It had to be the shoes. The hat too. With the New Orleans Saints trailing the Indianapolis Colts 17-13 in the third quarter of Super Bowl XLIV, Anthony Trepagnier Jr., claimed he was the victim of a self-inflicted wardrobe malfunction. He went into the bedroom of his Las Vegas home on what is appropriately named Making Memories Place and changed into his black Saints shoes and donned a different Saints hat. When he returned, Drew Brees was leading the Saints on a scoring drive.
Instead of seeing more magic from Peyton Manning, we watched as the Super Bowl took a surprising twist. It was a fall from grace for the NFL’s favorite quarterback.
No event in sports is preceded by more hype than the Super Bowl. Some years, the buildup leads to a big letdown and a blowout. Early in the morning, I’m sensing this game will be a good one.
The two-week Super Bowl hype-fest mercifully has come to an end. The top two seeds, the Indianapolis Colts from the AFC and New Orleans Saints from the NFC, will settle the issue today in Miami.
THREE REASONS TO LIKE THE COLTS (-5) OVER THE SAINTS
Tony Milazzo is watching his 35th Super Bowl in Las Vegas, but this year is a little special. The Baton Rouge, La., resident is part of a group of 20 southern Louisiana residents who plan to cheer on their home-state New Orleans Saints during a viewing party at the Riviera.
The end of a long NFL season is prime time for value shoppers at Las Vegas sports books. Some of the year’s best betting opportunities can be found by sifting through the hundreds of Super Bowl propositions offered by the books.
As far as coach-quarterback combinations go, only a couple in the NFL inspire belief in bettors more than Sean Payton and Drew Brees. Who imagined the New Orleans Saints would be considered cutting edge and hip?
Throw out the two games the Indianapolis Colts tanked, a self-sabotage scenario which threatened the integrity of the NFL, and Peyton Manning is 16-0 as a starting quarterback this season. Manning has won every game the Colts didn’t try to lose. In reality, he has a perfect record.
Only in the Super Bowl can a golfer (Phil Mickelson), a hockey star (Sidney Crosby) and a socialite/TV personality (Kim Kardashian) figure into the outcome of a wager. This is a football game unlike any other.
The betting public has already picked a side. The Indianapolis Colts are 51/2-point favorites over the New Orleans Saints on Feb. 7 in Miami, and Las Vegas sports books are getting flooded with cash on the Colts.
The books and contrarians will pull for Drew Brees and the Saints to slay the NFL’s Goliath quarterback, Peyton Manning.
It was at the Super Bowl a few years back, during the commissioner’s annual news conference two days before kickoff, when I asked Roger Goodell about the possibility of an NFL team ever making Las Vegas home.
Betting against Peyton Manning is rarely advised. It’s not as dumb as staring into the summer sun, which is a no-win situation, but it does fall in the category of playing with fire.
If a year ago, Brigham Young’s football team showed up disinterested, on Tuesday night, the Cougars were more than ready to play.
