When the Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots take the field at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara for Super Bowl LX on Sunday, Feb. 8, a familiar face to many at Stanislaus State will be hard at work behind the scenes in the press box.
On hand to record the official statistics of each team competing for the Lombardi Trophy will be Steven Flowers, Stan State’s associate athletics director for game operations and facilities. Overseeing offensive and special teams snaps from each team, Flowers will help keep records and determine a variety of on-field factors for the National Football League (NFL).
“It’s an incredible opportunity and I’m really excited to work on Sunday,” Flowers said. “There will be a team of us working on the official stats of the game. My role is calling all aspects of the offensive plays and the official yard line. There is someone right below me in the two-row press box that will type everything I’m calling out. All of that is communicated to the TV network and their control truck, as well as the stadium’s public address announcer.”
NBC will be the home for the primary broadcast of this year’s Super Bowl in the United States, with play-by-play to be done by Mike Tirico and color commentary provided by Cris Collinsworth. Like the stadium announcer, Tirico and Collinsworth, as well as the station’s studio analysts and sideline reporters, will use the information provided by Flowers and the rest of the stats team throughout the big game. The information will also be reflected in live play-by-play tracking services on national media websites and mobile applications.
Flowers has been working as an offensive caller for the NFL’s Game Statistics & Information System (GSIS), specifically at Levi’s Stadium for San Francisco 49ers home games, since the beginning of the 2024-25 season. It’s a role he felt prepared for thanks to his work within college athletics, including at Stan State.
“The similarities between Division II schools like Stan State and working in the NFL, where I’m preparing for the Super Bowl, are way more similar than people would think,” Flowers said. “With a smaller staff that we have at Stan State, a lot of us wear different hats and have many different roles at our games.
“My experience working at Stan State events has been directly impactful and made the transition a lot easier, since there are bigger teams dedicated to each part of the gameday operations in the NFL. Of course, the stage of the NFL and the ramifications, especially in the Super Bowl, are much bigger, but the ability to step in and call an accurate game are the same pressures.”
Flowers came to Turlock in 2022 alongside his wife, Lauren, Stan State’s head volleyball coach. He has also served as an assistant volleyball coach for the Warriors. Flowers previously coached volleyball at North Central Texas College, and before that, the couple coached together at the University of Texas-Permian Basin, Texas A&M University-Commerce and Western New Mexico University. It was his time in the Lone Star State, doing volunteer work on the sidelines and within athletics departments, that first opened the door for his current side gig with the 49ers.
Ahead of the 2024-25 season, the NFL needed a statistician for the 49ers — a team fresh off an appearance in Super Bowl LVIII — following the retirement of a longtime scorekeeper. That’s when good friend and former Texas A&M University-Commerce co-worker Josh Manck gave him a call.
Manck, now with Southeastern Oklahoma State University, worked alongside Flowers as a director of athletics communications, and had done similar GSIS work with the Dallas Cowboys. He suggested Flowers apply for the job. A football fan and former high school player, Flowers naturally put his name in the hat.
“It has been a pretty cool opportunity that came about due to what small colleges and relationships provided,” Flowers said. “It has been a great opportunity to bring my experience from the college scene and also challenge myself professionally.”
With hosting the Super Bowl, Levi’s Stadium and its staff also take on the responsibility of handling gameday operations. That includes the staff working in the press box.
“With all of us knowing that the Super Bowl was here in Santa Clara this year, it provided a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” Flowers explained.
During the regular season, the stats team consists of seven people who receive weekly grades from the NFL to help determine who is qualified to work on one of the biggest nights in sports. Having never been to a Super Bowl, much less worked an NFL playoff game (the 49ers did not make the postseason in 2025 and played only away games during this season’s playoff run), Flowers said he was grateful for the nod.
“Working in Division II and at Stan State, you learn to help out when you can,” he said. “It allows you to get involved and be part of the games. The opportunities that are provided to be involved with what is happening on the field or on the court and making sure everything is accurate, it all translates to what I do in the NFL.”
It’s why Flowers encourages people, regardless of what industry they work in, to never hesitate to try something new.
“You just never know who you’ll meet, what skills you can learn and what your experience can lead to,” Flowers said. “I feel prepared because of Stan State. It has been the daily moments of being present and treating each competition like a big game that ultimately prepares you to work the biggest game of them all.”
Now, Flowers will be clocking in for Super Bowl Sunday.
