Super Bowl goes sour

What could be said about the single most important game in 2014? The game that defines the United States of America? The game that will have the highest viewer rating in 2014?

“Watching the Super Bowl is a tradition in our family. Even if the game is not that good, we always sit down together and watch it.”

— Freshman Hagop Hovannessian

Well, quite honestly the game was pure garbage and a waste of time. The Seattle Seahawks beat down the Denver Broncos on national television last Sunday night. The best defense shut down the best offense. The youngsters beat the oldies. Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson proved his greatness in the league. And Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning proved he’ll never be considered the greatest player.

Manning is the man you want on your team 98% of the time. The guy making the plays. The guy leading the team. And during that 98% of the time, betting against Manning would be a very dumb move. But that leaves 2% of the time I do not want Manning apart of my team. The time betting against him is a smart move. And that is when Manning is playing important games.

Time after time, Manning has choked during the biggest moments of the game. And this year was no different. That is why Manning will never be considered the greatest football player of all time. I would take Tom Brady, or the young Russell Wilson over Manning.

A very few number of people in this world have what I like to call the “clutch jeans,” where their game or work is elevated under high pressure situations. People like Kobe Bryant, Steve Jobs, Michael Jordan and Mariano Rivera have the clutch jeans. No disrespect to Mr. Manning, but he does not have it. “Peyton Manning will never be the greatest. He has to win championships to be considered the best,” said junior Joseph Elmajian.

Although this year’s Super Bowl was horrific in all aspects, it still had the fifth highest Superbowl television rating according to Nielsen ratings. “Yeah, I watched it for the commercials. The game was terrible! I liked the Radio Shack commercial especially,” said junior Andre Vartanians.

“Watching the Super Bowl is a tradition in our family. Even if the game is not that good, we always sit down together and watch it,” said freshman Hagop Hovannessian. While the game might not have been good, the half-time show definitely was. “The score wasn’t close in the game, which didn’t make the game fun to watch, but I really enjoyed watching the halftime show of Bruno Mars rocking Met Life Stadium,” said junior Megan Mirkhanian.

Super Bowl XLVIII was a classic game. The Denver Broncos, the best offense of the NFL, met the best defense of the NFL in the Seattle Seahawks. And the old adage of defense wins rings proved to be correct again. “Offense might win games, but defense wins championships,” said junior Varag Abed.

And for that the Seahawks defensive linebacker Malcolm Smith won the Super Bowl MVP. Smith proved to everyone that a football team’s defense is just as important as the offense. “He really deserved it,” said junior Minnace Keshishyan. “I think him winning showed us that you don’t have to be a quarterback to be the most important player on the team. I especially loved his interception.”

Super Bowl XLVIII was a game of no surprises. Everything was expected. The better defensive team, the Seattle Seahawks, were supposed to win and they did. Peyton Manning was supposed to choke and he did. Russell Wilson was supposed to be great, and he was.

.”..you don’t have to be a quarterback to be the most important player on the team.”

— Junior Minnace Keshishyan

Probably Smith winning the Most Valuable Player Award was the only outcome unexpected. And Super Bowl XLVIII was not a complete disappointment. “The game was great,” said junior Alex Mkrtchyan. “Personally I like blowouts even more. And this game proved that the two best teams in the league are clearly the San Francisco 49ers and the Seattle Seahawks. I just can’t wait until Super Bowl XLVIII when those two teams face off again.”