We've been holding a Super Bowl party here since the 2021-2022 season. Let's recap the last eleven Super Bowls of where we were, who we were with and what we ate.
2012-2013 - Ravens and the 49ers. I remember the power going out in the stadium during this game and Baltimore prevailed. I was watching the game with Mom. We made some homemade pizza, had chips and dip.
2013-2014 - Seahawks and the Broncos. I was so excited for this game. I wanted the Seahawks to win a Super Bowl so badly. This was my first Super Bowl I spent with Ben. We went over to his friend's Walt and Wendy's house to watch it. They had quite the spread of food, prizes and decorations. They went all out! I really thought this game was pretty evenly matched. I was expecting a close game. The game was not close, and the Seahawks curbed stomped Peyton Manning and the Broncos 43-8. Defense wins championships.
Ben and I went to the Super Bowl parade on the Tuesday after the game. Once was enough for this lifetime.
2014-2015 - Seahawks and Patriots. I hate Tom Brady with a passion. We watched the game over at my parent's house and we ate nachos. Ben came over to watch the game with us. We had this game won until the last drive. We made a huge mistake that everyone will always remember. They should have handed it off to Lynch on 2nd and goal. We were so disappointed.
2015-2016 - Super Bowl 50. Broncos and Panthers. We were happy to have the Broncos win this game because we were so sick of how whiney Cam Newton was. We also suspected that if Peyton Manning won, he would retire. Ben and I watched it with Mom over at her house. We had nachos again and enjoyed some of the weird commercials. The Broncos did end up beating the Panthers and Cam Newton threw a tantrum on the sideline. Too much dabbing and not enough football.
2016-2017 - Patriots and Falcons. We went over to Walt and Wendy's house again. Again, they go all out for the Super Bowl parties, lots of food, decorations, etc. We ended up purchasing a dining room table and chairs from them since Ben and I didn't have one for our new place and they were getting rid of their old set. We were really hoping the Falcons would hold on to their giant lead. We watched some pretty impossible plays made by the Patriots over the course of the second half. The Patriots were supposed to win and sadly, they did. It was a very stupid game that went into overtime. We drove home in the snow with a new dining room table and chairs.
2017-2018 - Eagles and Patriots. This was the first time we were invited over to Liz's mom's house for their Super Bowl party. I went over there with banana bread and stuff to make nachos. Ben drove separate because he had to go to work. There was a lot of food and a lot of people. I had no idea there would be that many people. I met her mom, aunt, sister, brother and her nieces and nephews. I had already met Darren and their kids. I found out Liz's brother was a Patriots fan, so we really hoped that the Eagles showed up so we could rub it in his face. It was a wild game, and it went down to one play called the Philly Special. A trick play that sealed the Super Bowl win for the Eagles. I was so happy that the Patriots lost the Super Bowl. We celebrated loud. I thanked Liz for the invite.
2018-2019 - Rams and Patriots. We went over to Liz's mom's house again. This time Mike and Sandra were also invited, and Mike likes the Patriots. Gross. I learned that many people attended this event, so this time I brought banana bread, brownies, cupcakes and the ingredients to make nachos. Her mother and aunt made tamales and Sopas. Both were amazing! Hands down, this was the worst Super Bowl I have ever seen, and we all survived the terrible play call from our (Seahawks) last Super Bowl. The game was boring, the two teams played terrible, and the score ended up being a measly 13-3. I thanked Liz and her mom for hosting.
2019-2020 - Chiefs and 49ers. I rooted for the Chiefs because I hate the 49ers. I honestly was excited for a Brady-less Super Bowl. The game was pretty average for the most part, nothing that exciting nor exceptional happened. We invited Josh over for nachos. Heather would have come but she was at work. Erika came out of her room a few times to eat some food but had no interest in the game. The Chiefs beat the 49ers by 11 points.
Then Covid happened and it ruined everything including our sports.
2020-2021 - Chiefs and Buccaneers. This game no one cared about unless you were a Chiefs fan or a Tom Brady fan. Yes, Brady decided he didn't want to be retired anymore and wanted to go to another team, so the NFL rallied behind TB to make sure they got to the Super Bowl. I was so angry that we had to suffer through another Brady Super Bowl. JUST GO AWAY! Ben and I had a quiet afternoon with the game on, but we were both working on other things such as chores, hobbies and eating nachos. I was hoping the Chiefs would show up and break Brady's legs, but that sadly didn't happen. It was another uneventful game. The Buccaneers took that one 31-9 and nobody cared.
2021-2022 - Bengals and Rams. We were pulling for the Bengals since they have not won a Super Bowl and the last time they made it to the Super Bowl was 1988. We were hoping to see a different Super Bowl winner this time around. We invited Mom Dad, Josh, Heather, Trish, Ed and Amy. Doug was in and out from his room. We had croissant sandwiches, all the sandwich fixings, chips and cookies. The game was super disappointing because it seems like the NFL has a way of letting things happen to sway the game to the team they want to win. The Rams spent a lot of money to win this Super Bowl, and it happened for them with some suspicious calls that went their way in the 4th quarter.
2022-2023 - Eagles and Chiefs. Our TV literally died a few days before the Super Bowl, and we had already invited people to come over to watch the game with us. It's a good thing we still had Erika's Germany TV in the extra bedroom. We pulled that out and set it up on one of my wooden TV trays. It wasn't the prettiest set up, but it did the job. We made pulled pork in the crock pot, served them on slider buns, Josh made mini burgers, we had chips, Heather made a dessert, and I made Nutter Butter football pudding cups. The food was pretty good. Ed, Amy, Trish, Mom and Dad also came. Doug made an appearance. The game was pretty average up until the 4th quarter again. It went down to a holding call that went the Chiefs way and they were able to kick a last-minute field goal to win the game by 3. This was also the first time we played the grid game.
This year, 2023-2024, we decided to host another Super Bowl party and invite everyone over for a baked potato bar. I am trying to make it different, so we aren't having the same thing every year. I had Heather and Josh bring chips and dip, Mom made tiny pigs in a blanket and some Valentine's Day cookies. I made an invite on Facebook and invited the rest of our guests just so we knew how many people were coming.
The game started at 3:30 on CBS and we had to watch the Chiefs and 49ers in the "Swifty Bowl", which we weren't too thrilled with, what the nation really wanted to see was a Detroit/Ravens and what I wanted to see was a Detroit and Bills Super Bowl. The halftime show was Usher.
I cleaned the house, moved tables around, decorated (slightly, since the cats would get into it) and went to the store the day before. I made sure to grab all of the stuff we would need for the food. I spent some time making some banana bread on that Saturday as well.
The day of, we got up around 10 and started finishing up the house and the decorations. I put the tablecloths onto the tables and made sure Wade stayed off of them. Ben and I got the potatoes cleaned, stabbed, oiled and wrapped up. We made about 12 of them put them on sheet pans and set them aside. We did a few more preparations and then Josh and Heather arrived around 1. We made fun of them for arriving so early.
Trish, Ed and Amy showed up between 1:30-2:00. Trish helped me make the cookie dough dip because she asked if I needed help with anything. We got out the graham crackers and tried it out. It was addictive. I got the potatoes into the oven around 2:30 and got the potato toppings ready to go. We had chives, green onions, chili, cheese, sour cream, butter, salt and pepper. I made little labels for each ingredient and dessert, so everyone knew what was in each bowl. Once the potatoes were done, I let them cool off and put them into some large bowls and set them on the table with everything else. Doug and Kenyatta arrived just before the game started. Mom came after the game had started and Dad showed up almost halfway through the first quarter.
The first quarter started off scoreless in Vegas with a first drive fumble by the 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey, a punt after a three and out with the Chiefs first possession and two punts by each team. It was rather uneventful. At the start of the second, the 49ers finished off their drive (it was cut short because of the end of the first quarter) with a field goal by their kicker, Jake Moody. The 49ers lead the Chiefs by three. The game was still very young.
The Chiefs next drive was promising, moving the ball 66 yards in four plays, they found themselves on the 49ers nine-yard line. The ball was fumbled and recovered by the 49ers. I bet this made Chiefs nation a bit nervous since it should have yielded in an easy touch down. Oops! The next two possessions ended in punts for each team.
Erika and Zac stopped by to pick up some Valentine's Day cookies after grocery shopping in the second quarter. They didn't stay for too long but ended up eating some of our food.
The 49ers next possession ended in a 67-yard touchdown by McCaffery resulting in a converted extra point that extended their lead 10-0. There was less than five minutes left in the half, when the Chiefs finally put together a successful drive. They managed to get a 13-play, 65-yard drive right before the end of the half by their kicker Harrison Butker, who launched one between the uprights. We went into half time with the 49ers leading by 7.
Wade came out a few times to see everyone.
The halftime show was entertaining and many of the songs that Usher sang brought me back to middle school and high school. The commercials were hilarious, as usual.
The third quarter in Vegas was a lot of back and forth with mistakes by each team. Neither were able to progress the ball. The Chiefs next possession ended up breaking a Super Bowl record on the longest field goal made, 57-yards, cutting the 49ers lead by 4. San Francisco's next possession ended up in a three and out. Once Kansas City got the ball again, it was short lived, punted and with a huge mistake by the 49ers, the Chiefs ended up with the ball at the 16-yard line. Mahomes threw it to Valdes-Scantling resulting in a touchdown and a made field goal. The Chiefs took the lead, 13-10.
The 49ers took their possession down the field in 12 plays for 75 yards and took the lead with a Purdy to Jennings touchdown pass. The point after was blocked by Kansas City's linebacker but they led in the beginning of the fourth quarter 16-13.
With a little under 10 minutes to go in the 4th, Mahomes fumbled, recovered and then threw an incomplete pass on the play. Somehow, they continued down the field, all the way to the 3 yard-line and he was sacked on 3rd and goal. They brought in their field goal kicker, and they tied the game 16-all with more than five minutes left in the game.
San Francisco started on their own 25 and moved the ball down the field with many incomplete passes by Purdy. The pressure must have gotten to him. They were able to get it close enough for their kicker and he made a 53-yard attempt, putting the 49ers up by three with less than 2 minutes left in regulation. We were all getting nervous because we really didn't want the 49ers to win but we didn't want the Chiefs to win either. It was a lose-lose situation. The Chiefs had one more chance to win the game. They made it down to the 11-yard line with 10 seconds to go but failed to get it in the end zone. They went for overtime when Butker tied it up at 19 with three seconds left. The 49ers ended up taking a knee.
In overtime, the 49ers possessed the ball first making their drive down the field to the 9-yard line to kick a field goal. Then the Chiefs responded by driving 77 yards in 13 plays, to set up a first and goal on the San Francisco 3-yard line. Mahomes passed it to Hardman sealing the deal for Chiefs nation. The last overtime game was the 2017 disappointment between the Patriots and Falcons. This was the first overtime game since the NFL changed the overtime rules for playoff games so that both teams get at least one chance to possess the ball in overtime even if a touchdown is score on the initial possession.
I handed out the prizes to those who won the grid game, everyone grabbed their stuff and went home. Ben and I spent some time putting the food and tables away. I got the dishes loaded into the dishwasher and we went over the living room with the vacuum. Another Super Bowl down. We will see how next year plays out.
Next Adventure: Ben's Picnic Birthday Party
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