It seems like ages ago when the debate was who would be the better NFL Quarterback, Trent Dilfer or Heath Shuler.  These top rated Quarterbacks came into the NFL in 1994 and neither lived up to expectations.

Shuler bounced around unsuccessfully and eventually found himself out of a job, Dilfer however proved to be a mediocre but serviceable Quarterback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for six years before leaving via free agency to join the Baltimore Ravens for one year.  But, what a year it was… Dilfer “guided” the Ravens offense and Ray Lewis and company took over the league with their defense.  In the end, Trent Dilfer and the rest of the year 2000 Baltimore Ravens were left sporting shiny new Super Bowl rings.  Dilfer would go on to spend four uneventful years with the Seattle Seahawks before spending the 2006 season as a sometimes starter for the Cleveland Browns.

With the recent injury to Alex Smith, the San Francisco 49ers find themselves putting the fate of their up and coming young team in the hands of former Super Bowl Champion Trent Dilfer.  All is not lost 49ers fans… there currently are only five starting Quarterbacks in the NFL who have also won Super Bowls as starting Quarterbacks, and you have one of them - Trent Dilfer.

The other four?

Oh, uh…

Peyton Manning

Ben Roethlisberger

Tom Brady

and Brett Favre

so, yes it could be better.

In the interest of full disclosure, there are two other winning Super Bowl Quarterbacks still in the league but serving in a backup role: Kurt Warner with the Arizona Cardinals and Brad Johnson with the Dallas Cowboys.

The South Florida Bulls are all over the news after beating conference foe West Virginia this weekend. Can you imagine the pride there must be in USF’s alumni that their small school with only a little over a decade of football experience is ranked nationally in the Top Ten? Speaking of alumni, here’s a list of current NFL players who came from the University of South Florida.

Little Known Hall-of-Fame Connections

Many times when an athlete ages he ends up spending his last years on a team, or teams, that he is not normally associated with.  This sometimes leads to fans claiming that the player is hanging on to his career too long.  Everyone wants to see great players end their careers doing the things that made them famous.  While generally viewed as a negative, what this practice does provide is a chance for the enjoyment of what we like to call Little Known Hall-of-Fame Connections.

For example, you can sometimes even fool the most die hard Seattle fan when you ask him who the first former Seahawk to get into the Hall-of-Fame was.  The obvious answer is Steve Largent, the Seahawks first real star player and a genuine all-time great.  That answer, however, is wrong.  The correct answer would be Franco Harris, the legendary Pittsburgh Steeler running back.  Harris spent the final year of his career in Seattle with the Seahawks after their then young running back Curt Warner had become injured.

Now try quizzing your friend who is a Denver Broncos fan.  Who was the first former Broncos running back in the Hall-of-Fame?  He will probably first think of Terrell Davis, but then think that he hasn’t been voted in yet (if he ever will be).  If he’s a true fan he may stretch his memory and wonder if Floyd Little ever made it to the Hall-of-Fame.  He knows it wasn’t Sammy Winder or Gerald Wilhite, so he’ll then give up.  You can then flaunt your superior knowledge by saying that the first former Denver Bronco running back to make it to the Hall-of-Fame was Tony Dorsett.  Dorsett played his last season with the Broncos after a stellar career with the Dallas Cowboys.

Often times a player’s changing of teams will, years later, go unremembered.  When this happens involving a Hall-of-Fame caliber player it makes for some neat Pro Football Hall-of-Fame trivia and may be an opportunity to win a bet or two.