01:17 AM ET  03.05 | As the well deserved accolades pour in for Brett Favre in honor of his career and retirement, which he announced today, a reflection on his many achievements serves as a reminder that we are blessed to live in a land where talent, character, and drive trump privileged position when given the chance.

National Football League MVPs are not supposed to come from Southern Mississippi, but that's where Brett played his college ball. This is not to insult his fine alma mater, but in a world that all too often overemphasizes pedigree, elitism, and narrow definitions of what constitutes the highway to success, we've been led to believe that stars of Favre's magnitude should come from powerhouse programs like U.S.C., Ohio State, or Florida.

We revel when an upstart like Appalachian State slays the Michigan Goliath and when a guy who's taken the road less travelled makes his way to the mountain top despite the odds against it. So, in honor of Brett Favre and for the sheer fun of a little journey down memory lane, here, in no particular order, are some quarterbacks who've led their teams to the Super Bowl because of who they are and the dreams they believed.

Terry Bradshaw, Louisiana Tech
Doug Williams, Grambling
Roger Staubach, Navy
Trent Dilfer, Fresno State
Steve McNair, Alcorn State
Kurt Warner, Northern Iowa
Phil Simms, Morehead State
Rich Gannon, Delaware
Ben Roethlisberger, Miami (Ohio)
Stan Humphries, Louisiana-Monroe
Ken Anderson, Augustana
Ron Jaworski, Youngstown State
Jake Delhomme, Louisiana-Lafayette

Thank you, Brett. It's been a helluva ride.