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Posted 01/28/2009 at 12:19 AM
Some co-workers and friends at Las Vegas Sports Consultants have been telling me that Super Bowl XLIII will unofficially be known as 'The Brad Young Bowl.' Let me explain.
Everyone who knows me quickly learns that I'm a huge Pittsburgh Steelers fan since I was born in the Steel City and lived there during the four Super Bowls of the 1970's. I always joke that in 1980 my family was 'deported' to Arizona where the only professional sports team was the Phoenix Suns. The St. Louis Cardinals didn't arrive for another eight years.
Growing up in northern Arizona, we were so excited to see an NFL team that a friend and I drove up to Flagstaff to watch the then Phoenix Cardinals during training camp. But the truth of the matter is that I've never been a Cardinals fan because of the ownership. Arizona has only had two winning season since moving to the desert, one in 1998 and this season.
A ton of my Arizona friends called right after the championship game already talking about my 'dilemma.' Most of these 'Cardinal' fans weren't fans a month ago when they were were 9-7 heading into the playoffs. Back when the team played at Sun Devil Stadium, it was rare for Arizona fans to outnumber the fans from opposing teams. I distinctly remember going to an Arizona-Pittsburgh game about 10 years ago when it looked like Three Rivers East. The same scenario played out when Chicago, Dallas, Denver or Green Bay would visit the Cardinals.
However, that has pretty much changed since Arizona has moved into the incredible University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale. That stadium has already hosted a couple of memorable games, including the Boise State-Oklahoma Fiesta Bowl, the college national championship that saw Florida throttle Ohio State and Super Bowl XLII with the New York Giants upsetting New England.
Arizona has definately turned the corner since moving into its new stadium, and now the franchise has a NFC West and NFC Championship banner to hang in the rafters. Will a Super Bowl XLIII championship banner be part of the equation?
In breaking down the game for numerous articles, I keep coming back to the fact that defense wins championships. That being said, I do like taking Arizona and the seven points because I think it will be a close contest. The Cardinals enter this matchup riding a three-game straight up and against the spread winning streak. Arizona head coach Ken Whisenhunt knows Pittsburgh's defensive schemes after being the offensive coordinator there for a couple of years, including three years ago when the Steelers won Super Bowl XL.
The final score for the game that I'm predicting is Pittsburgh, 27-24. The disclaimer that I'm throwing out there is that I've hit only 48 percent of my NFL picks this season, including losing the last four games. If Arizona ends up winning the game straight up, I won't be able to go back to the Grand Canyon State for some time.
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