation to 
Secretary Federico Pena and his wife, 
Ellen. He has been mayor of Denver, the 
Secretary of Transportation, and now the Secretary of Energy. And this 
is his last public event before going into the private sector, and he is 
going out on a high. So, thank you very much, Mr. Secretary.
    Let me say to all of you, I think every football fan loved the last 
Super Bowl. Denver had one of the toughest roads to the Super Bowl in 
history, winning as a wild card team with a 12-point underdog, and won a 
magnificent game.

[[Page 971]]

    I learned that--where's Terrell, where are 
you? [Laughter] I asked him if he thought I would look good in that 
five-button coat. [Laughter] And he said it wasn't Presidential. 
[Laughter] He was--I learned in doing a little research for this event 
that he's the only person to ever win the MVP Award in his hometown and 
the only person ever to score three rushing touchdowns. And not only 
that, he sat out a quarter, as you remember, with a migraine. So that's 
a pretty impressive performance, running behind the lightest but maybe 
the best offensive line in pro football. As you can look up here, 
``light'' is a relative term. [Laughter]
    There are a lot of things about this team I like. Three of the 
players actually have connections to my home State, which made me feel 
very happy. But I can tell you that maybe the most remarkable thing is 
the loyalty of the community, the steadfastness of John Elway. We're sorry he couldn't be here, and we're glad he's 
okay. Fifteen seasons, over 48,000 yards, and he's the oldest person 
ever to score a touchdown in the Super Bowl. That's like being light; 
``old'' is a relative term. [Laughter]
    And Coach Shanahan, you've only been there 
3 years, which is a remarkable tribute to your ability, and also to the 
teamwork of this team. I'm sure that every 1,000-yard receiver or 1,500-
yard rusher or star quarterback who's ever been part of a Super Bowl 
team would say that it's teams that win championships. And a great team 
won this championship. We're honored to have them in the White House 
today.
    Thank you very much.

Note: The President spoke at 6:15 p.m. in the East Room at the White 
House. In his remarks, he referred to Paul Tagliabue, commissioner, 
National Football League; Pat Bowlen, owner, Mike Shanahan, coach, 
Terrell Davis, running back, and John Elway, quarterback, Denver 
Broncos; Gov. Roy Romer of Colorado; and Mayor Wellington E. Webb and 
City Councilwoman Ramona Martinez of Denver, CO.