Kyle Shanahan sits down with Greg Papa on “49ers Game Plan” as the two look back at the history of the San Francisco 49ers, Dallas Cowboys rivalry.
Programming note: Watch “49ers Game Plan” at 9 p.m. PT on Friday on NBC Sports Bay Area, and again on NBC Bay Area at 8 p.m. PT on Saturday.
The 49ers and Cowboys met in the NFC Championship Game for three consecutive seasons from 1992-1994, creating lifelong memories for the spectators who watched the heavyweight bouts between these historic franchises.
Among those with a front-row seat for these epic battles was 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan, whose father, Mike, was the team’s offensive coordinator during those years.
On this week’s episode of “49ers Game Plan,” Greg Papa asked Shanahan what he remembers about the historic rivalry.
“Those three years, I mean, that was everything,” Shanahan said. “We came out here in ’92, and I was in sixth grade, thought Joe Montana was the guy, he had an injured back, and then Steve Young came in and got the NFL MVP, they [49ers] went 14-2. I had spent my whole life in Denver, where were just used to, at that time, losing Super Bowls and getting killed by the Niners and stuff.
“Finally, my dad came out here, so I was so excited as a little kid. I’m like, ‘alright, we’re in the NFC, the NFC usually wins the Super Bowl.’, we’re 14-2, and we got the NFL MVP. I remember going to that NFC Championship Game, I got to sit on the sidelines. Dallas I think, was a wild-card team that year, but how good they were, they were unbelievable. Then the next year they [49ers] had to go to Dallas, and then they [Cowboys] beat the crap out of them [49ers] that year.
When asked if he attended the 49ers’ 38-21 loss in the 1993 NFC Championship game in Dallas, Shanahan shared that road travel with the team was not a part of his itinerary during his middle school years.
