My Super Bowl Review

You have probably seen the television commercial with the four old guys who have attended every Super Bowl game. That is quite an accomplishment, although I heard that one of them was sick this year and could not make the game. I have never attended a Super Bowl game in person, but I have watched every contest on television. That’s right, every game from back before it was actually called the Super Bowl and was known simply as the NFL/AFL Championship game.

This year was no exception. I watched the game and these are my observations.

Pregame: I normally don’t pay much attention to the pregame show, but this year I watched most of it. I think it was because it was on Fox television and I like the broadcasters on that network. The reason I like them is because it seems they do not take football overly serious. If I want to hear about football for several hours I can watch ESPN or read some blogs. I like Terry Bradshaw because he acts like a dufus and he knows he’s a dufus – great combination. Frank Caliendo was good with his impersonations of Charles Barkley and Shaq. The celebrity stuff was unnecessary for me, but it did keep Sharon involved.

National Anthem: First major sporting event that I can remember when they did not have the National Anthem. They did some sort of patriotic moment but I never heard the anthem. A very nice looking young lady stood out there and did something that resembled the first part of the historic song, but it got lost about halfway through. However, it was interesting and I am sure no one was trying to be unpatriotic.

Game Announcers: Troy Aikman always does a good job (and that comment is from a non-Cowboy fan) and this was no exception. He does not get in the way of the game and actually pays attention to what happens on the field, which is not true with some announcers. Joe Buck is fine doing football. I am not a big fan of his baseball announcing because it seems that he is bored, but he was good yesterday.

Halftime: Perhaps I am in the minority, but I thought it was good. Even though I am not a big Black-eyed Pea fan, I am aware of their music and they did their own music. It would have been shocking if they had done something else. Those who complained about the music should not have been surprised. It is impossible to find a musical group that is appreciated by a hundred million people. Perhaps they should have contracted with the folks who did the closing ceremonies for the China Olympics.

Television Commercials: Overall disappointing! They provided a few chuckles but none of them called for rewinding and watching again (as I did with the National Anthem).

The Actual Game: I went into the game without having a favorite team. Usually when that happens, at some point early in the game I will find my allegiance moving toward one team. Did not happen this year. I really did not care who won. It was a pretty good game since it remained close until the final minute. By the way, it was the only game all year that I actually watched the entire contest. I am a very casual football fan, a situation that started after John Elway and the Denver Broncos won their second Super Bowl. At the conclusion of that game, I told Sharon that I was now satisfied and football became a very minor interest for me.

Postgame: By then, I was mostly done. However, it did seem that Roger Staubach wanted to be somewhere else as he carried the trophy onto the podium.

Before I finish, I do need to put in a plug for Papa John’s pizza. We received delivery in about thirty minutes even though we anticipated it might take more than an hour. The pizza was very tasty and the only problem was that I ate too much. That was my tribute to the excess that is required of a Super Bowl celebration.