Super Bowl Observations

Random thoughts on the Super Bowl: 

• Great game, obviously. I was pulling for a Cardinals’ upset but had no emotional stake in the game, which made it easier and more enjoyable to watch. But where was the booth replay at the end? 
• The refs had too much influence on the game. The best zebras are invisible – this group seemed to crave the spotlight, to the tune of a Super Bowl-record 18 penalties, 11 for Arizona. Let the conspiracy theories begin …
• I watched about 3 minutes of pre-game coverage over the weekend, but the one segment I did catch was prescient. On ESPN, Trent Dilfer and Keyshawn Johnson explained why Ben Roethlisberger is not a running quarterback as many people think – he’s a scrambler who can “extend plays” by running around in the pocket, keeping his head up, still thinking pass first. Damn – that’s what he did the entire game. 
• The ads were so-so, nothing particularly memorable. Typical head-scratching stuff from GoDaddy.com (what was Danica Patrick thinking?), enough of the Clydesdales already, lots of random violence, and of course at least one spot featuring monkeys. My kids’ favorite was CareerBuilder, though it got pretty tedious after the fifth repetition. My favorite was probably the spot for Hulu.com with Alec Baldwin – with possibly the best tagline ever (“An evil plot to destroy the world. Enjoy.”).