With this season marking the Pittsburgh Steelers' second Super Bowl in the past 26 years, hopefully the younger fans will understand how rarely these things come around.

Growing up in the 1970s, I had no idea how poor a history the Steelers had until the 1972 season when they broke through and made the playoffs.

They had lost a playoff game in 1947. That was their playoff history.

I don't remember the Immaculate Reception from that 1972 season or even Super Bowl IX against Minnesota in January 1975. I have a slight recollection of Super Bowl X against Dallas, but remember very clearly SB XIII and XIV following the 1978 and 1979 seasons.

The latter two came when I was in the seventh and eighth grade. That eighth-grade year, our Trinity Middle School yearbook was a softcover black-and-white edition. The majority of photos were taken on a Black-and-Gold Day and it is filled from front to back with shots of students, faculty and administrators in Steelers garb.

What timing. Every once in a blue moon when I pull that out, all I see is a time when the Steelers ruled the NFL.

In the mid-to-late 1970s, let's face it, we were spoiled. I supposed the same could be said for Green Bay fans in the 1960s, San Francisco's in the 1980s, Dallas' in the 1990s and New England' in the past few years.

When we played football, usually on the weekends or after school, you were a Steeler no matter what position you were playing.

If you were the quarterback, you'd announce you were Terry Bradshaw and you thought you were. A running back? Hello, Franco. If there were two of you, meet Rocky Bleier. Snapping the ball to the quarterback? Hey, look, it's Mike Webster.

I liked to catch passes, so I was Lynn Swann — always. John Stallworth was good, but I could relate to Swann. He was shorter, but quick. He'd blow right past you.

On defense, if you were rushing the quarterback, you were (take your pick) Mean Joe Greene, Ernie Holmes, L.C. Greenwood, Jack Lambert, Jack Ham. If you're defending passes, you were Donnie Shell or Mel Blount.

Of course, pick-up games lacked numbers, so there were enough names to go around. No Dallas Cowboys or Oakland Raiders around here. You didn't have to worry about Roger Staubach or Ken Stabler and any of those players.

Once the 1980s rolled around and the games dwindled because of high school activities, it was probably for the best.

The team's fortunes went up and down and somehow Cliff Stoudt, Mark Malone, Walter Abercrombie, Frank Pollard, Rich Erenberg, Louis Lipps and Calvin Sweeney just didn't have the same pizzazz — or the consistent success — as those Super Bowl-winning teams.

I'm not sure if today's youngsters they're Ben Roethlisberger, Jerome Bettis, Hines Ward, Antwaan Randle El, Joey Porter or Troy Polamalu, but it will definitely be hard to replace those players from the 1970s.

That was a great time to grow up, even if that level of talent will never be duplicated.