Super Bowl Sunday is one of my favorite days of the year. If I wasn't married and didn't have a family, it would be #1, but it does however supersede my birthday, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Opening Day. This event and all its elements creates an atmosphere that reminds me of the ingeniousness and splendor of this game.
Speaking of which, Super Bowl XLII represents the dexterity and excellence of a giant patriot in the NFL legacy, and his name is Bill Parcells.
Despite his Philistine approach to people and inherent obstinance, the Big Tuna knows football. He eats a bowl of 16-penny nails and drinks radiator fluid for breakfast, but you cannot argue and find much fault with his philosophy and strategy when it comes to crafting a football battalion.
Vince Lombardi and General Patton would have loved this kid.
Players and assistant coaches alike never sought approval from him nor knew where they stood with him and that was the way he wanted it. If you tried to seek these things out, you would fail because you weren't going to get it despite whatever you deemed success on any given Sunday.
His ideology was actually pretty simple: Control the ball on offense and play great defense while exposing the opponents' weaknesses.
That doctrine and even some of his stone cold character traits found their way into the brains of two assistants who served on Parcells' staff while with the NY Giants in 1990: Defensive coordinator Bill Belichick and wide receivers coach Tom Coughlin.
Both men have gone on to experience different levels of success in the NFL since those glory days with Bill Parcells and they face each other tomorrow in Super Bowl XLII, but the roads haven't been easy.
Belichick became the head coach of the Cleveland Browns from 1991-1995 and developed a rapport with fans that included being evasive, tyrannical, and conceited not including his 36-44 record. He moved on to become an assistant coach for the Jets and Patriots under Parcells until he became the head coach of the Patriots in 2000. He has since achieved four conference, three world championships, and is a cult icon in New England despite the recent Spygate scandal whose outcome is still undecided.
Despite his mastery in this new millennium so far, Belichick did not appear satisfied in pure Parcells-like fashion and so he went out this past off-season and found an arsenal of talent to surround his Jedi QB Tom Brady, and to anchor a defense that made opposing QB's quake in their boots. This included the despondent and out-spoken WR Randy Moss who many figured to be on the decline and would clash with Belichick's "Team First" attitude. The result has been truly historic as New England has cruised to an 18-0 record entering Sunday's battle riding on a cloud of superior confidence and unselfishness.
Which leads to Tom Coughlin. After that 1990 season, he went on to become head coach of Boston College until from 1991-1993 and then in 1995, he became head coach of the expansion Jacksonville Jaguars and experienced two AFC championships before being fired in 2002. After taking a year off, Coughlin was named head coach of the NY Giants and quickly became the target of intense criticism over his unconventional decision-making, meticulous attention to detail, and his insensitive relationships with his players. Sound familiar?
After a 25-23 record over three seasons (including 0-2 in the playoffs), the NY media and even some players voiced their desire to see Coughlin kicked to the curb. After a scandalous training camp involving contracts and more personality clashes, the 2007 season looked bleak for the NY Giants and Tom Coughlin's coaching future. Their first two games were losses, but what transpired next was extraordinary. Despite a dark cloud of angst and inconsistency, Coughlin and Co. won 13 of their next 17 games that included an NFL-record ten straight road wins. During this stretch, Coughlin preached teamwork and composure.
That effort has landed him in Glendale, AZ to face his former colleague for the national championship, and you can bet that The Tuna will be watching.
EDDIE'S PICK - NEW ENGLAND
STANDINGS
Cris Collinsworth: 1-1, 183-83
Cris Carter: 1-1, 178-88
Bob Costas: 1-1, 175-91
Dan Marino: 1-1, 174-92
Eddie Chinn: 1-1, 172-94
Chris Mortensen: 1-1, 169-97
Sean Salisbury: 1-1, 169-97
