Pardon me while I gloat ...

Apparently, I'm not the only one suffering a hangover from the big game yesterday.  There are calls for a Super Bowl Monday, a national holiday so that the legion of fans can rest after all those Super Bowl parties.  However, my problem is that the game didn't end until 5 am Eastern European time and I only got about 2 hours of sleep.

The game was originally an afternoon game, but slowly crept into the early hours of the evening to make room for all the pre-game hype and what now appears to be the traditional Presidential interview.  This year Fox News had the honors and Baba O'Reilly got to sit down with the president for 10 minutes, dredging up one right-wing conspiracy theory after another, with the President gamely responding to each faux question in turn, and dropping a few football metaphors along the way.  When asked to predict the outcome of the game, all he would state was the score 24-21.

He was pretty close on the number of points, but unfortunately for Manning and Bronco fans, Seattle scored nearly all of them.  What was being billed as one of the greatest match-ups in Super Bowl history turned out to be a laugher from the first play when Manny Rameriz snapped the ball right by Peyton's head as he tried to call an audible, resulting in a safety for Seattle.  It was the quickest score in Super Bowl history.

The "halftime air was sweet perfume" for Seattle fans, but for others the only thing left of interest were the lavish commercials.  The halftime show was entertaining, but this being New Jersey you have to fask why they didn't call the Boss to deliver a rousing extended version of Born in the USA, instead of a waif-like Bruno Mars who probably no one other than young teenagers had ever heard of before.

In the chatter box, speculation focused on what Peyton Manning had to do to get his Broncos back into the game.  However, the Seahawks had other thoughts, like unveiling a "counter right" that unleashed the long dormant Percy Harvin for an 87-yard kickoff return.  This apparently justified his 6-year, 67 million dollar contract, which critics had declared a bust as Harvin sat on most of the season recovering from hip surgery.  The number pales in comparison to Manning's 5-year 96 million dollar deal.  Yep, this is a big money sport.

Like Obama, Manning was forced to have to answer for his poor performance after the game.  This was supposed to be his show.  The beloved veteran quarterback had been the NFL most valuable player during the year (a record fifth time), but he hardly lived up to expectations.  He was dogged by a Seattle defense the entire night, which to conservative Bronco fans must have looked like a replay of Benghazi.  Manning bristled when asked if he was humiliated by the outcome.  It's tough being the chosen one.

Instead, a relatively unknown quarterback, Russell Wilson, stole the show, making Manning look like an old man.  The second-year quarterback had nothing but praise for his team and everyone associated with the game, even God above.  It seems football and religion go hand in hand even without Tim Tebow (who figured prominently in the commercials).  He rankled so many sports commentators and critics a couple years back with his kneeling prayers after his touchdowns.

I was a little disappointed there was no reference to this being the first Marijuana bowl, as Washington and Colorado are the only states where the cultivation and recreational use of pot is legal.  You figure there were many Seattle and Denver fans lighting up at local bars.  I thought the appeals that smoking marijuana was safer than drinking alcohol during the game very amusing.

I didn't stick around for all the post game chatter.  I wanted to get a little sleep before the workday ahead, but the buzz of excitement still played in my head.  It had been over 30 years since Seattle had a men's professional champion.  To this point, Seattle had only the Storm to cheer about.   The city had spent a lavish amount of money on new sports stadiums for their baseball and football teams, while the Storm won in the WNBA championship twice in the lowly Key Arena, which the Sonics abandoned in favor of Oklahoma City.  Finally, there was some return on investment.  This lovable "city of losers," as Rainn Wilson describes, had embraced the Seahawks as their defiant alter ego and could now bathe in one of the most lopsided games in Super Bowl history, welcoming their team back to the Emerald City.

Of course, my wife didn't understand how I could stay up for a game like this.  After a shower I felt refreshed and ready for the day.  I was tempted to wear my Seahawks hoodie to work, but figured no one would get it.  Football is a strange game and inspires an equally strange fascination, kind of like Australian Rules Football.  But, finally Seattle answered the question, "Why can't it be us?"

It is Us!