Sunday, February 03, 2008

Little Giants No More

EAST BRUNSWICK, N.J. - Being that I'm not a particularly knowledgeable or rabid sports fan---not anymore, anyway---there's not much else I can add to what is probably one of the most amazing football games I will ever see in my lifetime.

Was there a more thrilling feat glimpsed at tonight's Superbowl than Giants quarterback Eli Manning, under immense pressure from Patriots defenders, somehow running out of the pressure, heaving a pass into the air and seeing it somehow make its way into the hands of David Tyree late in the fourth-quarter during the crucial drive that put the Giants up once and for all?

I almost wish I was at Wall Street Journal right now eavesdropping on the reactions of the many Giants fans working tonight at this stunning, glorious upset. The office will certainly be teeming with excitement tomorrow.

I'll admit it: I'm not really a Giants fan, but I was rooting hard for them in this game just so those darned Patriots wouldn't reach that 19-0 landmark. (Funny how that little videotaping scandal---in which Pats coach Bill Belichick was caught taping an opponent---in the first week of the regular season seemed to be brush aside so quickly.) But my realistic side told me to brace myself for a Patriots victory and just hope that the Giants would put up a good fight, like they did in the last game of the regular season against the Pats. Well, they sure put up a fight...and more.

Oh, and that odd ending to the game---with everyone rushing out onto the field even though there was still one second left on the clock---couldn't help but remind me of the way ecstatic Rutgers fans stormed Rutgers Stadium a few seconds early as the Scarlet Knights football team was on the verge of upsetting Louisville.

This was fun; I feel like I was a part of history. Now, of course, the Giants will be put in the position to prove, next season, that this upset was no fluke---a position the Patriots are no strangers of, after having to prove their legitimacy after Tom Brady and co. upset the Rams a few years ago. They went 7-9 the next year, I believe; will the same fate befall the Giants?

We'll see. Anyway, I guess it's time to focus on more pressing matters of national import. Oh Super Tuesday...

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