'Burgh's Best to Wear It, No. 78: Dwight White made big plays in big situations for Super Steelers

The Tribune-Review sports staff is conducting a daily countdown of the best players in Pittsburgh pro and college sports history to wear each jersey number.

No. 78: Dwight White

Quick, name the Pittsburgh Steelers player to score the first points in franchise Super Bowl history.

Hint: It wasn’t Franco Harris or Terry Bradshaw. Not Lynn Swann or John Stallworth, either.

It wasn’t a Hall of Famer or even an offensive player.

It was, of course, defensive end Dwight White, who left a hospital bed on the morning of Super Bowl IX and tackled Fran Tarkenton in the end zone for a safety to give the Steelers a 2-0 halftime lead against the Minnesota Vikings.

White spent much of the week leading up to the Super Bowl hospitalized with pneumonia, and he lost approximately 20 pounds. But White insisted on playing and made a significant impact on the Steelers claiming their first championship with a 16-6 victory.

In the second quarter, Vikings running back Dave Osborn fumbled a pitch from Tarkenton at the 10, and the ball rolled backward and into the end zone. Tarkenton pounced on the ball to prevent a Steelers touchdown, but White covered him for the safety.

White also made a pivotal play in the second half, deflecting a pass Joe Greene intercepted to thwart another Vikings drive.

The next season, White had a pair of sacks against another Hall of Fame quarterback, Roger Staubach, to help the Steelers win back-to-back titles with a 21-17 victory against the Dallas Cowboys.

Selected from East Texas State in the fourth round of the 1971 draft, White spent 10 seasons with the Steelers and didn’t miss a start in his first five years while becoming a linchpin of the famed Steel Curtain defense. His frenetic play earned him the nickname “Mad Dog” from teammates.

White was credited with 46 unofficial sacks — the stat didn’t become recognized until 1982 — and he was named to the franchise’s all-time team in 1982 and again in 2007, a year before his death.

The Steelers continue to issue White’s No. 78 jersey, and lately it has been worn by some accomplished offensive linemen. Tackle Max Starks wore it for nine seasons and was a member of the Super Bowl XL and Super Bowl XLIII championship teams.

These days, tackle Alejandro Villanueva wears No. 78. A two-time Pro Bowl selection, Villanueva has made 74 consecutive starts at left tackle over the past five seasons.

The best college player to wear No. 78 in Pittsburgh was former Pitt offensive lineman Ruben Brown. Recruited as a defensive lineman, Brown was converted to tackle in 1991 and became a mainstay on the Pitt line. Brown earned first-team All-American honors as a senior and became a first-round pick of the Buffalo Bills.

Brown spent 13 seasons in the NFL, the first nine with Buffalo and his final four with the Chicago Bears. He was a second-team All-Pro on four occasions and was voted to the Pro Bowl nine times.

Brown was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2015.

Check out the entire ’Burgh’s Best to Wear It series here.