(Written before the game was played)

As the Super-Duper Bowl drew closer I made the realization that I didn't give a hoot or a darn about either team emerging victorious. Probably during the game I will choose a team, most likely the one that is losing. This lack of interest upsets me terribly.

Usually I am an avid fan and I get emotionally involved in the sports event. The Brooklyn Dodgers were my first true love but they deserted me for the nothingness of Los Angeles. My heart went out there with them transcontinentally, but it soon faded. Vibrant Brooklyn was definitely not vacant and vapid LA. It was not a good match.

My next true love was the New York Knickerbocker of the 1960s and '70s. Sweetwater Clifton, Harry Gallatin, Bud Palmer and Nick McGuire were my boyhood heroes. Then came my dream team of the 1969-1970 championship. Bill Bradley, Walt Frazier, Willis Reed, Dave DeBuschere and Dick Barnett won the championship as I rooted, out of my mind for them from the last row of the venerable Madison Square Garden.

And now for my disgraceful confession: "I do not like the current NY Knicks. I find myself rooting against them." The team chemistry is way off. I feel I am a traitor and that I have deserted a sinking ship. I can't just root for the blue and orange uniform. It depends who is wearing the colors and not just the colors themselves.

This series of events does not make me happy. Another confession: "I have never liked the New York Yankees." They feel they are cheated unless they win all 162 season games. It is their birthright to win everything. I am reminded of the comic strip Archie character called Reginald (Reggie). Because he is rich, he feels he is superior to Archie, Veronica, Betty and Jughead.

I hope I do not get a ton of mail for my outspoken ideas on New York teams. Rooting is not something you can control. It completely envelops you and you are just an innocent bystander.

This column was written prior to Super Bowl XXXIX (39). I only hope it is a competitive event. Too many over-hyped games become one-sided routs and are absolutely unwatchable.

PS: It was an exciting game! I rooted for the losing team. (Written after the game was played).