Hello and welcome to the Superbowl edition of 'The Lo Down'. Personally I was so glad that I stayed up to watch the big game live rather than recording it and watching it today!
I will come back to the game later but first I wanted to introduce my new segment FanZone. The name comes from the old sky sports alternate commentary to the premier league matches and seems apt for what I would like to achieve. The purpose of FanZone is to allow fans from all 32 teams to share their experiences with everyone and to convince our rookie readers to stick with the NFL.
I will come back to the game later but first I wanted to introduce my new segment FanZone. The name comes from the old sky sports alternate commentary to the premier league matches and seems apt for what I would like to achieve. The purpose of FanZone is to allow fans from all 32 teams to share their experiences with everyone and to convince our rookie readers to stick with the NFL.
My first guest here in the Ballhawksnest is a Model, Tattoo Artist, Winner at Ellismania 8 and New England Patriots fan, Miss Ruby Renegade.
Welcome to the Ballhawksnest Ruby, what is your earliest football memory?
One of the biggest football memories I have has to do with college football, My college team Boise State University's, Broncos won the 2007 Tositos Fiesta Bowl against Oklahoma. BSU scored a two point conversion in overtime to win the game and now some of BSU's best players have been drafted into the NFL.
Who or what made you chose to support the Patriots?
Honestly when I got into watching football I couldn't get over the fact that there was so much talent on the Patriots. I was always entertained watching Pats games. There's just too much excitement to not love the New England Patriots.
Do you manage to get to many games?
I have yet to attend a game, I'd love to get to one someday. It's not often the Pats play on the west coast, maybe 2013 will be the year!
Who is your favourite Patriots / NFL Player?
That's a tough one. I'd have to say it's a toss up between Welker, Gronk and Wilfork. To be honest I just love the whole team.
What three words would you use to describe the NFL action?
Dramatic, Controversial and sometimes Poetic.
What do you love most about the NFL?
I love seeing all the talent in the league, granted some great players are under-utilized (ahem Kellen Moore, Detroit Lions, most winningest QB in college history on the sidelines for every game.) I also have a love hate relationship with the fact that any given Sunday can ruin your whole season... haha.
What would you say to those people who say American Football isn't tough as they wear pads?
I'd say that Americans are known for always over doing everything. Our players are huge and they hit hard. If the players didn't wear pads and crazy high tech helmets, Wes Welker would be dead by now. We're constantly battling concussions and broken bones regardless of the amount of protective gear we have on. I say the pads keep the players on the field.
Finally please can I ask you to say a few words that will convince our rookie readers to continue watching the NFL?
Like I said earlier, any given Sunday, things can change tremendously. Keep watching and you'll always see something exciting. Players that move the chains to convert on 3rd down, crazy receptions that result in 100+ yard touchdowns, and ridiculous brain shaking hits, sacks and tackles.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank Ruby for her time and I strongly recommend you keep up to date with her work by checking out her blog at [email protected]. Please also take the time to like her facebook page www.facebook.com/MissRubyR and you can also follow her on twitter @TheRealRubyR.
Now let's get back to the big game, Superbowl XLVII between the Baltimore Ravens and the San Francisco 49ers. On paper you would have to say the 49ers were the favourites but we were all asking are Baltimore the team of destiny!
Before the game myself and my good friend Mickey 'Big Dog' Hogg played the Superbowl on Madden 2013 as you do. The last time we did this it was for the 2009 Superbowl which followed suit even down to the Saints picking off Peyton Manning in the fourth quarter to ice the game. This year it was an extremely defensive struggle with the score six all going into the fourth quarter. Finally San Francisco (Mickey) came out on top with a two touchdown victory. If this was a sign of things to come in the real game we were going to be in for a treat!
Before the game myself and my good friend Mickey 'Big Dog' Hogg played the Superbowl on Madden 2013 as you do. The last time we did this it was for the 2009 Superbowl which followed suit even down to the Saints picking off Peyton Manning in the fourth quarter to ice the game. This year it was an extremely defensive struggle with the score six all going into the fourth quarter. Finally San Francisco (Mickey) came out on top with a two touchdown victory. If this was a sign of things to come in the real game we were going to be in for a treat!
Back to the real Superbowl XLVII and the Baltimore Ravens won the coin toss and elected to kick. On their first possession the 49ers were unable to move the ball and were forced to punt it back to the Ravens. In a complete contrast to San Francisco, The Ravens looked very slick and were able to drive the ball 51 yards down the field resulting in a 13 touchdown pass to Anquan Boldin. It appeared the Ravens had learned from previous experience just how good a playmaker Boldin can be in clutch situations.
On their next attempt San Francisco managed to start moving the ball through Frank Gore and Vernon Davis, two of their big weapons during the regular season. Unfortunately despite their initial progress the 49ers drive did stall and they ended up settling for three points off a David Akers field goal. We now move into the second quarter and just like the previous quarter San Francisco struggled on both sides of the ball. This was never more evident than when Courtney Upshaw forced a fumble from LaMichael James. This fumble resulted in a 75 yard drive by the Ravens which was finished off by a one yard pass to Dennis Pitta. Things went from bad to worse for the 49ers as Colin Kaepernicks next pass was intercepted by the ballhawk Ed Reed!
On this possession the Ravens managed to drive the ball to their opponents 14 yard line and in a moment of madness went for a fake field goal on fourth down and San Francisco managed to stop the play one yard short of the first down. On the Ravens next drive they went back to doing what works and it led to this great touchdown catch from Jacoby Jones. Please click on the picture below to see the highlight.
Halftime could not come soon enough for the 49ers although they did manage another field goal before the end of the half. At the half the score was 21-6 to the Baltimore Ravens and we were in real danger of having a blowout Superbowl!
Thinking of halftime, this year we had Beyonce performing the show. For some reason there was a lot of haters on twitter about her act but personally I thought it was amazing. I will let you decide for yourselves by checking out the show below but please make sure you make the time to watch as it is 14 minutes long.
Thinking of halftime, this year we had Beyonce performing the show. For some reason there was a lot of haters on twitter about her act but personally I thought it was amazing. I will let you decide for yourselves by checking out the show below but please make sure you make the time to watch as it is 14 minutes long.
Okay so onto the second half we go and by golly did it start with a bang or what, Jacoby Jones returned the kickoff 109 yards for a touchdown. On further review it was down graded to a 108 yard kick off return. Either way the Ravens were now up 28 - 6 and the future was looking bleak for the 49ers. You could say that San Francisco needed some help from above and they got it because half of the stadium lights went out two plays into the next drive.
In total the lights were out for about 34 minutes giving San Francisco some much needed time to regroup. The little break worked like a charm for the 49ers as they went on to score 14 unanswered points in the third quarter thanks to Michael Crabtree, Frank Gore and some bad tackling by the Ravens.
Check out the poor tackling on Crabtree's touchdown by clicking on the picture of darkness above. Let this be a lesson to any new players out there, always remember to wrap up the ball carrier when tackling.
Now we move into the fourth quarter with the score at 28-20 to Baltimore. On the second play of the quarter the Ravens lost their first turnover of the day as Tarell Brown forced Ray Rice to fumble the ball after a short reception. San Francisco took this opportunity and turned it into a field goal. It's now 28-23 with a lot of time to play in the fourth quarter. The Ravens then went back the other way and scored a field goal to make it 31-23. The scoring continued again as Kaepernick ran in the longest touchdown by a quarterback in Superbowl history from 15 yards out. The 49ers missed the two point conversion and so we were at 31-29. The Ravens scored another field goal to make it 34-29 and put all the pressure onto the rookie Kaepernick. Kaepernick managed to stay calm and drove his side to within 10 yards of the winning score. As if by design it came down to Ray Lewis and his defence to stop the 49ers from spoiling their party.
Unfortunately for the 49ers it was not meant to be their day as the Ravens forced a four and out and will be taking the Vince Lomabardi trophy back to Maryland. The final score was 34-31 to Baltimore. Please check out the game highlights by clicking the picture of Ray Lewis below.
Check out the poor tackling on Crabtree's touchdown by clicking on the picture of darkness above. Let this be a lesson to any new players out there, always remember to wrap up the ball carrier when tackling.
Now we move into the fourth quarter with the score at 28-20 to Baltimore. On the second play of the quarter the Ravens lost their first turnover of the day as Tarell Brown forced Ray Rice to fumble the ball after a short reception. San Francisco took this opportunity and turned it into a field goal. It's now 28-23 with a lot of time to play in the fourth quarter. The Ravens then went back the other way and scored a field goal to make it 31-23. The scoring continued again as Kaepernick ran in the longest touchdown by a quarterback in Superbowl history from 15 yards out. The 49ers missed the two point conversion and so we were at 31-29. The Ravens scored another field goal to make it 34-29 and put all the pressure onto the rookie Kaepernick. Kaepernick managed to stay calm and drove his side to within 10 yards of the winning score. As if by design it came down to Ray Lewis and his defence to stop the 49ers from spoiling their party.
Unfortunately for the 49ers it was not meant to be their day as the Ravens forced a four and out and will be taking the Vince Lomabardi trophy back to Maryland. The final score was 34-31 to Baltimore. Please check out the game highlights by clicking the picture of Ray Lewis below.
When the match was over you could see the emotion pour out of all the Ravens players and especially Mr Ray Lewis. It amazes me that such a great player and human being gets so much hate on the likes of twitter. For me this was the perfect swan song for an athlete of his calibre. When I look at Ray Lewis, not only do I see a great player but I see someone who inspires me with everything he says and does!
With the way the Superbowl turned out I am reminded of what Ruby said earlier about how the game can be poetic! On that note I bid you adieu for another week, until next time folks take care and stay safe.
With the way the Superbowl turned out I am reminded of what Ruby said earlier about how the game can be poetic! On that note I bid you adieu for another week, until next time folks take care and stay safe.