The Rambler (Fort Worth, Tex.), Vol. 91, No. 2, Ed. 1 Wednesday, February 4, 2004 Page: 6 of 8
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6 February 4, 2004
Sports
The Rambler
Super Bowl XXXVIII hits snooze button
Super Bowl XXIII, XXIV,
XXV, III, XXXIV...all great
games when the games are sup-
posed to be the greatest. These
Sundays are what have made the
history of the big game so, for lack
of a better word, "super."
Super Bowl XXXVIII is not on
this list for a reason. Many ana-
lysts and supposed experts have
compared the Feb. 1 game
between the New England Patriots
and the Carolina Panthers to the
aforementioned list of the greatest
Bowls of all time. I disagree.
I don't understand how any-
one, much less someone who is
paid for their knowledgeable opin-
ion on such subject matter, can,
with a straight face, say that this
year's big game was better that the
two back-to-back masterpieces that
the immortal Joe Montana and
Jerry Rice put together. The first
of the two was a comeback effort
against the Cincinnati Bengals that
demonstrated some of Montana's
magic. The next was a 55-10
romping of the Denver Broncos,
which made for the largest margin
in the game's history.
I don't understand how anyone
can compare the Pats-Panthers
contest to the tightest game in
Bowl history, XXV, which pitted
the New York Football Giants
against the Buffalo Bills. The
back-and-forth game was decided
by one point, 20-19, when Scott
Norwood's last-second 47-yard
field goal attempt sailed "wide
right, wide right."
I don't understand how anyone
can honestly put last Sunday's
game in the same paragraph, much
less the same breath, as the infa-
mous "guaranteed" Super Bowl III
between the New York Jets and
the Baltimore Colts. More than
75,000 fans packed the Orange
Bowl to its citrusy rim to watch
the flamboyant "Broadway" Joe
Namath fulfill his guaranteed vic-
tory over another great, Johnny U,
and his 15-1 Colts at a count of
16-7.
I don't understand how anyone
can mention Super Bowl XXXVIII
alongside the battle that the
Tennessee Titans and St. Louis
Rams ground out in 2000 at Super
Bowl XXXIV. Tennessee's quar-
terback Steve McNair was an
unheard of 22-of-26 for 214 yards
as he led his Titan team back from
a 16-point deficit to less than one
yard from victory when Kevin
Dyson was tackled stretching for
the goal line as time expired.
These are the best games that
Super Sunday has ever seen. Super
Bowl XXXVIII was boring. It did
not belong on such a list. And yet,
an ESPN poll ranked this year's
game, with 30 percent of the vote,
right behind Super Bowl XXXIV,
which had 31 percent.
I struggled to stay interested in
the first half Even the commen-
tary was boring. At least the World
Series has Joe Buck. The first
three quarters were eventless. The
highlight of the game before the
fourth quarter onslaught by both
teams was Janet's "unintentional"
nipple flash during halftime and
the referee costume-baring streaker
that delayed the second half kick-
off. By the way, Janet went on
record to say that the costume-
tearing incident with J.T. was a
last-second stunt that was not
meant to go as far as it did.
The fourth quarter was enter-
taining, or what I caught of it as I
tried to shake off the drowsiness
from my three-and-a-half quarter
nap. The teams combined for a
total of 37 points in the final frame
as the defensive units for both
squads were seemingly trying to
shake off similar drowsiness as
mine.
The long drives that each team
put together in the fourth quarter
were masterpieces. I will give
them that. Panther running back
DeShaun Foster's flaunting dive
into the end zone after a 33-yard
run was exciting. I almost left my
seat. Carolina QB Jake
Delhomme's perfectly placed 85-
yard touchdown pass over the right
shoulder of Muhsin Muhammad
was amazing; it also broke the
Super Bowl record for the longest
TD pass. The Pats' Mike Vrabel,
of all people, and his scoring catch
on the goal line was definitely eye-
opening. Delhomme's seven-play,
80-yard drive with 1:08 remaining
was almost Elway-like and defi-
nitely worthy of a Super Sunday.
New England kicker Adam
Vinatieri's 41-yarder with four sec-
onds left was just too much like a
bad sequel. Sure, it had the added
drama of his four previous
attempts and fails at Houston's
Reliant Stadium, two of which
were earlier in the game, but it
was just another Vinatieri clutch
kick. Every football fan in
America knew he'd split the
uprights without a hitch. And Tom
Brady won another Super Bowl
MVP award for his 32-for-48, 354
yard, three-touchdown perform-
ance, which was deserved at the
least. But it was still no surprise.
Just like Shadow, Sassy and
Chance finding their way home in
Homeward Bound 2.
The 38th edition of the Super
Bowl was not the best of all time.
At best, it ranked in the top 15.
Marc Nettles is a junior mass communi-
cation major and is editor-in-chief for The
Rambler.
Rams baseball drops two in Lady Rams' Walker earns
season opener against DBU RRAC co-player of the week
Christine Pierce
STAFF WRITER
For the opening game of the sea-
son. the Rams baseball team finished
against the Dallas Baptist Patriots with
two losses at 11-6 and 9-4.
The chilly weather brought few
fans out to support Wesleyan in its first
game against an NCAA Division I
school.
Drew Jeffcoat, first baseman and
left-handed pitcher, said. "We showed
potential for a good year, but we still
have things to work on.
"We just need to get our kinks out
before the New Orleans tournament,"
added Jeffcoat.
Sophomore catcher Matt Putman
went 2-for-3. Jeffcoat went 4-for-8, and
Travis Clifford went 3-for-6 with an run
batted in.
Shea Harrison, a sophomore left-
handed pitcher, helped the Rams with
3-1/3 good innings.
Clifford said, "I think we did pretty
well...l really look forward to the sea-
son, and I think we have a real, promis-
ing team."
The next home game is scheduled
for 1 p.m. Feb. 24 for two seven-
inning games against Louisiana State
University at Shreveport.
Marc Nettles
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
The Red River
Athletic Conference has
awarded another member
of the Texas Wesleyan
women's basketball team
with the title of co-player
of the week. Senior for-
ward Ashley Walker
earned the honor for her
outstanding play the week
of Jan. 18-24.
During the two-game
span. Walker averaged 21
points and 10.5 rebounds
per contest. Walker also
shot a lights-out 55.6 per-
cent from the floor, and
was a bright spot in what
was a dim week for head
coach Stacy Francis and
her Lady Rams.
On Jan. 19 at
Langston, Walker racked
up 17 points and pulled
down seven rebounds in a
61-45 loss. Walker lit up
the home scoreboard on
Jan. 24 as well against
Texas A&M University-
International. In the 72-69
loss. Walker tallied 25
points and managed 14
boards for an impressive
double-double.
Last year. Walker
missed several games
after a severe knee injury
sidelined her for the rest
of the season. She has
returned this year in full
effect, as she is averaging
12.5 points per game on
51.2 percent shooting,
which ranks her fourth in
the conference, and just
over eight rebounds per
contest, which ranks sixth
in the RRAC.
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Nettles, Marc. The Rambler (Fort Worth, Tex.), Vol. 91, No. 2, Ed. 1 Wednesday, February 4, 2004, newspaper, February 4, 2004; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth253310/m1/6/: accessed April 23, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas Wesleyan University.