Super Bowl XLVIII: Who's got the edge?

Super Bowl XLVIII is one of the most intriguing in the history of the game. Both teams, the Seattle Seahawks and the Denver Broncos, are the #1 seed in their respective conferences. The Seahawks, sporting the NFC, contain the #1 defense in terms of points AND yards allowed in the entire NFL. What make this matchup crazy is that the Broncos of the AFC represent the best offense in terms of points and yards. This is the first time in Super Bowl history that the #1 defensive team has taken on the #1 offensive. So, who will take the Lombardi Trophy this year?
QB Peyton Manning is the core of the powerful Denver offense, which scored more touchdowns and points this regular season than any other team of all time. He is the conductor of the system, and everything runs through him. He also, with the likes of Demarius Thomas, Julius Thomas, Wes Welker and Eric Decker,  has unarguably the best wide receiving core in the game. They have stomped almost every team in the league, and have yet to be held under 24 points. This being said, the Seahawks defensive secondary is of a different breed. With Richard Sherman and Walter Therman holding down the corners, and Cam Chancellor and Earl Thomas locking up the safety positions, the Denver wide receivers may have just met their match. Another important aspect is that this is the first Super Bowl that may be played in freezing conditions, which is bad news for Peyton. The future Hall of Fame quarterback is 3-7 in his career in games where the kickoff temperature is below 30 degrees Fahrenheit. The Hawks will hold Manning's passing game to about 250 yards and 2 touchdowns.
On the other side of the ball, the Seahawks offensive game isn't too shabby itself. With all-pro skill players like WR Golden Tate and RB Marshawn Lynch (who is better than Denver RB Knowshon Moreno), they are not an offense to sleep on. These players will be consistent as usual, but what it comes down to is how 2nd year quarterback Russell Wilson responds to the pressure of playing in a game is big as this. If he stays calm, cool and collected, Seattle should have control of this game from start to finish, and I believe he will. Wilson has shown time and time again that he can make clutch plays for his team, and that he can win games in the end. I predict he notches 2 TDs and about 275 yards.
WR Percy Harvin, who has only played in 2 games this season, is yet another interesting aspect in this football game. Last year for the Vikings, Harvin was an all-pro and was considered a top 3 receiver in the NFL. He is scheduled to play in the Super Bowl and could have an impact running and catching the ball. Figuring out how Coach Carroll will use this weapon is going to be a major challenge for the Denver defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio.
With all this being said, Seattle has a slight edge in the outcome of this game. Every offense starts with a good defense, and defense wins championships. The two teams are very evenly matched, but I predict that the Seahawks will pull through with a 27-24 win over the Broncos.

Athletic Idiots

CNN has done an excessive amount of research involving Division 1 athletes and their true academic ability. The most impressive, well, surprising statistic that I came across is that 60% of athletes surveyed read between a 4th and 8th grade level. Added to that, 8% of these athletes read BELOW a 4th grade level. Statistics like this just seem simply unfair. Students with great grades are getting their college spots taken from athletes who have test scores of elementary kids! Just because somebody has a particular skill, in this case football or basketball, that does not mean that they should be exempt from good grade requirements. Furthermore, it surprised me that these universities seem to be aware that their athlete students are cheating or getting unequal help. This problem of insufficient academics among Division 1 athletes is one that is not going away any time soon.