Super Bowl Notebook
Feb 5, 2005 5:30 pm
US/Eastern
JACKSONVILLE, Fla.
(AP) -- Steve Young made it to the NFL Hall of Fame, and he picked
up some nice souvenirs along the way.
"Literally, that's how
I saw the world," said the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback,
who was elected to the Hall on Saturday along with Dan Marino, Benny
Friedman and Fritz Pollard.
Young said Saturday that one of
the thrills of his career was being able to visit cities like
Berlin, Tokyo, London and Barcelona for exhibition games.
"You were just looking for a free vacation," Marino chimed
in.
Friedman, also a quarterback, was one of the NFL's
biggest draws from 1927-34. Pollard was the first black head coach
in the NFL and a running back who led the Akron Pros to the
fledgling league's 1920 championship with an undefeated record.
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READING THE T.O. LEAVES: Sports astrologer Andrea
Mallis sees something in the stars for Philadelphia Eagles star
Terrell Owens.
Mallis, who is a sort of official astrologer
for the Oakland Athletics' radio post-game show, said that Owens
faces a challenging Saturn aspect (the planet of limitation) to his
Mars (physical energy) while trying to come back early from leg
surgery.
"It should be fascinating to watch his role,
however limited, as Saturn tends to delay, deny and restrict," she
said. "Much to his chagrin and dismay, it looks like his chart may
render him a non-factor -- or worse, he can re-injure himself. (He)
may be dismayed if he is not utilized enough, as Mars in Capricorn
opposes his Saturn in Cancer on Super Bowl Sunday -- sort of a
cosmic double whammy."
Mallis advised Owens to watch for
"excessive physical strain and exertion, annoying ego conflicts."
"Not the most positive forecast for T.O.," she said.
Astrology, like other forms of prognostication, can be hit
or miss.
A week before last year's Super Bowl, Mallis that
the halftime show "should be rather ethereal, filled with the
exotic, bizarre and glamorous" -- not much of a stretch, based on
the past ones. But she also said that "confusion can reign; lots of
replays may be needed when strange alignments occur."
Sure
enough, Janet Jackson's "wardrobe malfunction" became one of the
most replayed TV clips of the year.
Mallis also guessed that
the outcome would be in doubt, and the New England Patriots won on a
late field goal by Adam Vinatieri.
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AND MANY MORE: Ty
Warren's wife is going to have to find him another birthday present.
The New England Patriots defensive lineman, who turns 24 on
Super Bowl Sunday, was planning to come to the game even if the
Patriots didn't make it.
"I was talking to my wife earlier
in the year and she asked me what I wanted. I said that would be a
good present for me," he said. "So we were planning on going
anyway."
And how about a second Super Bowl ring for the
second-year player.
"It would be icing on the cake," he
said.
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PAINT IT BLACK: It's the second straight Super
Bowl for the New England Patriots, but the fifth in a row for the
company that paints their logo in the end zone.
World Class
Athletic Surfaces, of Leland, Miss., provided about 600 gallons of
paint to color the grass in Alltel Stadium, including the teams'
logos in the end zone and the Super Bowl logo at midfield. With cool
temperatures and showers before game day, this year has been a
challenge.
"They put a tarp on (the field), and water's been
on top of it and water's underneath it. The paint's not really
drying," said Tra DuBois, the company owner. "But being our fifth
one, it's been special."
Work on the painting began in
December, when the NFL playoff field took shape. DuBois said he was
mixing the Eagles' shade of green and creating the stencil for the
team's end zone logo while the Patriots were beating the Pittsburgh
Steelers in the AFC championship on Jan. 23.
The logo
patterns and first batch of paint arrived at Jacksonville that
night. The next day, the crew at the stadium gave the field the
first of four pre-game paintings.
(Copyright 2005 by The
Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
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