Super Bowl Sunday and I awoke like a kid at Christmas time. I didn't have a pony in this race but the prospect of witnessing a shoot out between two incredible quarterbacks like Peyton Manning and Drew Brees was one I had been relishing from the moment it became a reality.
It was this growing feeling of anticipation for what was hopefully to be a great game that lead me to want to post about some of my favorite Super Bowl memories. I was really hoping Super Bowl XLIV would prove to be a worthy candidate.
"No good! Wide right!" I'll never forget Al Michaels' words during Super Bowl XXV when Buffalo Bills kicker Scott Norwood muffed what should have been a game winning 47 yard field goal. Instead he propelled the New York Giants to World Champions. How big was that missed field goal? Big enough to inspire a movie. His missed kick inspired the plot idea for the 1994 Jim Carrey film Ace Ventura: Pet Detective. The "Ray Finkle" character is loosely based on Norwood. Talk about memorable.
Who will forget the final play of Super Bowl XXXIV and 'The Tackle'? St. Louis Rams' linebacker Mike Jones hits Titans receiver Kevin Dyson just one yard short of the goal line stopping a beautiful last second drive by late Steve 'Air' McNair.
Of course, you can't mention great Super Bowl Moments without mentioning Super Bowl XLII and the incredible "The Helmet Catch". After a miraculous escape from what seemed like an inevitable (and possibly game ending) sack, New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning would toss a pass to wide receiver David Tyree, who ended up using his helmet to help catch the ball while being harassed by Patriots defender Rodney Harrison. The play would lead to the upset of the ages, as the Giants would go on to beat the mighty New England Patriots 17-14, spoiling the Patriots shot at NFL immortality with a perfect 19-0 season. Best part of that memory for me is that the Patriots were taken down, in part, by a guy who had been used primarily on special teams and had only 4 receptions for 35 yards and no touchdowns during the 2007 regular season.
Insert evil grin here.
It's Saturday and I want to have something ready in time for pre-game Sunday. I get started on a rough draft. It's ok but I'm not in love with it and decide it needs some work before it gets posted.
Laziness ensues.
7:00 a.m. Sunday and I have a schedule to keep. Church, shopping, prep, guests, game time....and now I need to find time to get this post finished and up. I'm running late and I make a quick attempt to do something about my post and realize I need to wait to get back home so I can do this right and not rushed. I hit the showers and I head out.
Church lets out and I hit the ground running. My wife woke up not feeling well and skipped church so I had no one to slow me down. Good start.
10 a.m. Party City for some football themed party stuff. Grocery store for the eats and drinks. Things are rolling along splendidly. I'm going to make it home with plenty of time to finish and post my article well before game time.
11:00 a.m. It's time for my final errand before I can go home, a 6 foot sub for me and the guys. I get to the deli and the guy tells me my sub won't be ready until 1 p.m.! I'm not happy but I know can still pull this off so I don't panic. It's about 30 minutes each way from my house to town so I decide to save the gas and just kill time in town until the sub is ready.
12:15 p.m. I get a call from the deli. The sub is ready and I can finally go home.
12:45 p.m. I'm on the home stretch. One more mile and I can unpack, get the wife up and going and get that article fixed and posted. Suddenly from a driveway ahead I see a pickup truck flying down the drive in reverse and as I stomp on my brakes to avoid the collision I watch it careen across the road and slam into the utility pole across the street. The pole made a horrendous cracking sound, shaking violently and snapping several of the lines attached to it.
I'm sitting there in a kind of shock at what just happened, when a 9 year old boy climbs out of the driver's seat of this pick up. The kid doesn't have a scratch on him and is laughing like he just got off a ride at 6 Flags. His parents came running down the hill nothing but pure terror and relief in their faces.
Apparently, the little boy was going to town with his dad when his dad realized he had forgotten his wallet. He strapped the boy into his car seat, started the car and ran inside to find the wallet.
The boy immediately climbed out of his safety seat and into the drivers seat where end resulted in what is now a matter between the Eisner family, the municipality and the state police.
1:30 p.m. I'm home and we have no cable. The wires I saw snap turned out to be the cable line and a telephone land line. I have no idea what time the cable will be back so I start calling the guys and breaking the news.
So now I have a house full of food and drink for a party that wasn't happening and no TV or internet to watch the game on or updates from. I'm not afraid to admit it...I almost cried.
The cable didn't come back on until well after the game had ended. After all that had happened, my wife and I just stayed home. I could have gone to one of my buddies homes to watch but my wife would have opted out because she wasn't feeling well to begin with. My wife watches all the games with me and after all she did to get this party going; cooking, cleaning and decorating, I didn't feel right leaving her behind.
Yeah I know, I know. What can I say? I love my wife...that and the Jets weren't in it so whatever.
We watched Zombieland with Woody Harrelson and ate as much of that monster sub, baked ziti, potato salad, smoked venison and various dips, chips, cookies and cake that we could.
I didn't see a second of Super Bowl XLIV and yet it will always be the most memorable Super Bowl of my life.