XLVII

Super Bowl 47. What a roller coaster ride and a train wreck all at the same time.

We thought that much would be made about the brothers Harbaugh coaching against each other. We thought that Ray Lewis would cry more times than he would tackle. We also thought he'd mention God at least twice as many times as he'd cry.

We thought that Colin Kaepernick would outshine Joe Flacco. We thought that the Ravens defense wasn't quite as good as the 49ers' offense. 

We thought that after the inauguration debacle, Beyonce wouldn't dare lip sync. We thought that Jay Z would come out and perform. And hell, we even hoped that JT would show up (although, I'm not sure he's allowed within two states of a Super Bowl halftime show). 

What we DIDN'T think was that the Ravens would look like they had one foot in the Magic Kingdom before the second half kicked off. We didn't think that Joe Flacco would drop an F Bomb on live television after being named MVP. But then again, we probably didn't think Joe Flacco would tie Joe Montana's record for most postseason touchdown passes thrown (11) with no interceptions.

We didn't think that the lights would go out in the Super Dome mere minutes after halftime ended. At least, I don't think we did. 

We didn't think that after the lights came back on, the Niners would score consecutive touchdowns to cut a 22 point deficit to five with 3:10 left in the 3rd quarter. We didn't think that it would come down to a two point conversion in the 4th to prevent a tie game. And we didn't think that a late safety, after a potentially controversial no-pass interference call on a San Fran 4th down, would make the final score 34-31.

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Yet, what we thought and didn't think would happen was just mere speculation...and most of it was wrong. It's why a game is played, and why fans love to watch. The unpredictability of sports is entertainment at its finest.

Colin Kaepernick settled into the second half to play lights out, shining once more like the bright star he's been all post-season. But despite that, Joe Flacco shined brighter. Case in point, the beautiful bomb thrown to Jacoby Jones. That in itself warrants incurring the FCC's wrath.

Our girl Beyonce...she got around that pesky lip syncing bizness by...you know...not really singing. Still, her dancing was off the hook. Though Jigga and his new partner in crime JT didn't make an appearance, the ladies of Destiny's Child did. And let's be honest, you can never go wrong with a Destiny's Child reunion.

Although having a power outage that resulted in a 34 minute delay wasn't probably what the NFL envisioned for its championship game, it turned out to be a blessing in disguise. San Francisco had their switch flipped back on with the rest of the stadium lights, and a new game was born.

But most surprising is that Ray Lewis only mentioned God once in his post-game speech. I mean, seriously, did any of us see that one coming?

All in all, Super Bowl 47 had enough drama to last us until August, when NFL returns to pre-season action. Until then, we're all undefeated.

Image provided by huffingtonpost.

A Little Birdie Told Me: Super Bowl edition

I promise I'll give you my thoughts on that spectacle which was Super Bowl 47 sometime later in the week. For now, though, I wanted to pay homage to all twitter had to offer on the subject. From Ray Lewis to Beyonce to the blackout, the twitterverse was in rare form. And I salute you.

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RAY LEWIS

Oh, I see what you did there. 

He's a feelings kind of guy. GET OVER IT.

I mean, seriously. We can all relate.

HALFTIME

Agree completely.

Truer words, my friend. Truer words....

THE BLACK OUT

Destiny's Child tried to warn us.

Really, no caption needed.

The Power Outage just wanted more halftime. Is that too much to ask?

Again, no caption needed.

Especially if you don't want your life thrown to Steve Tasker after a commercial break.

                          

                   Thanks for calling me out Mark Titus.

                            

             RIGHT?????

And finally...this....

                                

            that movie gets me every time. EVERY. DAMN. TIME.

A little bit of this, a little bit of that

Guys, so much has happened since we last spoke. Probably because I've taken to blogging once every blue moon, but that's beside the point.

January was so jam-packed with sport-related crazy  goodness that I almost don't know where to begin. Oh wait, yes I do.

CATFISH.

Sometimes the Irish don't get lucky.

By now,  you're all aware of the ridiculousness that was the Manti Te'o catfish conundrum. After Deadspin broke this story on January 16 (was it really only just 15 days ago?!?!) that Te'o's dead girlfriend Lennay Kekua didn't actually...you know...exist, all hell seemed to break loose. After all, it was Kekua's untimely loss of her battle with leukemia just hours after Te'o's grandmother had also passed that propelled the Notre Dame linebacker into the national spotlight...and smack into the Heisman race.

Each passing day brought us more and more versions to support how much the player may or may not have been involved in the whole debacle. It seems now that Manti was just a victim of Ronaiah Tuiasosopo, who created the fake profile. Then Dr. Phil got involved, and pretty much everyone lost interest.
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Which leads me to Oprah (natch!) and her interview with Lance Armstrong, who kinda sorta admitted that he was indeed doping for all those years that he said he wasn't. No one was probably more happy than Lance that the whole Manti Te'o story broke when it did, deflecting some of the media's attention. Unfortunately for Lance, he's now being sued by two former fans over his autobiography "It's Not About the Bike". They claim that they purchased the tome under false advertising, as the story is more fiction than fact. Poor Lance. Doesn't anyone care anymore that the man survived cancer and only has one testicle? That's got to count for something, right????
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The NHL returned to center ice on Saturday, January 19th. Although fans had threatened a lockout of their own, it seems like it took nothing more than $1 hot dogs to woo them back. Games have seen record crowds, and television numbers have been up. Unfortunately for my Washington Capitals, things looked better during the off-season than they do right now. The Caps are a dismal 1-5-1 after two weeks of play. 
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And finally, this Sunday is the BIG GAME between the San Francisco 49ers and the Baltimore Ravens. Also known as the Har-Bowl. Also known as Ray Lewis's last hurrah. Also known as...no, that's pretty much it. While many of  you will be tuning in strictly for the commercials and the half time show, there are more than a few intriguing story lines that will play out for Super Bowl XLVII. For instance, which Harbaugh brother will be able to claim victory at family events over the next...forever? Does Randy Moss's ego have more room to grow after proclaiming himself the "greatest receiver to ever play the game" during media day? Will Deion Sanders just stand beside Alex Smith on the Niners' sideline and continue to ask him if his lack of podium still bothers him? And for God's sake, will Beyonce lip sync????

I'll tell you this much, regardless of who wins, you can guarantee Ray Lewis will cry at least five times. 
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Well kids, that's all I've got. Enjoy your weekend. Stay dry, stay warm, and stay humble.

Image provided by deadspin.