XLIII

Cebu - All roads lead to Tampa today, for Super Bowl XLIII. All words have been said and the only thing left to do is to play the game. The 6-point underdogs, the Arizona Cardinals, will go up against the 5-time Super Bowl Champion, the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Cardinals are known for their finesse offense while the Steelers have been a franchise known for its smack-mouth defense. Unstoppable Force versus the Immovable Object.

Game Time is 7am and BALLS, SOLAR SPORTS and maybe ESPN will cover the event live. Last year, a few establishments had their Super Bowl parties so if work doesn’t tie you today, then maybe you can check out these places.

Arizona Cardinals

This is a team of destiny. A lot of football experts said the the Cards was the worst to get into the playoffs but look where the New York Giants and the Tennessee Titans are right now—having an early vacation. Their running game and defense used to be suspect but it finally showed up just in time for the playoffs. Their offense, which ranked 2nd in the regular season, starts with the singular Kurt Warner and his receivers Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin. It would be interesting to see how the Steelers would slow down, not stop, this trio.

Pittsburgh Steelers

If Warner or Fitzgerald is the face of the Cardinals, then there is no face that you can relate to the Steelers except maybe QB Ben Roethlisburger. The team is the sum of its parts and that’s what makes the team formidable. If the defense can slow down the Cards offense then they can win. The Steelers are not a high team and the injury of their top receiver, a half-Korean, half-African-American Hines Ward will put more pressure on the defense. If the Steelers will win, it’ll start with the offense.

The Boss

Bruce Springsteen will rock the crowd during the 12-minute halftime break. The halftime show is one of the anticipated events in the Super Bowl since Michael Jackson in 1993. The Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney, Aerosmith, Diana Ross, Gloria Estefan and Phil Collins, to rame a few, have done the show for free in exchange for exposure to millions of fans watching the game.

TV Ads

Last year, a 30-second spot cost $2.7 million. Today, a 30-second ad will cost $3 million, that’s a cool $100k per second! But with the economy not going America’s way, Miller Lite will have a 1-second ad instead.

Who’ll win?

Destiny’s Child will win! Unlike basketball where a superior team can always have an edge in a 7-game playoff, the Super Bowl is a one game, there’s no tomorrow, take all the marbles, if you win. In other words, a team can’t have a bad day in the Super Bowl and win. Last year, the New England Patriots were just a game away from having a perfect season (no L’s in the regular games and the playoffs) when they were upset by the New York Giants. That would be tantamount to the 72-10 Chicago Bulls losing to the Seattle Supersonics in the 1996 NBA Finals in a best of 7 Finals. But in the NFL, anything can happen.

That’s why I believe that the former grocery bagger Kurt Warner will lead the Arizona Cardinals over the Pittsburgh Steelers! -  THE FREEMAN