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As the story goes, in 1966 to promote the newly-created championship game between the venerable NFL and upstart AFL, Kansas City Chiefs owner Lamar Hunt coined the phrase "Super Bowl" -- remembering his children playing with a Super Ball toy. Yeah, those things from Wham-O that drove our parents nuts when bounced inside the house. Hurt like crazy, too, if you got smacked in the head with one. And were impossible to catch up to while watching them boink and boink about 10 feet high each hop when they got away from us. Some bouncing all the way down the street, never to be seen again. Who really knows? Some might still be bouncing.
Anyhow, the name Super Bowl stuck. Along with using Roman numerals that most of us can't or don't bother to figure out. Why don't they just call it Super Bowl 58 instead of Super Bowl LVIII? Simply because that would make sense. According to NFL speak: Roman numerals were used to avoid any confusion that could happen since the championship win is recognized the year the season started and not the year in which it ended. Ummm and OK, that all makes sense now to the LVIIIth power.
The Super Bowl will be played Sunday. It is the biggest single sporting event of the year. By far. It is America's biggest unofficial holiday. It's time for wings, pizza and, for so many, booze. There are some -- which we find pretty amusing -- who even want the Monday following the Super Bowl to be declared a legal national holiday. Yeah, go ahead and chuckle. Maybe that will come after, oh say, Congress declares a specific national holiday for Jack and Bobby Kennedy or FDR. For starters.
There is a estimated 335,893,238 United States residents and counting. Last year, 115 million TV viewers watched the Chiefs beat the Eagles. Do the math. Yes, that figures out to about one of every three men, women and children in our country. Millions more streamed. And that was before Travis Kelce gave Taylor Swift his class ring, letterman's jacket and asked her to the prom. Just kidding, sort of. Hey, aren't some of us just a wee bit tired of all of that? Thought so. But apparently this fling has become a marketing viewership magnet for the NFL. All those Swifties are lovin' a good romance. What do you think the over/under is for Taylor Swift broadcast cutaways during the game? The guess here is at least a dozen -- or three a quarter not counting halftime.
Of course, the Super Bowl is not for everyone. Thank goodness for that. Our world needs the equilibrium provided by those watching classic movies, home shopping networks, the Hallmark Channel or a Sponge Bob marathon instead of the Super Bowl. Not to mention cuddling up with a good book. Or taking a nap. Or, you know, listening to Taylor Swift CDs.
But ten of millions will watch. Researchers say 49 percent of all TV sets will be turned on to the game -- many viewers more interested in the commercials and halftime show (possible wardrobe malfunctions and all) than the game itself. There is not a clear, exact study detailing how many people will be drinking alcohol. More specifically how many people will be drinking alcohol to excess. Then, perhaps, getting clumsily behind the wheel of a vehicle. Most will get away with it. Some won't.
People do not want to read or hear sermons regarding the evils of drink and drive. We will leave any preaching to the pulpit. But anyone with even a few functioning brain cells knows what can happen. Still, we read and hear about it every single day. About all of the tragedies and hardships that are caused. But people keep doing it. Especially on a day like Super -- not Stupor, mind you -- Bowl Sunday. It doesn't help that Super Bowl Sunday is a daylong event. By the time the game actually kicks off around 6:30 p.m., there has been an ocean of alcohol consumed across our country. A really deep ocean with a lot of drunks already bobbing in it among the empty cans, bottle and kegs.
If you are drinking to excess how hard is it to get a designated driver, call a taxi or just plain sleep it off wherever you happen to be? What about those hosting a Super Bowl party? According to the Insurance Information Institute, social host liability laws -- known as "Dram Shop Liability" -- vary widely from state to state. But 42 states and the District of Columbia have them on the books. Most of these laws also offer an injured person, such as the victim of a drunk driver, a method to sue the person who served the alcohol. There are circumstances under these laws where criminal charges may also apply. Ohio is included among those states with liability laws applicable to guests of all ages. Keep that in mind if hosting a party.
There is a reason so many vigilant cops are out and about on Super Bowl Sunday. They know where to hide too. If you are holding a party do some advance planning in case someone does get drunk at your home. Got a guest bedroom or even a couch, sleeping bags and extra blankets? Good. Make use of them. Sunday should be a fun and not sad day. Don't screw it up by being super stupid on Super Bowl Sunday.
And now our picks: 49ers by VII and take the over on the Taylor Swift cutaways. That is a lock.