Hall of Fame wide receiver Jerry Rice appeared in four Super Bowls over his illustrious 20-year NFL career. Three were victories with the San Francisco 49ers, and he appeared in another with the Oakland Raiders.
Rice, the owner of nearly every significant receiving record in league history, made a habit of coming up big when it counted. That doesn't necessarily mean he was always calm and collected.
"Man, I was so nervous (going into my first Super Bowl)," Rice said on "The Herd" with Colin Cowherd. "I'm going to be honest with you because I think it really meant something to me. Plus, I stayed up all night long and tried to visualize opportunities that I would have during the football game. I didn't get much sleep.
"The next morning, it's a long day. You get up, you have breakfast, you have meetings. Then you have a pre-game meal. Then you head over to the stadium.
"So I went over to the stadium. I put my uniform on, and I decided to relax on this table. And guess who fell asleep? I fell asleep, and I could hear my teammates come by and they were like, "What is going on with Jerry? This is Super Bowl 23, and he's asleep.'
"I had put all that work in, and I wanted to be ready play football. So yeah, I really got nervous."
It wasn't just that first Super Bowl that tested his nerves. Rice was nervous each time he played for the Lombardi trophy.
"I was nervous before every Super Bowl," Rice admitted. "I want to make that [clear]. When something means so much to you because you never know when you're going to get the opportunity to be back in the position again."
You can watch the entire interview with Rice below.