Ask any sports writers in this country and they will tell you that the Superbowl is the greatest spectacle in American Sports. When the NFL reached out to my email to apply for Superbowl press credentials, I of course obliged. After various meetings and plans, my good friend Pat and I were off to Phoenix. The fanfare that comes with being a media member covering the Super Bowl was very unexpected. The Media Party was filled with reporters from Philadelphia and Kansas City, but also people who described themselves as “influencers”. The extent of their football knowledge is still unknown. The next day, Pat and I were off to the Chief’s media availability.

There are around 70 reporters in the room from ESPN, ABC, and any football blog that you can think of. We walked into the press conference hoping to hear thoughtful and interesting questions asked by the sports media. Instead, someone asked all-time great NFL head coach Andy Reid how he likes his coffee. A reporter also asked coach Reid how he likes his cheeseburgers. He politely informed the reporter that he has been asked that question 50 times already. Andy Reid did not follow my advice of putting a spy on Jalen Hurts and he had 70 rushing yards. The Chiefs won the game, however, so he got the last laugh.

Eagles Head Coach Nick Sirianni when asked about whether he would use a defensive back or a linebacker to defend Travis Kelce, he said “yeah we’re not going to give you all that, but you got to give him different looks”, and would go on to talk about how the whole team is going to need to defend him and that it was not going to be a one-man job. The box score will tell you that with Travis Kelce’s 81 receiving yards and 1 Touchdown, so their plan did not work out.

After each press conference, what I can only describe as a mob of beat reporters, bloggers, and influencers rushed to tables where the entirety of the Chiefs roster and all the assistant coaches sat. The “star players” were in one room with podiums and backdrops. The lesser-known players sat at what can generously be described as desks. These pressers were held daily during Superbowl Week, with the head coaches and starting quarterbacks having press conference availability every day except for one where Patrick Mahomes was at the podium and Travis Kelce did the standard press conference. Some notable players and coaches Pat and I were able to speak to were Patrick Mahomes, Jalen Hurts, Travis Kelce, Jason Kelce, Chris Jones, Devonta Smith, A.J Brown, Lane Johnson, Fletcher Cox, Head Coach Andy Reid, Head Coach Nick Sirianni, Offensive Coordinator Eric Bieniemy, and Skyy Moore.

When talking to these players, the greatest thing I learned was that if you ask a thoughtful and interesting question, you will get an answer that is the same. You don’t necessarily have to ask about X’s and O’s, but if you are the millionth person to ask the same question, they will let you know.

The NFL Honors ceremony is second to the Superbowl in terms of the most important event in professional football. Legacies get set in stone, a player’s prospective contract can shoot up in value, and a new class is inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Pat and I were fortunate enough to get invited and speak with the new class. Getting to watch announcement of who got in was a level of nerve-wracking I hadn’t experienced since finals week. The new class was announced and 30 minutes later, they walked into the room. I will admit, it was hard to get the words out when talking to Darelle Revis, but I asked him what it was like to get inducted into the hall of fame as the best corner to ever play, the same night a corner from his former team just one Defensive Rookie of The Year. He spoke very highly of Sauce Gardner and the entire Jets draft class and how the future of the organization is bright. Pat and I also met and spoke with Tiki and Ronde Barber, Tiki being there to support his brother getting in to the hall of fame.

Steve Scebelo is a WCSU alumnus (and former sports editor for The Echo), who is currently the President of Marketing at the NFL Players Association. Steve invited Pat and I to come to the brand-new NFLPA House. The purpose of this “house” is for players who are in the host city during super bowl week who are not participating in the game to meet with companies who are in the area to create collaborations and commercials. On a side note, Pat and I walk into the house, and the man who would win Offensive Rookie of the Year the next day Garret Wilson walked by us. It didn’t click until Steve pointed it out; fortunately, I was able to resist the urge to ask for an autograph. Steve showed us the rooms that are available in the house to record content and meeting rooms for players and brands to talk. Steve was generous to sit down with us for an interview (which will soon be available on the WXCI website), where we talked about how he helps create commercial opportunities for players. A notable point was the change that NIL deals in college created for incoming NFL players. This helped familiarize them with how to market themselves along with being better prepared for the NFL. As an aside, I want to personally thank Steve for inviting Pat and I.

To any sports journalist who wishes to cover the Superbowl or any big sports event, whether you’re from ESPN or write for a student newspaper, the best advice I can give is to just ask. You can achieve great things if you’re not afraid to try.