America's game delivers

Overtones of religion and patriotism bark from the bar's 38 televisions as the New England Patriots and the Philadelphia Eagles take the field in Jacksonville, Fla. - three areas that have absolutely little in common with Northern Nevada.

So why do we watch, football fanatics and those who don't know a touchdown from a tea bag?

Because it's the Super Bowl.

The bartenders toss T-shirts to the crowd of more than 200. One man blocks a group at a neighboring table while his friend dives for one of the rolled-up souvenirs. Next to him, an unprepared fan seemingly calling for a fair catch gets knocked out of the way and comes up empty-handed. The man who dives for the shirt makes a spectacular grab, gets up, brushes off to some applause, and then gives the shirt to man who got knocked out of the way. No hard feelings.

The crowd - few rabid in their support for either team, few wearing either Eagles or Patriots uniforms - has massed to take part in an annual ceremony linked to the very stakes in which our culture is planted.

"This is game day," said Bully's manager Arline Tolbert, to put it simply. "The rest of the year is just practice."

But it's not just "game day," it's "America's game day," an unofficial holiday that celebrates strength and strategy through beer and cheerleaders.

While much of the world slips into the relative coma of shin guards and soccer balls, Americans gather among family and friends in living rooms and bars to watch a war.

Eagles fan Jami Tucker and her date, Patriots fan Matt Everitt, watch the game intently from their stools at the bar. Tucker, who just moved to the area from Sacramento, Calif., is wearing the most appropriate uniform she could think of: A sweater with an American flag print.

"I wanted to come with my usual Dolphins jersey," said the recent transplant. "But I decided to go with something that pretty much supports either side."

Both watch companies blow their advertising budgets trying to out-clever each other. Cars, beer and technology are a common thread. In the first quarter alone, viewers are smacked over the head with the binding energy of cultural icons - P. Diddy, Carson Daly and Burt Reynolds, the latter taking a crotch-kick from a dancing bear. It's a showcase of commerce and creativity, distinctly American.

With half-time entertainer Paul McCartney not threatening a dreaded "wardrobe malfunction" and keeping whatever pasties he might be wearing under his shirt, fans enjoyed a scandal-free, half-hour bathroom break, the score tied 7-7.

Paul Hoefert of Carson City was enjoying the game, despite "not really caring who wins or loses."

"I have a small bet on the Eagles," he hinted. "But mostly, I'm just here because it's what I always do on Super Bowl Sunday."

Hoefert claims he's never missed a Super Bowl.

"It's kind of like Groundhog Day," he says. "And I'm the groundhog."

It's one game with 60 minutes of all-out wholesome American fun. And at the end - the memories of humorous commercials, good times and a needed sense of closure in a world where events seem to bleed from one day into another.

The Super Bowl always delivers a final score. A blessed ending.

Of course, there's always next year ...

n Contact reporter Peter Thompson at pthompson@nevadaappeal.com or 881-1215.