Another Super Bowl is in the books. And thanks to certain insane people close to me, it was at the same time the best and worst I’ve had in recent memory.

The game was great.  Some of the commercials were very good.  And I won my biggest bet, clearing five units for the game.  (Don’t ask what a unit is to me.  It’s very sad, really.)  But it was because of said bet that I got the fifth degree from Mrs. Average Joe.  Perhaps you’ve faced this odd beast before – getting harassed for your bet even though you won it.

Never mind that I was a winner.  That the cash is now waiting in my account, waiting to be spent on whatever strikes my fancy.  That I faced down the oddsmakers, saw a good number for what it was, and capitalized.  I got Prop #219 at Millennium Sportsbook, "Will there be more than one onside kick” bet, at –200 early in the week.  I had the "No," and it was never in doubt.  By the time the Eagles attempted (quite poorly by the way) their onside kick late in the fourth quarter, it was a real stretch to rationalize another one being attempted.  

So I cleaned up on a prop bet that paid off handsomely, yet I made the egregious error of being happy about it in front of said Mrs. Average Joe.  Had you been there, you would have thought I had wagered and lost her honor, inheritances and all future fortunes all in one fell swoop.  The level of scorn and dismay I faced was unmatched in my lifetime.  I may as well have farted, loudly and into a microphone, at church.  Or exposed myself on national television. 

But let’s not kid ourselves here.  I’ve been scorned by my dearly betrothed before, and I will be again.  Had I lost the bet, we’d be dealing with another beast entirely.  Onto some things that struck me during the Super Bowl broadcast.

We’ll start with the pre-game.  When will enough be enough?  The Fox network made its mark with lowest common denominator programming, but it generally dominates the opposition in sports broadcasts.  I have no complaints with the game broadcast itself.  But the pre-game was atrocious.  A hole-in-one contest between Dale Jarrett and Trent Green featuring Fuzzy Zoeller?  Please.  Either talk about football or run a Jillian Barbarie/chick from The Black Eyed Peas loop.  Stick with your roots, Fox.  Give me skin or give me sports.  Spare me the filler. 

Here’s a game-related question.  Who hired the refs?  Maybe I’m expecting too much, but I’d be a little perturbed if I was in charge of the men in stripes.  There were three challenges in the game, and all of them were quickly overturned because they were clearly blown calls.  The one on the catch was understandably close, but the two fumbles were way off.  Way, way off.  I think the head ref had the over on the coaches’ challenge prop.

The halftime show was conspicuously devoid of “supposedly” unintentionally nudity.  But I will not fault any halftime show that gives the whole stage to Sir Paul McCartney instead of the teenybopper of the day (see Orange Bowl halftime show).  We were spared having to suffer through some failed American Idol contestant (surprisingly, given the network affiliation) or similar Top 40 crap.  Instead, we got a medley from one of the main cogs of the Greatest Band of All Time, The Beatles.  Well done, TV people.

A big thanks goes out to the Eagles for making it a good game.  Terrell Owens is now officially tougher than your dad, and the bookmakers were probably pleased with their effort too. 

To those of you who stuck around for the postgame cartoons – Good for you.  Here are my highlights.  Flanders outdid himself with his own personal “Passion of the Christ”.  Top-notch hard-core God flick.  And Homer had some very good ideas on end zone celebrations.  Tom Brady bringing a Segway onto the field was great, especially considering what had just happened in the Super Bowl.  As far as The American Guy, there’s promise there.  God looked just like Jerry Garcia, which I enjoyed.  And the God-Bush phone call was priceless.

All in all, it was a fine end to what has been a very trying football season.  The Super Bowl was close and entertaining, which is always welcome.  I won money, which is nice.  I also got the fifth degree from my special lady, but The Average Joe can deal with that.  Let’s put this season to bed and hunker down on hoops.  As always, Give ‘Em Hell.