Supersized Super Bowl
Football's biggest event gets giant buildup in Tampa, Florida
Kid Reporter Shelby Fallin talks with Arizona Cardinals center Lyle Sendlein at the Super Bowl XLIII Media Day in Tampa, Florida. (Photo courtesy Shelby Fallin)
Super Bowl Sunday is all about BIG. It is a giant event with the best National Football League (NFL) players in the world taking the field to see who will be this year's top team. For this Kid Reporter, who attended events leading up to Super Bowl all week, it was also about the size of the players and getting noticed in an overcharged, oversized world.
The lead up to the February 2 game at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, is just as big as the game. Super Bowl XLIII (43) kicked off the week with Media Day on Tuesday. On Thursday, it was the NFL Experience Kids' Day and meeting the NFL Play 60 Super Kid.
More than 3,000 reporters from all over the world literally took the field for interview sessions at what was more like a three-ring circus than a press event. The media were there to interview players for the AFC champions Pittsburgh Steelers and the NFC champions Arizona Cardinals. At 4 feet, 6 inches tall, my job was a little bit harder: To get quotes I had to get noticed!
Media Day
When I arrived the atmosphere was already hectic and a bit overwhelming. The stadium is huge—a lot bigger than it appears on TV. From the top of the stadium, the reporters all looked like ants swarming the perimeter of the field. On the field, the noise level was deafening.
It was pandemonium with all the reporters hustling to get their answers. I had to weave through the crowd like a snake to get to the players—back and forth, back and forth. Working my way to each player, I had my questions ready.
The Players
Most of these players are over six feet tall. I had to tilt my head way back just to see a chin. When I shook hands, I realized that three of my fists could fit into the palm of one player's hand.
When I had the opportunity to interview Kurt Warner, quarterback for the Arizona Cardinals, I had to yell at the top of my lungs to get noticed. When he looked in my direction, he did not see me until a taller reporter pointed me out.
I asked him what it takes to become a professional football player.
"It takes a lot of commitment, a lot of time, and a lot of hard work," he said. "It doesn't come easy for very many people. The guys playing in the Super Bowl put in all those things." If you commit the time and hard work, you can do anything you want, he told me.
I asked the same question to the Steelers' left tackle, Jason Capizzi. He also talked about the hard work it involves.
"Whenever a lot of your friends are going out to the movies or doing things like talking on the phone with girls, you have to be in the weight room working on your skills," he said. "You have to be the best at what you do or someone else will come in and take your job."
Next I moved on to Lyle Sendlein, a center for the Cardinals. I asked him what career he would have pursued if he had not become a pro football player.
"I would want to be a fireman," he said. "I would like to be able to help people and have excitement in my job, and also to be part of a team."
Being part of a team was an important part of his life growing up, he explained to me.
"I think one of the most important things about growing up is establishing relationships with your peers and elders and being able to talk with people and having good times," he said. "That's what life is all about."
The festive atmosphere at the press event led to some players joking around with reporters. Deshea Townsend of the Pittsburgh Steelers had a little fun with me when I asked what he was like when he was 10—my age.
"I was a bad little kid," he said gruffly. Then he flashed a smile and changed his answer. "No, I did all my homework and ate all my vegetables like a good little kid," he said.
The biggest jokester of all was Warren Sapp, former Tampa Bay Buccaneer who is now an NFL correspondent. He is dangerous with a microphone. When I asked how long he had been doing his job, he replied, "I just started. This is my first season, and they are still hazing me like a rookie. Please help me, ya'll, I'm dying."
With my next question however, he left me with some words of wisdom. I asked him what advice he would have for any reporter who wanted to work for the NFL network.
"Be a good researcher, because the information you get is the key," he said.
Other Events
Media Day was a great kickoff for Super Bowl XLIII. Check back to Scholastic News Online for coverage of the NFL Experience Kids' Day and my interview with the NFL Play 60 Super Kid.
And of course, Monday's news will be all about this year's BIG Super Bowl winner!
Get the latest on national and international events, movies, television, music, sports, and more from Scholastic News Online.
Shelby Fallin is a member of the Scholastic Kids Press Corps.
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