We at the Daily aren't ready to anoint this the best Super Bowl of all time, but it certainly is up there. For three quarters we were in danger of seeing the Big Game turn into a blowout, but the Cardinals staged a miraculous comeback. Of course, Santonio Holmes and the Steelers ended Arizona's Cinderella dreams within a span of two minutes.
And since we aren't ready to leave football behind, this Top Ten honors the best parts of the 43rd installment of the Super Bowl:
10. Comcast's porn glitch. While people in Arizona were surely celebrating after Larry Fitzgerald's go-ahead touchdown catch, there were a few unhappy customers in Tucson. Comcast's feed of the game was interrupted by a short clip from the pornographic channel Shorteez. The image (let's just say it involves "going down") was a bad omen for the end of the Cardinals' season.
9. Big-Game Kurt. He might have made one of the worst plays in Super Bowl history, turning the game around at the end of the first half by throwing a pick to James Harrison at the goal line. But Kurt Warner still lived up to his reputation as a big-game player, hitting Larry Fitzgerald for the go-ahead score and once again finishing with over 300 yards for his third strong Super Bowl performance (even if he lost two out of three).
8. Roethlisberger's Eli impression. Someone was taking notes when Eli Manning pulled off his phenomenal game-winning pass last year. The only difference between Eli and Big Ben was that Ben pulled it off twice. Warner made his own theatrical attempt at a miracle play at the end of the game ... and fumbled. Ouch, Kurt. Maybe next time?
7. Touchdowns from the unknowns. Gary Russell? Ben Patrick? That's right, the first two touchdowns of the game were scored by a back who finished with negative rushing yards and a backup tight end who had 11 catches all season.
6. ‘Zona's double goal line stand. Up 17-7 with the ball on the 5-yard line, Pittsburgh appeared ready to put the game away at the end of the third quarter. But Arizona had not one, but two (thanks to a penalty on the Steelers' first field goal try) goal-line stands to keep the game within striking distance.
5. Springsteen goes nuts. We heeded his call when he told us to put down the chicken fingers and guacamole. So what was the reward from Mr. Springsteen? A knee-slide in the middle of "Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out" that let everyone watching at home get a view of the Boss's crotch.
4. The Cash4Gold commercial. Considering most of their ads consist of insincere testimonials from people with sun in their eyes, Cash4Gold really stepped up its game this time. Pairing Ed McMahon with M.C. Hammer was perfect for the Cards-Steelers Super Bowl: Nobody knows how they got there, but somehow it just worked.
3. James Harrison's interception return. How he managed to keep his feet down the entire way downfield may forever be a mystery. But at least now we all know what it's like to see a 240-pound man rumble his way 100 yards down a football field for a Steeler TD. And it is awesome.
2. Fitzgerald's "game-winner." How many people thought the game was over when Fitzgerald blew past the entire Steelers' secondary with less than three minutes to go? He's proven that he can take games over at any point ... He just can't play defense.
1. Holmes' game-winner. The Cardinals fought valiantly, but in the end they couldn't overcome the Steelers' Holmes-field advantage. Four catches for 73 yards and a game-winner on the team's final drive? Give this man his MVP trophy.
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