But what explains the popularity of a game that annually ranks among the most-watched single-day events? Is it the heavy gambling that¹s involved? Or are the commercials the bigger draw? And what sociable person, football fan or not, would pass on gathering with friends and family in the dead of winter at a New Year¹s Eve-style party to watch a sport suited to television? Yet while all these factors undoubtedly help attract viewers, the nature of football itself may be the deeper reason for the Super Bowl¹s mega-appeal.
Football is, above all, a much more intense game than other mainstream sports. Its athletes study, memorize and practice extensively choreographed plays that they must execute with pinpoint precision ‹ and maximum exertion ‹ all while risking serious injury. The collective physical and mental effort football players put forth is unmatched by their counterparts in other sports.
Moreover, since NFL teams play just 16 regular-season games, compared with 162 in baseball and 82 in basketball and hockey, each play from scrimmage holds considerably more weight. Add to this football¹s single-game, win-or-go-home elimination playoff system, which leaves no room for error, as do other sports¹ five- and seven-gameseries. Unlike the World Series, the NBA Finals and the Stanley Cup, the Super Bowl is a one-shot, do-or-die contest.
There¹s no denying that it is a breathtakingly over-hyped game, often so lopsided that by the middle of the third quarter it¹s no longer worth watching. Yet despite its relatively short history, the Super Bowl has produced some stellar contests and many dramatic, critical plays that have attained folklorelike status. Fans will never forget Denver Broncos quarterback John Elway¹s dive into a gang of Green Bay Packers, who spun him like a helicopter prop, to sustain what became a tie-breaking drive in Super Bowl XXXII. Also etched forever in our collective memory is the image of St. Louis Rams linebacker Mike Jones tackling Tennessee Titans wide receiver Kevin Dyson to stop him one yard short of tying the game on the final play of Super Bowl XXXIV. And then there was New England Patriots kicker Adam Vinatieri¹s last second, game-winning field goal against the Rams in Super Bowl XXXVI.
While such memorable plays occur in the biggest games in all sports, because of the intensity of football, no other title game matches the drama of the Super Bowl. This further entices people to watch, in the hope of witnessing a play for the ages or a nail-biter decided on the final tick of the clock.
Super Bowl XL, between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Seattle Seahawks, set for Ford Field in Detroit on Sunday, has no shortage of eminently hype-able pre-game plot lines. While the Steelers franchise has captured four Lombardi Trophies, they have won none under 13-year head coach Bill Cowher. Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren, meanwhile, has not only won a championship with the Packers but is expected by most of the population of the northwestern U.S. to bring a title to a team making its first appearance in a Super Bowl. And while the Seahawks have the league MVP in running back Shaun Alexander to lead the charge toward franchise history, Steelers fans hope 23-year-old quarterback sensation Ben Roethlisberger will not only bring Cowher his elusive title, but lead the club to some NFL history as well, as the first team to win a championship after capturing three straight playoff games on the road.
On Sunday, local restaurants, bars and pizza-delivery chains will rake in the big bucks thanks to the mass appeal of the big game. Homes will be filled with friends and relatives, and the streets will be relatively empty. How else to think of this day but as a national holiday? Happy Super Bowl Sunday to all!
