Super Bowl Sunday

Welcome back to The Sports Ace, where every home (including mine) has Rock Band and Rock Band 2 with unlimited song downloads.

Super Bowl Sunday, the unofficial national holiday itself, is finally upon us. Don't forget, in the midst of the 25,000-calorie snack trays, $3-million 30-second ads and lip-synching musical artists that there actually will be a football game played today. I know, what a concept. According to ESPN, 30 million pounds of chips and 8 million pounds of popcorn will be consumed in America today. Sick (literally).

It took me longer than normal to figure out how I'm going to pick this game. I like both teams and think they both have redeeming qualities. But in the end, it all comes down to Kurt Warner and Larry Fitzgerald. Warner is a likely Hall-of-Famer now that he's led another team to the Big Game, and Twin Cities-raised Fitz is in one heckuva zone. The two of them are the key to Arizona's chances today.

And that just won't matter. Pittsburgh is uniquely qualified to actually get to Kurt Warner, one of the best quick-fire QBs in memory, on the blitz. They are good and fast enough in the defensive backfield to take away the Arizona passing attack, which almost by itself has gotten the Cards to Tampa. And they have a QB and offense that has a knack for getting the job done in big games, no matter what their stats (or lack thereof) might be. The Steelers are the tougher, sharper team, and they will show it today.

The Sports Ace's Super Bowl XLIII Pick: Pittsburgh 27, Arizona 17. The most dominant franchise in NFL history will get one for the second hand. And Mike Tomlin becomes the latest Vikings assistant to win the Lombardi Trophy as a head coach.

I'm out like Cris Carter.