FIVE MO' THINGS, 2/1/13
1) Make plans to be at Willie's Sports Cafe in Western Hills on Sunday, if you haven't already.
We've already gone over the reasons why you want to avoid a "traditional" Super Bowl party, and why you want to come to mine instead. The Bud Light girls will be there. We have a 42" TV from Cincinnati Home Theaters to giveaway, as well as a really cool-looking Bud Light tailgate table. We have other prizes as well, and we'll have samples of the brand-new Budweiser Black Crown. It is going to be an incredible experience. You need to be there.
2) Super Bowl 47. After the Harbowl, Ray Lewis and deer antler spray, Chris Culliver's ignorance, the 49ers strip club "controversy," and more griping from NFL players about how they're so mistreated, I'm ready for a football game.
I think we get a good one.
There are 382,230,112 in-depth pieces on why one team or the other will win on Sunday, and I think you know where to find them, so I'll keep this brief.
I think the Ravens will win for four basic reasons.
A) I think the Ravens, with two weeks to prepare for Colin Kaepernick, will have a good plan to slow down San Fran's offense.
B) I think Flacco, Boldin and Smith will find holes in the 49er secondary and that the Baltimore offensive line will have success blocking the San Francisco four-man rush.
C) Little looks like it fazes either team, but after beating the Colts, Broncos, and Patriots, the Ravens have the look of a championship team that's blended the right amount of luck, talent, and resiliency in the postseason. They remind me of the '01 Patriots, coming off the deck in somewhat lucky fashion, then winning the following week on the road against a very, very good opponent.
D) There is not a Niner fan who's confident in their team's kicker. In a game that's likely to be close, how would you feel about David Akers making an important kick?
Would I be surprised by a 49er win? No, especially with how well teams have run against Baltimore in the postseason, but I love the way Flacco is playing, and I can't get the image of how the Falcons carved up San Francisco's secondary out of my head. This says more about how lame I am than anything.
Ravens 27 49ers 20. Obligatory shot of a Baltimore cheergirl....
3) The NKU Norse. They might be the nicest local story of the college basketball season. In their first season as a D-1 program, they're 7-5 since starting 0-6, and with last night's win they've won three straight. They have four home games remaining, they play in a great facility, and they're tickets, the highest of which is just $12, are among the best bargains in the area. The Norse are worth checking out.
4) The Oral History of The Super Bowl Shuffle. Read it. The era of the cheesy, team-collaborative music videos has passed. They've been replaced by either aging rocker clinging to relevance or upstart local musicians looking for attention. Either are ok, but neither is as good as what winning teams did together back in the day....
5) Maybe AJ Green is being more vocal. He talked in New Orleans about his frustration with not getting the ball in the first half of the playoff loss, and who could blame him? Mind you, that vocal doesn't have to mean extremely demonstrative or selfish, but maybe if the Bengals' best player was a little more willing to demand the ball, he'd get it more. Then maybe, the team would win. That'd be nice.
...But Wait, There's More...
-Rest in peace, Paul Flory. A city of tennis fans is grateful. This one included.
-Aroldis Chapman. There's some stuff on him from David Schoenfeld here.
-Beyonce is taking on the toughest assignment in sports: the Super Bowl halftime show. It's a technical nightmare, and it's impossible to please everyone even if she's at her best. She did however, nail her press conference.
-I've got two days of overexposure on the radio today, tonight and tomorrow. Join me on ESPN1530 today at 3:04, then on 700WLW tonight at 6:05. Catch me on ESPNRadio tomorrow night starting at 8:00 for SportsCenter Saturday. It's all downhill for this particular actor...
