Super Bowl Remembered

by Timothy McAleer

Super Bowl XXXVIII between the New England Patriots and the Carolina Panthers was predicted to be as exciting as a root canal without the anesthesia as both teams boasted great defenses that were expected to set the tempo for a boring, slow-paced, low scoring game. It may have begun that way, but by the time Patriots kicker Adam Vinatieri broke a 29-29 tie on a 41 yard field goal with just four seconds left, New England won what will be considered one of the greatest Super Bowls ever.

The game began with the longest scoreless start in Super Bowl history which lasted the entire first quarter and all but the final three minutes and five seconds of the second quarter; it ended with the Pats and Panthers combining for 37 points in the fourth quarter alone, another Super Bowl record (most single-quarter points scored ever).

After being slapped around like Ike Turner's wife for most of the half, Patriots quarterback Tom Brady scored the first points of the game when he connected with Deion Branch for a five-yard touchdown with just minutes left in the second quarter. Despite both teams having been held scoreless for nearly 27 minutes, Branch's reception quickly changed the game from a defensive masterpiece to an offensive slugfest. In just three minutes and five seconds, New England and Carolina exploded for 24 combined points (including 2 touchdowns in under a minute), giving the Pats a 14-10 half-time lead.

As both teams headed for the locker room, a stage was quickly assembled on the field for the NFL Half-Time Show. For those "boobs" that live in a cave and haven't heard about the controversy that ensued, allow me to bring you "a-breast" of the situation. Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake closed the show by performing a duet which ended with Justin removing a piece of Janet's clothing, exposing her right breast for about 1.5 seconds and leaving undisputable video proof that a Jackson had exposed themself to children.

For the most part, the typical male NFL fan probably enjoyed the "wardrobe malfunction" (It was the most recorded moment in TIVO history). As for those who were bothered by the "incident," quit being so oversensitive. Was it really more disturbing then seeing Dennis Franz's naked rear-end on NYPD Blue? Would you be as upset if the media hadn't quickly turned it into the most offensive live television moment since Jack Ruby assassinated Lee Harvey Oswald?

Despite all the numerous reactions to the "controversy," there is no truth to the rumor that Janet defended herself by commenting "C'mon, it's not like I molested somebody," or even that Latoya claimed she was now only the "third most embarrassing member of the Jackson family."

Inspired by the half-time events, or perhaps the movie Old School, one fan at the game decided to perform his Will Farrell impression. ("We're going streaking!") After running onto the field dressed as a referee, the fan stripped down to a g-string and began dancing on the 30-yard line. His performance even caught the attention of one of the Patriots players as the fan was leveled by linebacker Matt Chatham. As police hog-tied the streaker and removed him from the field, Chatham pleaded with score keepers to award him a sack.

After the displays of nudity had subsided and play finally resumed, the beginning of the second-half mirrored the start of the first as both defenses again controlled the pace of the game. Bill Belichick and John Fox, the respective head coaches for New England and Carolina, solidified their reputations as two of the greatest defensive minds in the NFL as they kept each other scoreless for the entire third quarter. Want to know just how good each defense was for most of the game? Heading into the fourth quarter, the offenses had been kept scoreless for roughly 43 out of a possible 45 minutes. As all good things do, however, the defensive control came to an end.

Despite being dominated for most of the first three quarters, both offenses came alive in the fourth. After spending the majority of the game punting the ball back and forth to each other, Carolina and New England suddenly seemed as though they could score at will. The offensive onslaught began just eleven seconds into the fourth quarter when the Pats extended their lead to 21-10 on a two yard run by Antowain Smith. The Panthers answered back with 12 unanswered points on a 33-yard TD run by DeShaun Foster followed by an 85 yard pass from quarterback Jake Delhomme to Muhsin Muhammad.

With the score now 22-21, Delhomme's completion put the Panthers ahead for the first time and set a Super Bowl record for the longest pass play. For New England, it marked the first time in 478 minutes that they found themselves behind in the score. That's almost eight complete games without once giving up a lead! Not since November 28th against the Texans (also at Reliant Stadium) had the Patriots trailed.

With just under three minutes left the Pats reclaimed the lead on a 1-yard pass from Brady to Mike Vrabel and a successful two point conversion made the score 29-22. This set the stage for Delhomme to deliver his best Joe Montana impression as he led his team down the field for an 80-yard, seven play drive. With just over a minute left in regulation he completed an 8-yard pass to Ricky Proehl and with the score now tied, it appeared as though the game was headed to over-time.

Then the unthinkable happened for the Panthers as kicker John Kasay joined Scott Norwood as one of the biggest Super Bowl boneheads of all time. (For those of you that don't remember, Norwood handed the Giants the title over the Bills in 1990 when his last second field goal attempt sailed wide right. Thanks, Scott!) On the ensuing kickoff, Kasay booted the ball out of bounds which meant the Pats would start their drive on the 45-yard line.

With plenty of time to move his team into field goal range, Brady brought New England to about the 30-yard line. This set up a 41-yard field goal attempt for Adam Vinatieri, the same man who won the Super Bowl two years earlier for the Pats on a last-second field goal. History repeated itself when Vinatieri's kick split the uprights with just four seconds left, giving the Patriots a 32-29 win and their second Super Bowl in three seasons.

As for Kasay, how does a player recover from that type of emotional let-down? He's spent years as a successful NFL kicker but will always be remembered for that one blunder. Can you imagine the anger of Kasay's teammates? They must have wanted to drag him off the field in a manner similar to how Manticore the Tiger tore Roy off stage. Can't you just picture the kicker years from now in a mental institution writing the words "Laces Out" all over the walls?