Super Bowl XLIII Preview and Two People To Know

Congratulations to the Arizona Cardinals and the Pittsburgh Steelers, who will be facing off at Super Bowl XLIII on Sunday, February 1st for NFL supremacy. Last year the Super Bowl matchup was personally juicy, with the scrappy New York Giants (who are my favorite team) facing off against the unbeaten and historically-good New England Patriots (who I despised). There was no ambiguity in terms of who I was rooting for, and my attention to the game exceeded mere "I'd like to see a good football game and catch some witty commercials." No, I clearly wanted the Giants to pull off an upset of monumental proportions - and they did exactly that.

This year I don't "have a horse in the race", as the saying goes. The Giants were beaten in the divisional round by the Eagles (with whom I have a secondary rooting interest given I went to school in Philly). The Eagles, in turn, were beaten by the Cardinals. Even though I don't have strong feelings of love or antipathy for either Arizona or Pittsburgh, there are two prominent members on opposing sides of this upcoming Super Bowl who I can't help but root for a little.


Kurt Warner, Quarterback, Arizona Cardinals

The story of Kurt Warner is a terrific story of redemption. Warner went from grocery clerk to Arena Football League player to Super Bowl-winning quarterback all while clinging to his strong Christian faith. I remember reading about Warner back in 1999 in an article in Sports Illustrated, and being challenged and humbled by his attitude and unwavering faith and thanksgiving.

Warner is a guy who met his wife, Brenda, while he was playing for the Iowa Barnstormers in the Arena League. Upon finding out that Brenda had two children from a previous marriage including one who was mentally-challenged, Warner (to Brenda's surprise) didn't give her a hearty handshake and wish her well. Instead, he bought her roses the next day and told Brenda that he wanted to meet her children.

In the article, Warner says of his success: "I've been doing all these interviews lately, and people are looking for the secret to my success. I tell them it's my faith in Jesus Christ, and they don't want to hear that. So they ask me the same question, again and again, even though they've already gotten the answer. The Lord has something special in mind for this team, and I'm really excited to be a part of it."

A few months later in January 2000, Warner and the St. Louis Rams won the Super Bowl.

Now it wouldn't be surprising, although disappointing, to find out that Warner's success and subsequent huge contract made him an arrogant blowhard with a massive sense of entitlement. It wouldn't be surprising to read that Warner ended up ditching his wife and adopted kids and shacking up with Carmen Electra or Pamela Anderson. It wouldn't be surprising to read that Warner's faith took a seat in the way, way, way back of the bus. Those things never happened.

In a recent article penned by Wayne Drehs of ESPN.com, we learn more of what has happened since Kurt Warner reached the top of the mountain on January 2000, and it's extremely encouraging. After a mediocre stint with the Giants, Warner found a home with the Arizona Cardinals and has continued living his faith out. And perhaps refreshingly, there's a lot that average Joe Christians can relate with in terms of what has been difficult.

Warner's fame and fortune doesn't seem to have taken his edge off. He selflessly gives his time to charities and donates Cardinals tickets to foster kids. He has not shied away from talking about his faith or acknowledging what he knows God has done for him. He tries to model biblical love with his family, which has a tradition of when eating out, choosing a family by random and anonymously paying for that family's meal.

But his faith has come at a "price" of his convictions and his willingness to speak frankly about them. The article details the awkwardness of being a saint in a womanizing, hard-living NFL culture:

Former Arizona teammate Josh McCown, now a quarterback with the Carolina Panthers, believes NFL players are split almost down the middle when it comes to Warner. There are players like McCown and Cardinals receiver and close friend Larry Fitzgerald who look up to Warner and are amazed by his faith-driven selfless ways. And there are others who simply aren't comfortable around the quarterback.

Even Kurt's attempts to "reach out" and "just be one of the guys" can be extremely discouraging because he's been labeled and tagged as a Bible-thumping weirdo.

This past summer, Warner invited his Cardinals teammates and their families to his home for a day of swimming and eating. Barely anyone showed up. Warner believes the perception, still after all these years, was partly to blame. The poor turnout disappointed Warner.

This all probably shouldn't be surprising when Jesus tells us in John 15:18-19 "If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you." We understand that. I'm sure Kurt understands this. It doesn't mean that it doesn't hurt or feel terrible.

The article pretty much sums up that while Warner continues to press on for the Lord, he has his share of problems like everyone else. His teenage daughter is miffed at him because she feels he doesn't understand her or tries to do so. He's a lousy handyman. He struggles with what it means to be "in the world" but not "of the world". I feel you, brother. And I'll be rooting for you hard two weeks from now.


Hines Ward, Wide Receiver, Pittsburgh Steelers

There's a funny scene from the movie Airplane! which goes like this:

Flight Attendant: Would you like something to read?
Old Lady: Do you have anything light?
Flight Attendant: How about this leaflet, "Famous Jewish Sports Legends?"

You can pretty much make the same joke about Asian football players, but Hines Ward is the exception to that generalization. Hines, who is the son of an African-American serviceman and a Korean mother, has spoken in some depth about upbringing. It was quite a journey, and he wasn't always proud of being half-Korean.

An article in Sports Illustrated outlined how being raised by Young Kim, his Korean mother was a turbulent and difficult time for both of them until he later grew up realizing how much he appreciated her. There's a particularly heartbreaking account of his shame for a mother who had done so much for him, taking up to three jobs at a time in order to provide as a single mother:

Kim showered her child with gifts and cooked American food for him, but Hines was impossibly cruel, not understanding why he was in this strange place. "I back-talked her something terrible," recalls Ward. "One day when she drove me to school in fourth grade, I ducked down in the seat so the other kids wouldn't see me, because I didn't want them to know she was my mom. I got out, and when I looked back at the car, she was crying."

But Kim has no regrets: "My life, I would say, has been a hard life and a sad life," she says. "But in my country, a mother cares for a child first."

The article ends with a more mature Hines Ward, then a junior quarterback for the University of Georgia Bulldogs, speaking of his love and appreciation for this mother, and how if he were to play in the NFL someday, Ward would buy his mother a new car and a new house, and he will take her home to Korea. That was in 1997.

After Ward won the Super Bowl with the Steelers in 2006, Ward visited Korea with his mother and was welcomed as a national hero of sorts. Ward told a crowd of Korean dignitaries in Seoul, "I'm proud to be a Korean, that's something when I was little as a kid, I was ashamed of." Ward wept as his apologized for his past resentment of his heritage, and clutched a certificate of honorary citzenship in Seoul, before then tearfully acknowledging the sacrifices of his mother.

Being ashamed or embarassed by one's heritage? Not fully appreciating the sacrifices of parents? I think I can relate. But what's awesome is that Ward was able to right those wrongs and appreciate what had previously gone unappreciated. He's a better and happier man for it, I'd bet.

Get well and rest that knee, Hines. 70 million people on the Korean peninsula are going to be big-time Steeler fans in two weeks.