Day 5 - Are We There Yet?

There is a distinct tendency by the Friday of Super Bowl week to stop, look around and think 'Isn't it game time yet?'

Virtually every story angle has been exhausted (apart from the one whereby one of the players gets arrested for something suitably outlandish or tawdry on the Saturday night, or just goes AWOL), the last press conferences have been given, nearly all the fans are in town ready for a serious party, and the UK media has filed its last pre-game story (due to the time difference and Sunday newspapers needing their non-soccer copy by Friday morning).

It means we have entered the Twilight Zone of Super Bowl coverage; a realm betwixt and between; neither still an ongoing, 'live' event (until the first ball is kicked), nor anything you can ignore totally in case the aforementioned bizarre Saturday night incident happens early and everyone has to re-write their stories.

Therefore we are 'in residence' at the Media Center but not paying full attention (partly because we've had another early start to the day and partly because the two main conferences featuring the head coaches are, by now, producing the exact same words we have already heard half a gazillion times this week. They are just in a different order. The amazing thing is that both Mike Tomlin and Ken Whisenhunt can stand there and respond with a calm, straight face when, really, you'd think they would want to pound the podium with a fist and scream 'You've already asked me that question, 2,000 times, in 2,000 different ways and got the same answer every time! What makes you think I'm going to change it now?!').

We've also had another great escapade with the ever-changing local law enforcment restrictions on the various roads around the Convention Center. Today, Franklin Street has been cordoned off just south of the Center, completely ruining any chance of being able to retrace your steps if (and when) you are directed the wrong way by one of their very bored traffic officers. Our car park of choice is also inaccessible from one side of the road (due to an incredible outbreak of cones), so we must go further afield in search of a spot for our vehicular transportation. We end up at Channelside, about half a mile away. Happily, parking here seems to be free today, much to our pleasant surprise.

Ken Whisenhunt is asked (not for the first time) about "how well prepared" his team is at this stage, as if he is going to turn round and say "Actually, we have pretty much goofed off all week and I haven't been thinking about the game. We're just here for the party." But someone has to ask something, otherwise we're reduced to interviewing each other (again - the local Tampa Tribune was quizzing foreign journos on Tuesday night about how we enjoyed this city compared to other Bowl venues, and we were all suitably complimentary, unbearable suck-ups that we are).

Fortunately, there are a few other events which provide a reasonable diversion while we wait for the clock to tick down to the time that precludes any possible further addition to our newspapers for the Saturday edition (thanks to the 5-hour time difference).

I manage to look into the Pro Football Writers Association meeting, and then join the majority of the press throng for The Commish, the annual 'state of the gridiron nation' statement and Q&A with the impressively smooth Roger Goodell (although I wish I could tie his arms to his sides, as he tends to 'talk' so much with the use of his hands, a la George W, that it quickly becomes a huge distraction watching his arms waving around).

There is still time afterwards to amend a few final facts for my News of the World story (Facts? in a News of the World story? What am I thinking?) and spend some time in the writing room working on one of these blogs, which I have allowed to slide on the Thursday due to the hectic nature of that particular day.

And that brings us to Friday afternoon, and the de facto end of our pre-game hoopla. There is nothing that can now be added for the UK papers (unless either Kurt Warner or Anquan Boldin drops dead, which would slightly spoil my NotW story), so it only remains to head out into the real Super Bowl world, that of the growing army of fans, and witness first-hand how it is shaping up.

The answer, if you are the Cardinals, is not good. We do, eventually, spot some Arizona jerseys, but the Convention Center and Channelside areas are swarming with Steelers, so it could be a bit lonely for Kurt Warner and Co inside Raymond James Stadium. Pittsburgh fans are always ready to come out in support of their team at the drop of a hat, but this is a pretty impressive turnout all the same.

It does beg the question, does Arizona actully realize its team is playing in a faily important game on Sunday?