Freshman open option major Nathaniel Rocks wears a Broncos hoodie on campus in anticipation of Sunday’s Super Bowl. “Champ Bailey is going to have a huge game, Broncos all the way,” Rocks said. (Nigel Amstock/CU Independent Photo Illustration)
Opinions on a college campus are usually quite diverse. Unless, it seems, the hometown team is playing in the Super Bowl, like the Denver Broncos will Sunday when they take on the Seattle Seahawks at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. These days, the sentiment at CU is overwhelmingly pro-Broncos in the lead up to the big game.
“Broncos. I’m from Colorado,” freshman integrative physiology major Hannah Carpenter said. “I was actually born in Washington, so either way, I’m down. But go Broncos!”
“I gotta pull for the Denver Broncos,” sophomore broadcast news major Joe Parris said. “I’ve been a huge Broncos fan since the minute I came out of the womb.”
Parris also had a unique take on how Denver got to Super Bowl XLVIII.
“This all got started in motion when the Denver Broncos signed Brady Quinn to the practice squad,” he said. “It got Tim Tebow off the team; it got Kyle Orton off the team. Although Brady Quinn is sitting on his couch at home, you can thank him for Denver winning the Super Bowl on Sunday.”
Campus isn’t completely devoid of Seahawks fans, however.
“I think the Seahawks are gonna dominate,” said senior integrative physiology major and Seattle-native Chris Warnke. “I bet it’s over a 10-point win. Bump-and-run all day!”
Seahawks defensive back Richard Sherman’s comments after the NFC Championship Game victory against the San Francisco 49ers (23-17) caused a media firestorm, but CU students weren’t phased.
“I think he’s one of the most misunderstood athletes of our time,” Parris said. “When people rip him a new one about getting excited after going to the Super Bowl, I think it’s really immature.”
Senior aerospace engineering major Nick Busbey blamed Sherman’s outburst on Seattle coach Pete Carroll.
“Same thing used to happen down at USC [where Carroll previously coached],” he said. “When they practice out on the field, it’s a giant party. He brings DJs out onto the field while they’re practicing, and they just blast music.”
What do CU students think will be the most crucial one-on-one battle on Sunday?
“Percy Harvin on Champ Bailey, or whoever’s covering him,” Warnke said. He doesn’t think Harvin’s recent injuries will hinder him on Sunday. “You get a concussion; you can come back from that for a big game like this.”
Seahawks’ wide receiver Harvin had missed Seattle’s championship victory after a head injury suffered in the NFC divisional playoff game against the New Orleans Saints but was cleared to play in the Super Bowl.
Other students think the game will be decided in the trenches.
“Denver’s defensive line and Seattle’s running game,” Busbey said, when asked what the most important match up was. “The Broncos have never played a running quarterback before, so they don’t know how to contain it.”
“It’s the age-old tale, ‘defense wins championships’,” Parris said. “But what happens when it’s the best offense in NFL history?”
And then there is the potentially bad weather, something that has been as big a story as the game itself.
“I definitely think it’s gonna be an issue,” senior biochemistry major Sally Salim said. “I think that both teams aren’t gonna be on top of their game.”
This Super Bowl has been as hard to predict as any in recent memory, and it shows in the divided opinions of CU students.
“28-25, Seahawks,” senior mechanical engineering major Matt Caputo said. “Denver will score, but they won’t put up 50.”
“I’ve been playing a lot of Madden lately. I’ve been scoring up in the 40s,” Parris said. “But it’s gonna be in the snow. Final score, Denver Broncos, 3; Seattle Seahawks, 0; worst Super Bowl ever. Bring it back indoors.”
Contact CU Independent Staff Writer Thomas Wood at thwo3281@colorado.edu.
