Game 15: James Buchanan vs. Super Bowl XV

The Eagles, like James Buchanan, came all the way from Pennsylvania to the nation's biggest stage, only to embarrass themselves. The Raiders stormed to a first-quarter 14-0 lead over Philly in Super Bowl 15, and that was all the black-and-silver horde needed to go home with the Lombardi trophy. Dick Vermeil's birds just couldn't rise to the occasion. Eagles QB Ron Jaworski went 18 for 38 with 3 INTs. Raiders QB Jim Plunkett threw for 3 touchdowns, two of them airmailed via his "branch office" to Cliff Branch. Very nice. Still, it ended 27-10. If the measure of a good game is its competitiveness, this one was too microscopic to measure with one of those standard wooden yardsticks.

On the other hand, Buchanan choked like he was losing in Brazilian jiu-jitsu to Royce Gracie. A 2009 C-SPAN poll ranked Buchanan last place among Presidents. He presided over the nation's plunge toward Civil War. He promised not to run again in his inaugural address. Then he gladly got out of Dodge when Lincoln took over. I'm outta here! See you on the History Channel!

This clash of mediocrity cannot be settled in regulation time. We extend into overtime, where, according to America Bowl rules, we consider the intangibles. After the Super Bowl, NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle had to force a smile for the cameras while he handed the championship hardware to Al Davis, whom he'd hated ever since their bitter NFL-AFL rivalry. You gotta love such a classic post-game moment. Score another point for the Super Bowls.

SCORE AFTER THIS MATCH: Presidents 9, Super Bowls 6

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