Borderline credibility

I'll admit that I was rooting for the Seahawks yesterday, because of my distant Boston College connection to Matt Hasselbeck and my respect for the affable Mike Holmgren. But I was nearly as angry at last night's Super Bowl as I was when my beloved Giants lost Super Bowl XXXV against the Ravens. At every crucial juncture that appeared to favor the Seahawks, the refs threw what might as well have been Terrible Towels on the field, as Sports Guy observes.

As if the revocation of the first Seattle touchdown weren't enough, the initial call that favored the Ben Roethlisberger "touchdown" (above) and subsequent review might have been the worst calls in an NFL playoff game since the Giants were stiffed by the refs against the 49ers a few years ago.

I'm not saying the Seahawks would have won; it's not like they were playing outstanding football. But I just like seeing teams win well-played and well-officiated games. This game was lackluster from the start of Aaron Neville's national anthem "interpretation." (This columnist must have bugged my commentary from last night, as I made the exact same "American Idol" comment during "The Star Spangled Banner.")

At least the commercials were OK. Oh, wait. Those were awful, too.

UPDATES! ESPN's Michael Smith provides the best analysis of why the refs ruined everything. Apparently, lots of sports fans agree with us.