Did You Know?
A “Hail Mary Pass” is, in American football, a very long forward pass, made in desperation and with a very low chance of success. The term became widespread courtesy of Dallas Cowboys quarterback Roger Staubach in December 1975 when questioned about his game winning but improbably long pass. His response to the question was, “I closed my eyes and said a Hail Mary.”
Source: ‘How-To-Geek’ (6-26-2021)