Every young man's dream is to make it to the big time.
Then when the fun starts to kick in with the young football players, the dream turns into
making it to the ultimate scenario. Then when the ultimate pro football scenario becomes
a reality, the dream for the offensive ball-carrying position players turns into making the
game-winning touchdown in the Super Bowl.
Congratulations Ahmad Bradshaw, you have made the worst game-winning touchdown in
Super Bowl history.
The New York Giant runningback turned what could have been an algebra lesson from
both coaches late in the game into something that every NFL player dreams about.
Touchdown!
Oh, crap!
With just over a minute left in the game, the Giants faced a situation where they were
definitely within field goal range – at the 6-yard line – down two points at 17-15. All the
Giants really needed to do was to was milk the clock down to the final ticks and let kicker
Lawrence Tynes make yet another game-changing field goal.
Instead, Bradshaw finds a gaping hole through the left tackle and dodges a hit or two. He
had his mind on getting down at the one-yard line, in an attempt to help drain more
seconds down against what Tom Brady can do late in the fourth quarter. Momentum
pushed Bradshaw to a squatting position at the 1-yard line, but the balancing act gave
way to literally a turnover on a touchdown.
The Giants led only 21-17 after that, meaning a Brady heroic of epic proportions was all
that was needed to give New England its fifth title.
Brady and company nearly came close after a Hail Mary pass went just out of the grasp of
Ron Gronkowski's reach in the end zone.
NBC's cameras had already fixed its position in front of a sitting Bradshaw on the Giant
bench, just waiting for a stunning reaction if the miracles proved true.
Gronkowski's desperate reach didn't compare to Kevin Dyson's shortage of inches for
Tennessee in the final play of Super Bowl XXXIV.
Then again, doesn't every Super Bowl seem plotted as if there was a storyline and a
suspenseful moment? Why does every Super Bowl moment always have to come inches
from near-failure? As if someone decided, “okay, you move your feet here and be careful
not to go out of bounds.”
Every Super Bowl had to have that one “close call” moment, and sure enough, it
happened. That moment had to happen some time, and it came with Mario Manningham's
catch that kept the Giant rally alive.
And that last-minute moment happened, too.
One way to stop Tom Brady is to have 12 men on the field. That had seconds tick off the
clock. May as well send in a couple of extras out of the sight of the linesmen, or the whole
bench, or the Stanford band, to help milk the game clock. At least it was only five yards
allowed.
But are we really trying to stop Brady, or those that make Brady the icon that he is?
Brady once said, “I have the best offensive line in football.” But all of the cameras are on
him. How about the offensive linemen? Right tackle Nate Solder and left tackle Matt Light
only get face time when they go offsides. But they help hold down the line and make
Brady's job an easy one. Handoff, pass. Handoff, pass.
Isn't football a game of 11 versus 11? Instead we keep hearing such combinations as
“Tom Brady and Bill Belichick” and “Eli Manning and Tom Coughlin.” Such emphasis on
stardom is sometimes too much.
New York defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul had a great game and made big plays for the
Giants. Then he went down in the fourth quarter while assisting with a tackle. Immediate
cut to commercial. What if it was Brady? He had a scare with his left shoulder in the
second half, but apparently it wasn't all that major – evident in the fact that he actually
applied a block in the fourth quarter.
NBC Keeps It Simple
So if Brady was hurt, how much time would be dedicated to the injury and the aftermath,
or have a doctor lecture us on the anatomy?
FOX probably would have went overboard.
NBC, however, did a real good job on making the Super Bowl about a football game, and
not a show of what a network can do like FOX would have done.
NBC's two-man on-air crew of Al Michaels and Cris Collinsworth kept to business during
the game, and you knew who was talking. NBC's halftime crew consisted of simply host
Dan Patrick, Tony Dungy and Rodney Harrison.
What would FOX have done? Picture the background of a live telethon with experts
numbering in the tens. And Terry Bradshaw.
Another proof that keeping it simple really helped in paying attention to the game itself
was the absence of crazy features and background items that FOX usually has. No
dancing robots. No corner-screen distractions. And best of all, no special effects. (Okay,
there was just one, when a Giant receiver went out of bounds on a catch with Collinsworth
explaining that he should have been closer to the numbers on the field).
But if you wanted the Fox effect, you could check NBC's multiple camera angle highlights
out on the Internet, as was mentioned on-air during the second quarter.
Finally, another plus for NBC was the usual Sunday Night Football background music.
Much more “background” than FOX's mass assemblage of horn section noise.
Two other, albeit minor, observations from the broadcasting perspective.
The announcer's curse had the potential to come up in the fourth quarter. BenJarvus
Green-Ellis had just carried the ball.
“Ellis has never fumbled,” stated Michaels, in nearly 600 carries.
Wait for it ... wait for it ...
It didn't happen, but you just never know.
Speaking of camera men, I wonder if every camera man has a list of every place at Lucas
Oil Stadium where all of the parents of the athletes are sitting at. You know, just in case
something happens.
Madonna, and Who?
To be named as a performer at the halftime show of the Super Bowl has become an
honor bestowed upon the best of the best.
In past years, legends such as Paul McCartney, Bruce Springsteen, The Who, Tom Petty
& The Heartbreakers, and, yes, even Janet Jackson have all made it to the football field.
Last year's act, the Black Eyed Peas, may just be remembered as the prime faces of the
musical era of the 2000s. We'll let that one slide.
Madonna was given the honor this year. Even in her 50s, Madonna can still get down to
the up-tempo songs she made big hits out of way back when.
And then LMFAO showed up.
Who? Or, what?
Madonna was later joined by Nicki Minaj, M.I.A., and Cee Lo Green. Who?
Call me old (odd at 25, but still), however in 25 years see if you can remember the names
LMFAO (or try to get the acronym right), Nicki Minaj, M.I.A., and Cee Lo Green.
They'll still remember Madonna 25 years from now. And she might still be performing.
The Real Reason Why I Watch ...
The commercials.
I'd rather stick to high school football than watch a pro game, or even a college game. But
there's food on the table, some drinks, and, well, okay.
For those not in the pro football mood this time of year, such as myself, here's what went
through my mind during some of the commercials – that companies pay millions of dollars
for.
*Did you get all of those movie trailers? Remember ... 25 years ... LMFAO, Nicki Minaj, M.I.
A., and Cee Lo Green. Add John Carter to that list, apparently.
*The Super Bowl commercial mystique has apparently gotten to the heads of Doritos.
They are the only guys that at least TRY to come up with something funny. Just
remember, the dog never killed that cat.
*Just what we need, another thing closer to a Jetson's vehicle ... this time it's the new
Lexus GS. Five more years until they come up with something that all you need to do is sit
and let the car drive itself.
*Budweiser has lost it. Five or six commercial spots for Budweiser and Bud Light and
nothing stands out as interesting. Then they had to sneak another advertisement in there,
just when I thought I was being enticed to buy something from General Electric ... it turns
into a Budweiser commercial.
Twice Budweiser referred to the hoopla surrounding the repeal of Prohibition in 1933. The
first one featured its horses, and the second one put the repeal on the same pedestal in
American history as the celebrations that occurred when World War II ended. No it wasn't.
*General Electric came up once more between the third and fourth quarter. Right when I
was trying to figure out whose commercial this really was, it turned out to really be
General Electric.
*Commercials can be deceiving at times. Volkswagen tried to play off its hit from last
year's Darth Vader smash and put a lot of thought into this year's commercial – even
releasing it three days prior to airing. After about 45 seconds, the mention of Volkswagen
starts to come up. Most commercials you likely already know what the product is.
Another commercial that caught the prognosticators off-guard was the one with kids
running around the house and in the backyard. Turned out to be for taxact.com, an
accounting website.
*Know you're not in the mainstream? Hire a beautiful woman to spice it up.
Putting supermodel Adrianna Lima in a spot for telaflora.com (“Happy Valentine's Night”)
and an Italian model for the Fiat 500 Abarth brought light to these companies. Fiat? Oh,
that's the one with that beautiful Italian woman seducing someone.
At least in the two GoDaddy commercials, you knew what to expect from the start.
*Regarding Dannon's Oikos yogurt: Is John Stamos the only Greek person on Earth?
*LMFAO finds out it is performing at halftime, only to find out that the joint is called
Halftime and is located in a remote area of Indiana. The bar had the feeling like it was
something out of the south, with every other person in it wearing a hat. That's not Indiana.
*It's good to see Howard Stern back, joining the cast of America's Got Talent. On second
thought, not really.
*Twice shown was a commercial where people could text a number and have a chance to
win a million dollars. The scenery in the commercial is life as a mega star. Today's
millionaires live in suburban housing these days.
*Two commercial titans poked fun at its competitors. Chevrolet poked fun at Ford with an
apocalypse-themed commercial, with Chevy trucks and its drivers surviving 2012. Dave
apparently didn't make it. He drove a Ford.
Coca-Cola stayed classy with its positive polar bear commercials. One of them could have
had a different twist – the one with one of the bears fumbling a bottle of Coca-Cola. Try
opening that right away.
Pepsi, meanwhile, took another shot at Coca-Cola with its Pepsi Max spot. The Coke
vendor buys a Pepsi Max and buys the one-millionth bottle, afterward a mass celebration
comes up and Regis Philbin presents a check to the vendor, who is still wearing his Coke
cap.
*Just when I'm thinking, “where's the Betty White appearance,” it came in a spot for NBC's
The Voice teaser. Two minutes later when I'm thinking “where's the Chad Ochocinco
appearance,” he catches the first Patriot pass of the second half.
*Oh, shut up. The “Toyota Camry effect” could also happen in a Ford Focus.
*Cody's best commercial of the festivities: Clint Eastwood and Chrysler. The mood of the
commercial put the American people in the same position as the trailing team in the Super
Bowl. Eastwood gives a pep talk to the American people, and puts Detroit as an example
of progressing from bad.
“But we all pulled together, and Motor City is fighting again.”
The theme of the commercial is that it is halftime in America. Very true given all of the
situations that are going on in our country at this time.
“It's halftime, America. And our second half is about to begin.”
*Super Bowl commercials are a prime marketing tool for companies that have the dough
to put one up. They are also helpful to local businesses that are looking to attract
customers in the NBC affiliate's viewing area.
At times, the area's four NBC affiliates – KWQC in Davenport, WREX in Rockford, WMAQ
in Chicago and WEEK in Peoria – had time reserved for locals to put up ads.
My household was watching through KWQC, which had a pair of commercials from
furniture company The Great Escape. Another pair was for Necker's Jewelers in
Davenport. One was for Brenny's Motorcycle Clinic in Bettendorf (the one that's “across
from Alcoa ... almost”), featuring what looked to be a model sitting on a motorcycle, finally
revealing to be Dale Brenny in drag.
But KWQC itself took advantage of the opportunity in a very competitive television media
market, with spots that had every positive, motivational word (“dedication,” “integrity,” etc.)
describing its on-air staff. All of which entices Quad Cities fans following the Super Bowl to
tune into the KWQC news shows.
Very clever on KWQC's part.
One Final Word
As mentioned to start this whole Super Bowl rant, wanting to make it to the big time is
something we all dream about.
They want to be front and center during the Lombardi Trophy presentation in front of the
celebratory crowd.
As a journalist, I'm thinking to myself, “Dan Patrick has made the big time.”
En Fuego.
Cody Cutter is the Publisher of Northern Illinois Sports Beat and got as close as 10 feet
from the Lombardi Trophy once. He can be reached at Northernillinoissportsbeat (at)
yahoo (dot) com. --- Talk about what's written on our Message Boards!
Then when the fun starts to kick in with the young football players, the dream turns into
making it to the ultimate scenario. Then when the ultimate pro football scenario becomes
a reality, the dream for the offensive ball-carrying position players turns into making the
game-winning touchdown in the Super Bowl.
Congratulations Ahmad Bradshaw, you have made the worst game-winning touchdown in
Super Bowl history.
The New York Giant runningback turned what could have been an algebra lesson from
both coaches late in the game into something that every NFL player dreams about.
Touchdown!
Oh, crap!
With just over a minute left in the game, the Giants faced a situation where they were
definitely within field goal range – at the 6-yard line – down two points at 17-15. All the
Giants really needed to do was to was milk the clock down to the final ticks and let kicker
Lawrence Tynes make yet another game-changing field goal.
Instead, Bradshaw finds a gaping hole through the left tackle and dodges a hit or two. He
had his mind on getting down at the one-yard line, in an attempt to help drain more
seconds down against what Tom Brady can do late in the fourth quarter. Momentum
pushed Bradshaw to a squatting position at the 1-yard line, but the balancing act gave
way to literally a turnover on a touchdown.
The Giants led only 21-17 after that, meaning a Brady heroic of epic proportions was all
that was needed to give New England its fifth title.
Brady and company nearly came close after a Hail Mary pass went just out of the grasp of
Ron Gronkowski's reach in the end zone.
NBC's cameras had already fixed its position in front of a sitting Bradshaw on the Giant
bench, just waiting for a stunning reaction if the miracles proved true.
Gronkowski's desperate reach didn't compare to Kevin Dyson's shortage of inches for
Tennessee in the final play of Super Bowl XXXIV.
Then again, doesn't every Super Bowl seem plotted as if there was a storyline and a
suspenseful moment? Why does every Super Bowl moment always have to come inches
from near-failure? As if someone decided, “okay, you move your feet here and be careful
not to go out of bounds.”
Every Super Bowl had to have that one “close call” moment, and sure enough, it
happened. That moment had to happen some time, and it came with Mario Manningham's
catch that kept the Giant rally alive.
And that last-minute moment happened, too.
One way to stop Tom Brady is to have 12 men on the field. That had seconds tick off the
clock. May as well send in a couple of extras out of the sight of the linesmen, or the whole
bench, or the Stanford band, to help milk the game clock. At least it was only five yards
allowed.
But are we really trying to stop Brady, or those that make Brady the icon that he is?
Brady once said, “I have the best offensive line in football.” But all of the cameras are on
him. How about the offensive linemen? Right tackle Nate Solder and left tackle Matt Light
only get face time when they go offsides. But they help hold down the line and make
Brady's job an easy one. Handoff, pass. Handoff, pass.
Isn't football a game of 11 versus 11? Instead we keep hearing such combinations as
“Tom Brady and Bill Belichick” and “Eli Manning and Tom Coughlin.” Such emphasis on
stardom is sometimes too much.
New York defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul had a great game and made big plays for the
Giants. Then he went down in the fourth quarter while assisting with a tackle. Immediate
cut to commercial. What if it was Brady? He had a scare with his left shoulder in the
second half, but apparently it wasn't all that major – evident in the fact that he actually
applied a block in the fourth quarter.
NBC Keeps It Simple
So if Brady was hurt, how much time would be dedicated to the injury and the aftermath,
or have a doctor lecture us on the anatomy?
FOX probably would have went overboard.
NBC, however, did a real good job on making the Super Bowl about a football game, and
not a show of what a network can do like FOX would have done.
NBC's two-man on-air crew of Al Michaels and Cris Collinsworth kept to business during
the game, and you knew who was talking. NBC's halftime crew consisted of simply host
Dan Patrick, Tony Dungy and Rodney Harrison.
What would FOX have done? Picture the background of a live telethon with experts
numbering in the tens. And Terry Bradshaw.
Another proof that keeping it simple really helped in paying attention to the game itself
was the absence of crazy features and background items that FOX usually has. No
dancing robots. No corner-screen distractions. And best of all, no special effects. (Okay,
there was just one, when a Giant receiver went out of bounds on a catch with Collinsworth
explaining that he should have been closer to the numbers on the field).
But if you wanted the Fox effect, you could check NBC's multiple camera angle highlights
out on the Internet, as was mentioned on-air during the second quarter.
Finally, another plus for NBC was the usual Sunday Night Football background music.
Much more “background” than FOX's mass assemblage of horn section noise.
Two other, albeit minor, observations from the broadcasting perspective.
The announcer's curse had the potential to come up in the fourth quarter. BenJarvus
Green-Ellis had just carried the ball.
“Ellis has never fumbled,” stated Michaels, in nearly 600 carries.
Wait for it ... wait for it ...
It didn't happen, but you just never know.
Speaking of camera men, I wonder if every camera man has a list of every place at Lucas
Oil Stadium where all of the parents of the athletes are sitting at. You know, just in case
something happens.
Madonna, and Who?
To be named as a performer at the halftime show of the Super Bowl has become an
honor bestowed upon the best of the best.
In past years, legends such as Paul McCartney, Bruce Springsteen, The Who, Tom Petty
& The Heartbreakers, and, yes, even Janet Jackson have all made it to the football field.
Last year's act, the Black Eyed Peas, may just be remembered as the prime faces of the
musical era of the 2000s. We'll let that one slide.
Madonna was given the honor this year. Even in her 50s, Madonna can still get down to
the up-tempo songs she made big hits out of way back when.
And then LMFAO showed up.
Who? Or, what?
Madonna was later joined by Nicki Minaj, M.I.A., and Cee Lo Green. Who?
Call me old (odd at 25, but still), however in 25 years see if you can remember the names
LMFAO (or try to get the acronym right), Nicki Minaj, M.I.A., and Cee Lo Green.
They'll still remember Madonna 25 years from now. And she might still be performing.
The Real Reason Why I Watch ...
The commercials.
I'd rather stick to high school football than watch a pro game, or even a college game. But
there's food on the table, some drinks, and, well, okay.
For those not in the pro football mood this time of year, such as myself, here's what went
through my mind during some of the commercials – that companies pay millions of dollars
for.
*Did you get all of those movie trailers? Remember ... 25 years ... LMFAO, Nicki Minaj, M.I.
A., and Cee Lo Green. Add John Carter to that list, apparently.
*The Super Bowl commercial mystique has apparently gotten to the heads of Doritos.
They are the only guys that at least TRY to come up with something funny. Just
remember, the dog never killed that cat.
*Just what we need, another thing closer to a Jetson's vehicle ... this time it's the new
Lexus GS. Five more years until they come up with something that all you need to do is sit
and let the car drive itself.
*Budweiser has lost it. Five or six commercial spots for Budweiser and Bud Light and
nothing stands out as interesting. Then they had to sneak another advertisement in there,
just when I thought I was being enticed to buy something from General Electric ... it turns
into a Budweiser commercial.
Twice Budweiser referred to the hoopla surrounding the repeal of Prohibition in 1933. The
first one featured its horses, and the second one put the repeal on the same pedestal in
American history as the celebrations that occurred when World War II ended. No it wasn't.
*General Electric came up once more between the third and fourth quarter. Right when I
was trying to figure out whose commercial this really was, it turned out to really be
General Electric.
*Commercials can be deceiving at times. Volkswagen tried to play off its hit from last
year's Darth Vader smash and put a lot of thought into this year's commercial – even
releasing it three days prior to airing. After about 45 seconds, the mention of Volkswagen
starts to come up. Most commercials you likely already know what the product is.
Another commercial that caught the prognosticators off-guard was the one with kids
running around the house and in the backyard. Turned out to be for taxact.com, an
accounting website.
*Know you're not in the mainstream? Hire a beautiful woman to spice it up.
Putting supermodel Adrianna Lima in a spot for telaflora.com (“Happy Valentine's Night”)
and an Italian model for the Fiat 500 Abarth brought light to these companies. Fiat? Oh,
that's the one with that beautiful Italian woman seducing someone.
At least in the two GoDaddy commercials, you knew what to expect from the start.
*Regarding Dannon's Oikos yogurt: Is John Stamos the only Greek person on Earth?
*LMFAO finds out it is performing at halftime, only to find out that the joint is called
Halftime and is located in a remote area of Indiana. The bar had the feeling like it was
something out of the south, with every other person in it wearing a hat. That's not Indiana.
*It's good to see Howard Stern back, joining the cast of America's Got Talent. On second
thought, not really.
*Twice shown was a commercial where people could text a number and have a chance to
win a million dollars. The scenery in the commercial is life as a mega star. Today's
millionaires live in suburban housing these days.
*Two commercial titans poked fun at its competitors. Chevrolet poked fun at Ford with an
apocalypse-themed commercial, with Chevy trucks and its drivers surviving 2012. Dave
apparently didn't make it. He drove a Ford.
Coca-Cola stayed classy with its positive polar bear commercials. One of them could have
had a different twist – the one with one of the bears fumbling a bottle of Coca-Cola. Try
opening that right away.
Pepsi, meanwhile, took another shot at Coca-Cola with its Pepsi Max spot. The Coke
vendor buys a Pepsi Max and buys the one-millionth bottle, afterward a mass celebration
comes up and Regis Philbin presents a check to the vendor, who is still wearing his Coke
cap.
*Just when I'm thinking, “where's the Betty White appearance,” it came in a spot for NBC's
The Voice teaser. Two minutes later when I'm thinking “where's the Chad Ochocinco
appearance,” he catches the first Patriot pass of the second half.
*Oh, shut up. The “Toyota Camry effect” could also happen in a Ford Focus.
*Cody's best commercial of the festivities: Clint Eastwood and Chrysler. The mood of the
commercial put the American people in the same position as the trailing team in the Super
Bowl. Eastwood gives a pep talk to the American people, and puts Detroit as an example
of progressing from bad.
“But we all pulled together, and Motor City is fighting again.”
The theme of the commercial is that it is halftime in America. Very true given all of the
situations that are going on in our country at this time.
“It's halftime, America. And our second half is about to begin.”
*Super Bowl commercials are a prime marketing tool for companies that have the dough
to put one up. They are also helpful to local businesses that are looking to attract
customers in the NBC affiliate's viewing area.
At times, the area's four NBC affiliates – KWQC in Davenport, WREX in Rockford, WMAQ
in Chicago and WEEK in Peoria – had time reserved for locals to put up ads.
My household was watching through KWQC, which had a pair of commercials from
furniture company The Great Escape. Another pair was for Necker's Jewelers in
Davenport. One was for Brenny's Motorcycle Clinic in Bettendorf (the one that's “across
from Alcoa ... almost”), featuring what looked to be a model sitting on a motorcycle, finally
revealing to be Dale Brenny in drag.
But KWQC itself took advantage of the opportunity in a very competitive television media
market, with spots that had every positive, motivational word (“dedication,” “integrity,” etc.)
describing its on-air staff. All of which entices Quad Cities fans following the Super Bowl to
tune into the KWQC news shows.
Very clever on KWQC's part.
One Final Word
As mentioned to start this whole Super Bowl rant, wanting to make it to the big time is
something we all dream about.
They want to be front and center during the Lombardi Trophy presentation in front of the
celebratory crowd.
As a journalist, I'm thinking to myself, “Dan Patrick has made the big time.”
En Fuego.
Cody Cutter is the Publisher of Northern Illinois Sports Beat and got as close as 10 feet
from the Lombardi Trophy once. He can be reached at Northernillinoissportsbeat (at)
yahoo (dot) com. --- Talk about what's written on our Message Boards!
| Northern Illinois Sports Beat http://www.northernillinoissportsbeat.com |
C o d y' s
o
r
n
e
r
C o l u m n s
o
r
n
e
r
C o l u m n s
| Those Who Know Northern Illinois High School Sports Know about NISB! |
Cutter: Super Bowl
XLVI Observations
XLVI Observations
Coverage, commercials, Madonna, and apparently
there was this football game ...
there was this football game ...
