Big Ten sends 19 former players to New Orleans for Super Bowl XLVII

Park Ridge, Ill. – The Big Ten Conference will be well-represented on Sunday, Feb. 3, in Super Bowl XLVII in New Orleans. Nineteen former student-athletes and 11 coaches with conference connections appear on the rosters of the Baltimore Ravens and San Francisco 49ers. The Big Ten has also produced two of the last four Super Bowl Most Valuable Players in former Purdue quarterback Drew Brees (Super Bowl XLIV Champion New Orleans) and Ohio State wide receiver Santonio Holmes (Super Bowl XLIII Champion Pittsburgh).

Every Big Ten school will be represented among the players and coaches in the Super Bowl. Ohio State is tied for third among all schools with four players, followed by Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State and Penn State with two each. Indiana, Nebraska, Northwestern, Purdue and Wisconsin will each have one former player competing for the title. San Francisco head coach Jim Harbaugh played at Michigan, while Baltimore head coach John Harbaugh was an assistant coach at Indiana. Two assistants have spent time with the Wolverines, Hawkeyes and Badgers, while assistants also have ties to Michigan State, Minnesota, Nebraska, Northwestern and Penn State.

The Ravens boast six players from five current Big Ten schools on their roster. Indiana wide receiver Tandon Doss, Iowa safety Sean Considine and guard/tackle Marshal Yanda, Nebraska punter Sam Koch and Purdue safety Bernard Pollard highlight the active roster, while Illinois offensive lineman Jack Cornell is on the practice squad.

Thirteen former Big Ten standouts from seven different schools are members of the 49ers. Illinois wide receiver A.J. Jenkins, Michigan center Jonathan Goodwin, Michigan State tight end Garrett Celek, Ohio State guard/tackle Alex Boone and wide receiver Ted Ginn Jr. and Wisconsin quarterback Scott Tolzien will line up on offense for the 49ers, while Michigan State safety Trenton Robinson, Ohio State linebacker Larry Grant and safety Donte Whitner and Penn State linebacker NaVorro Bowman check in on the defensive side of the ball. Michigan wide receiver Mario Manningham appears on the injured reserve list, while Northwestern guard Al Netter and Penn State linebacker Nate Stupar are on the practice squad.

Both head coaches and nine of the Ravens’ and 49ers’ assistant coaches have ties to Big Ten schools.  Ravens head coach John Harbaugh (assistant at Indiana), assistant head coach/special teams coordinator Jerry Rosburg (assistant at Minnesota), offensive coordinator Jim Caldwell (played at Iowa, assistant at Northwestern and Penn State), defensive coordinator Dean Pees (assistant at Michigan State), secondary coach Teryl Austin (assistant at Michigan), and offensive line coach Andy Moeller (played at Michigan and Wolverines’ assistant coach) each have Big Ten ties. 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh (played at Michigan), quarterbacks coach Geep Chryst (assistant at Wisconsin), assistant secondary coach Greg Jackson (assistant at Wisconsin), linebackers coach Jim Leavitt (assistant at Iowa) and running backs coach Tom Rathman (played at Nebraska) have also spent time with current Big Ten institutions.

The complete list of Big Ten players and coaches set to participate in Super Bowl XLVII appears below:

2013 Super Bowl Participants from Big Ten Schools

Baltimore Ravens (6)

Name                                    Position               School

Jack Cornell^                      OL                           Illinois

Tandon Doss                      WR                         Indiana

Sean Considine                 S                              Iowa

Marshal Yanda                  G/T                        Iowa

Sam Koch                            P                             Nebraska

Bernard Pollard                 S                              Purdue

Coaches

John Harbaugh, Head coach (Defensive backs and special teams coach at Indiana in 1997)

Jerry Rosburg, Assistant head coach/special teams coordinator (Secondary coach at Minnesota in 1996)

Jim Caldwell, Offensive coordinator (Played at Iowa from 1973-76; Assistant at Northwestern in 1981 and Penn State from 1986-92)

Dean Pees, Defensive coordinator (Defensive coordinator at Michigan State from 1995-97)

Teryl Austin, Secondary coach (Secondary coach at Michigan from 1999-02)

Andy Moeller, Offensive line coach (Played linebacker at Michigan from 1982-86 and Wolverines’ offensive line coach from 2000-07)

San Francisco 49ers (13)

Name                                    Position               School

A.J. Jenkins                         WR                         Illinois

Jonathan Goodwin          C                             Michigan

Mario Manningham*     WR                         Michigan

Garrett Celek                     TE                           Michigan State

Trenton Robinson            S                              Michigan State

Al Netter^                           OG                         Northwestern

Alex Boone                         G/T                        Ohio State

Ted Ginn Jr.                        WR                         Ohio State

Larry Grant                         LB                           Ohio State

Donte Whitner                  S                              Ohio State

NaVorro Bowman            LB                           Penn State

Nate Stupar^                     LB                           Penn State

Scott Tolzien                      QB                          Wisconsin

Coaches

Jim Harbaugh, Head coach (Played quarterback at Michigan from 1983-86)

Geep Chryst, Quarterbacks coach (Assistant at Wisconsin in 1988)

Greg Jackson, Assistant secondary coach (Assistant at Wisconsin in 2010)

Jim Leavitt, Linebackers coach (Assistant at Iowa in 1989)

Tom Rathman, Running backs coach (Played running back at Nebraska from 1983-85)

* Injured Reserve | ^ Practice Squad