Super Bowl XL: Seahawks vs Steelers

The year before I came to Japan was when the Seattle Seahawks opened their new stadium and when I first became a Seahawks season ticket holder.  Prior to this 2002 season I convinced two friends the Seahawks were on the verge of turning things around and persuaded them to purchase season tickets with me.  However, with my move to Japan in 2003 and after a disappointing 7-9 season, I was forced to give up my seats and my friends followed suit.  Little did they realize, I was only one year off of my prediction that would see the Seahawks make the playoffs for three straight years, including a National Football Conference (NFC) best 13-3 this year (2006).  With home field advantage throughout the playoffs, the Seahawks are only two home wins away from the Super Bowl.  This past week was also an exciting time for Seahawk fans as running back, Sean Alexander won the National Football League’s (NFL) Most Valuable Player (MVP) award.   Alexander led the NFL in rushing this season, and set a league record with 28 touchdowns, becoming the first Seahawk to win the NFL’s top honor.  In 2002, I had the opportunity to meet the MVP while working public relations for the Seahawk’s stadium opening.  (See below)

UPDATE: “SEAHAWKS SAIL INTO SUPER BOWL” SEATTLE (AP) – “Fans chanted “Super Bowl, Super Bowl” as Shaun Alexander carried the NFC championship trophy down the field at Qwest Stadium, a joyous trip that was 30 years in the making.  Alexander, a killer defense and playing on a field where they didn’t lose this season, all combined perfectly Sunday to help the Seahawks rout the Carolina Panthers 34-14 in the NFC title game.”

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SUPER BOWL UPDATE: “SEAHAWKS ROBBED BY ZEBRAS” – My commentary

The Super Bowl is over and Seattle lost. However, it wasn’t just me that thought this was one of the worst officiating jobs ever in a championship game! I was pissed while watching the game and now I feel a little justified. Post game reports show many sports writers across the country shared in my sentiments. It’s pretty clear, it isn’t just diehard Seahawk fans appalled about the bias officiating in this year’s Super Bowl. A Fox Sports online poll asked, “What will you remember most about the Super Bowl?” An overwhelming 55 percent said, “Questionable Calls,” with the next highest vote going to the “Steelers Trick Play,” garnering 20 percent. So how did the Seahawks gain more yards than the Steelers, lead in time of possession and win the turnover battle… and still lose? Very simple, terrible officiating, bordering on an NFL conspiracy. Has the NFL stooped to the level of the most corrupt of all sports, professional boxing? In boxing, a no-namer has almost no chance of beating a reigning champion without knocking out the champion outright, because the corporate suits running sports understand the household big names bring in the big bucks, ie: the Steelers… who now have 5 Super Bowl championships, matching San Francisco and Dallas for most in NFL history…. This Super Bowl was closer than the score indicated, and therefore one bad call could easily have made the difference in the outcome…. but it wasn’t just one against the Seahawks, several were needed to give this one to the “Stealers.”  You know what I mean if you watched the game.

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UPDATE! AUGUST 6, 2010

NFL Referee Admits Critical Mistakes in 2006 Super Bowl

RENTON, Wash. (AP) — Saying “I’ll go to my grave” with regret, NFL referee Bill Leavy reopened a Seahawks’ wound that won’t heal by acknowledging he made mistakes in Seattle’s disputed, 2006 Super Bowl loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

“It was a tough thing for me. I kicked two calls in the fourth quarter and I impacted the game, and as an official you never want to do that,” said the veteran of 15 NFL seasons and two Super Bowls.

“It left me with a lot of sleepless nights, and I think about it constantly,” Leavy said of the game in February 2006. “I’ll go to my grave wishing that I’d been better.”

Shaun Alexander, 2006 National Football League MVP

2002 Seahawks Stadium Inaugural Game Ticket