"All we mere morals can do..."

Mortals, not morals.

I agree that a Super Bowl played at the home stadium would be much more compelling.

However, my cause celebre is not the purity of the game, but rather the purity of my party experience: why can't the Ultimate Game be scheduled on a Saturday, instead of Sunday, so I don't have to risk a hangover at work the following day?

Dec. 31, 1988: Scoring every way possible -- full-strength, power play, short-handed, penalty shot, and empty net -- *all in one game.* Wow.

http://www.pittsburghpenguins.com/team/bio.php?id=13

Don't play along with the worthless "hype week" stuff for the Super Bowl, King. You have weeks to go for your predictions, etc. At risk of going off topic, I have to say it's time to hear about the Australian Open, if you're watching. Did you see Keifer throw his racket towards Grosjean last night, for which he received no penalty, not even the loss of a point? Far more dramatic in terms of bad officiating than anything in the NFL we've seen lately.

Like the column, but want more range.

Wouldn't it be nice if, instead of taking place under a dome in Detroit, the game were to be played out in the open air. Which might be cold enough at game to make Mick Jagger keep his shirt on.

I like the idea of the Steelers choosing to wear their road uniforms. It's a nifty tradition-snubbing move that reminds me of the Patriots foregoing the individual introductions to be introduced as a team in SB 36. What has gotten into Bill Cowher lately? All these years as a solid and predictable pillar of the NFL, and all of a sudden, he gets his freak on in the playoffs, with the gutsy game planning and the road uniform switcheroo.

it's good to see some recognition go to Mario, unquestionably one of the great athletes of our time and one of the handful of greatest hockey players ever. I can't disagree with King's choice of Gretzky as the greatest ever but I think it's a very close call between him and Mario. Mario may have been a better goal scorer, lighting the lamp on 19% of his shots as opposed to 17.6 for the great one. Their points per game is very close with Wayne at 1.92 and Mario at 1.88. Gretzky obviously did it longer with Mario playing the role of Hockey's Ted Williams, reaching unbelievable heights only to be dragged down by reality.

I note a tendency on King's part to downgrade the accomplishments of those with super athletic skills, such as Mario or Wilt in favor of less impressive though obviously equally talented physical specimens such as the Great One. I wonder if that makes any sense. Gretzky could not have been as great as he was without possessing unbelievable physical talent as a hockey player. Those talents were less apparent at first sight than Mario's but they were present nonetheless. It's sort of like those who used to argue that Bird was less talented than Magic. As a way of looking at sports I don't think it holds up.

King mentions that Mario would be 3rd on the list of players he'd like to see if he could watch only one game, after Gretzky and Howe. For myself, I'd have to insert another player before Mario- Bobby Orr. There's nothing like Orr's back line rush, really something to see. Mario had some of the best hands I've ever seen, and used his size perfectly, but I never though Mario was "dazzling" to watch, at least in the 90s. He was a very deceptive player and creative, like Brett Hull, only more so.

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Funny how the points per game is always used as an arugment for Mario over Wayne. The fact is, the reason Wayne's PPG is so low (if 1.88 could ever be considered low) is because he played through his 30's- a time where players generally tail off in production. Mario (unfortunately) didn't have nearly as many playing years after his peak, which keeps his PPG average up. If you compare Mario's first 12 years (up to his first retirement in 97) to Wayne's first 12, Wayne blows him away - 2.31 PPG vs. 2.00.

I'm not trying to say that Mario wasn't great, he's certainly in the top 5 players of all time. But to try and say he is comparable or even better than Wayne Gretzky is in my mind indefensible.

DavidWilliam, that's an interesting point about the way superior physical talent is viewed. I won't express any opinions about King's own views, but I know I tend to admire the less gifted athletes who still excel in their sports. I think it's natural to admire those who do more with less, or make up for their lack of physical dominance with intelligence, preparation, and hard work. Montana wasn't as fast and didn't have as big an arm as Young, but my loyalties are still towards Montana. Jerry Rice was never the physical freak that Terrell Owens is, but (TO's bugfuck craziness aside) I preferred Rice's game. I prefer Russell to Wilt for basically the same reasons.

Maybe it's just that a lot of the people with supreme physical talent, like say Randy Moss, just don't seem to care that much.

A big part of the reason for holding the Super Bowl in a neutral site (as King has pointed out in the past) is that a warm weather site is better for the business surrounding the game. Every year, there are "meet the stars" events, flag football games with current and former players, opportunities to hock leage gear, video game promotions, etc.

Of course all of this has been changed a bit by the Super Bowl being in Detroit this year. That would seem to indicate to me that maybe the whole neutral site thing might be more vulnerable that I thought. Still, Detroit is an indoor stadium. Can you imagine all those corporate partiers and celebrities dealing with a game in Chicago in late January? In Green Bay?

I think one good thing about the neutral site is that it is a recognition of the fact that the two conferences are rarely equally strong. Seattle had a much better record than Pittsburgh and was a number one seed-- but does anyone think Seattle's road to the big game was anywhere near as difficult? The neutral site at least makes up for a big discrepancy between the strengths of the conferences, a little bit.