By Charles Jay 
You know, many people point to the 1958 NFL championship game between the Giants and Colts as the game that really turned a nation on to pro football. The importance of that game is unquestioned, but Super Bowl III, the game where Joe Namath engineered the Jets’ stunning upset of Baltimore, signaled a major breakthrough, in that it introduced a new superstar - indeed, a new KIND of superstar, to the landscape of professional sports, it also took the Super Bowl game and elevated it to a whole new level, in that it now had the makings of a legitimate contest, rather than a glorified exhibition between unequal participants. And it validated the AFL as a REAL football league.

There are those who would suggest that with Super Bowl IV, and the utter domination of the Minnesota Vikings by the Kansas City Chiefs, the door was busted right open, in that the AFL was completely legitimized, had pulled even with the more established league, and, by definition, that branded the Super Bowl with an unmistakable degree of significance.

And with the NFL-AFL merger about to take full effect with the next season, these pivotal events were crucial to the development of professional football, and in turn, pro sports, as a major powerhouse, transcending the boundaries between sport and show business in a more pronounced way than ever before.

It is expected that the Super Bowl in 2008 will be the highest-rated ever, witht he presence of the undefated Patriots and the Giants from the largest media market in the country.

Yes, the Super Bowl IS the ultimate game, and it IS played every year - but I think we can handle an “ultimate” game once a year, don’t you?