In America, the winner takes all.

Chapter 323 "Spring Festival Gala" starts

Highland Park was quiet at night. Ethan and Dave Campo came to the former practice location. Before the start of the Pro Bowl, Dave Campo used to help Ethan train special falling leaves here. But after the Pro Bowl, , everything has changed.

"Old Jones is a decisive and ruthless man. Just like when he first acquired the Cowboys, he laid off almost all the staff in the club, including Tom Landry." Dave Campo looked at the quiet street and suddenly spoke.

Tom Landry's status is like Ferguson in Manchester United, or even higher than the latter.

Tom Landry has been the head coach of the Cowboys team since its inception. His career lasted for a full 20 years and during this period he brought two Super Bowl championships to the Cowboys, starting in 1966. In the 1985 years to 19, there were only two seasons without making the playoffs.

It can be said that without Tom Landry, there would be no Cowboys today, and the business empire that Jones built with the Cowboys would not be possible. At this moment, a bronze statue of Tom Landry still stands outside Texas Stadium.

But such a "Father of the Cowboys" was directly fired as soon as Jones Sr. became the owner of the Cowboys, even though Landry promised to accept a salary cut in advance.

There was no warning, no so-called farewell, and no memorial ceremony. There was just a press conference that lasted less than 5 minutes. At the meeting, Jones unilaterally announced that he would terminate the contract with Landry and all his personal matters. The items were then thrown out by staff.

There are rumors claiming that Tom Landry and Jones Sr. had serious differences in team building, which may be the fundamental reason why Tom Landry was directly "kicked out."

Landry's successor was Jimmie Johnson, a college classmate of old Jones who obeyed old Jones's words.

So old Jones could completely follow his own wishes and carry out drastic reforms to the team. Almost all the staff were laid off, and a group of older players were also driven away. After that, the Cowboys ushered in Troy Aikman and Aikman. Mitt Smith, the Cowboys ushered in a new era and won three consecutive Super Bowls in a few years.

Old Jones's reputation immediately reached its peak. No one would accuse him of being cold-blooded. In the face of brilliant achievements, everyone thought it was just a necessary replacement of old and new players.

Old Jones vividly explained what "winner takes all" means. In competitive sports, victory is more important than anything else.

Compared with Tom Landry's reputation with the Cowboys, Ethan only worked for the Cowboys for one season. Even he could be fired directly by Jones, and of course Ethan was the same.

Since fate cannot be changed, you might as well take a few more things with you before leaving.

So Ethan took the initiative to come to the door after today's training.

"Have you decided where to go next season?" Dave Campo asked, throwing the ball to Ethan.

Compared with the old antique ball that Dave brought from home today, it is a youth ball that is smaller than the normal size. This ball was used by Dave's son during training in his early years.

"I have to keep this a secret now. When everything is revealed, many people will be surprised." Ethan weighed the small football.

Perhaps, frightened is more appropriate to describe it.

The next second, Ethan threw the football in his hand directly.

Under the illumination of the surrounding lights, you can see the rugby flying in a wide arc.

"Then when we meet the Cowboys next season, I have to beg you to be gentler." Dave Campo subconsciously stretched out his hand to catch the ball.

However, he saw that the route of the rugby deviated after falling, which caused the landing point to become erratic.

Dave Campo had to take a step sideways but still missed the ball, and the football deflected so hard at the end of the route that it landed in a counterintuitive spot.

Dave Campo turned his head and looked at Ethan standing in the distance.

Ethan was also dumbfounded.

I have tried thousands of times before, but I didn’t expect that I unexpectedly found the feel with my inadvertent first pass tonight.

The two didn't care to talk about transfers and immediately made many attempts.

The second time, the third time...the expected weird arc reappeared again and again. In Ethan's eyes, this seemed to be the most beautiful picture in the world.

"It has to do with the ball." Dave found the key to the problem.

I tried many times with a normal-sized rugby ball but made no progress at all. The reason lies in the rugby ball.

Footballs used by youth are lighter and smaller. From this, Ethan deduced that the size of the hand and the instant power of the ball release are the keys to throwing a falling leaf pass.

"Do you know John Elway's hand span?" Ethan asked Dave Campo.

"John Elway's hand span is about 27 centimeters."

Ethan looked at his palm.

My own is only 24. Based on Ethan's current height, although his fingers are relatively long, the distance from the base of his fingers to his wrist is relatively short, making him a "small hand" type.

The hand span is an innate disadvantage. There is no way to make up for it, and the only way to start is from strength. Ethan can be sure that John Elway's pitching force is greater than his at the moment, and he must reach a certain critical value before he can use the standard size. Football throws the "leaf pass" over and over again.

That night, Ethan continued to try with a small rugby ball. Although the deviation angle of the falling route was not perfect, and the deviation of the route was not as large as before, compared with the previous headless attempts, he had found the path. direction.

The next day, the entire Cowboys team flew to Miami for field adaptation and final training.

·

"Ethan! Ethan! Ethan!"

In the passage of the airport, Ethan saw the fans coming to pick him up screaming.

Katherine, Kelsey and Peter also arrived on the same plane and were walking behind Ethan. The two of them had nothing to do now, so they followed Ethan to Miami. Along the way, they also took on most of the team's staff tasks. Mainly providing meals for Ethan.

Ethan did not take the bus with the Cowboys players. Instead, Peter drove the three of them to the hotel where they were staying.

Along the way, Ethan saw the "Super Bowl 33" logo hanging on the billboards on both sides of the street. Each Super Bowl has a separate logo.

Although the Super Bowl occurs every year, in terms of preparation specifications, it is equivalent to a large-scale sports event that occurs every four years.

For American viewers, the Super Bowl is not the decisive battle of the league, but more like a separate cup. This has to start with the development of the professional rugby league.

1920 was the starting point of the professional rugby movement in the United States. In this year, the National Football League (NFL) was officially established. In the following twenty years, many professional rugby leagues, large and small, emerged in the American market. At its peak, the NFL had to face three independent leagues. Direct competitors such as the American Football League and the American Football Conference (AAFC).

As the AAFC was affected by factors such as its poor financial situation and the lack of a draft policy, which led to the loss of enjoyment of the strong and strong games, the NFL's biggest competitor announced its official disbandment in 1950. At this point, the NFL began to dominate the professional rugby sports market.

With the development of the NFL, many wealthy people at the time discovered its potential value and joined the game one after another, including the oil tycoons from Texas-Hunter and his sons. They originally planned to acquire the then-Chicago Cardinals and move them to Dallas, but the NFL at the time was very conservative about market expansion and was not optimistic about the southern market at all. So he rejected the other party directly, and the acquisition of Hunter and his sons was stopped.

The rejected Hunters not only did not give up, but instead had a bolder idea...

Since the NFL is not interested in the southern market, why not set up a new football league to include the southern market?

In 1959, Hunter joined forces with wealthy owners who had been rejected by the NFL and disdained the NFL to form the American Football League (AFL). The AFL imitated the organizational structure of the NFL. Half of the initial eight teams were affiliated with the NFL. The teams were set up in the same city, such as the Chargers competing against the Los Angeles Rams at the time, the New York Titans competing against the NFL's Giants at the time, the Raiders competing against the 49ers, and the Texans sniping against the Cowboys.

Mainly a burglar.

The other four teams were rooted in the "small ball markets" that the NFL looked down upon at the time, namely Boston, Buffalo, Denver and Houston. One year, the league expanded to two new cities, which is now the Miami Dolphins. and the Cincinnati Bengals. At this time, the AFL already had ten teams, which was enough to pose a threat to the NFL.

This was just the beginning. The AFL made a very bold move at the time - recruiting players from predominantly black universities.

As for those players who were looked down upon by the NFL, they also accepted them all. Many of these players became AFL superstars later.

Last but not least, AFL team owners are all rich, rich and patient, and can give their teams enough time to grow.

As we all know, if you have money, you can do whatever you want.

Just a few years later, the AFL began to wave its counterattack, using higher prices to compete with the NFL. At this point, the AFL began to attract more and more people's attention. The landmark event was that in 1965, NBC used $3600 million to win the five-year broadcast rights of the AFL. This gave the AFL the greatest confidence for long-term operations.

At this time, the two leagues were locked in a long tug-of-war. The NFL had a longer history, and the emerging AFL had broader market prospects. The two sides launched fierce business competition, and the prices for player signings began to rise.

The players were happy to see this situation at the time, but the team owner didn't think so. Seeing that in the limited future, neither party could completely kill the other party, a merger of both parties might be the best option.

At that time, Cowboys manager Tex Schramm, who would later introduce cheerleading into the professional arena, took the initiative and secretly contacted the AFL team owners headed by Lamar Hunt to ask if there was any intention of merging. Davis, the AFL commissioner at the time, didn't even know about it. Finally, on the evening of June 1966, 6, the collaborators announced a new agreement in New York, and it was not until this moment that AFL Commissioner Davis knew that the owners had actually "turned to the enemy."

The two parties agreed to integrate media resources, stop poaching players from each other, and establish a new unified draft platform to reduce unnecessary expenses. A new competition system was established, and the entire merger process lasted four years.

Finally, and most importantly - create a new event in which the champions of the two leagues will compete to determine this year's "King of Kings".

The name "Super Bowl" was actually only officially established in the third year of the game's existence.

In the previous four Super Bowls, NFL and AFL teams played their own games. It also makes the Super Bowl feel like a competition between leagues.

This has led to the fact that the supporters behind teams entering the Super Bowl are no longer limited to their own fans, but include the entire league.

From north to south, from east coast to west coast, from the three major metropolitan areas along the coast to the Midwest like Denver. All rugby fans have an incentive to turn on the television...

I'm afraid even the people who originally merged didn't expect that the Super Bowl's ratings would be so horrific.

No event in this country has mobilized as many people, including general election voting, as the Super Bowl.

At this point, the Spring Festival Gala is complete.

With the fall of its opponent, the United States became the number one superpower of the Blue Star. US dollar bills circulated all over the world. The value of the Super Bowl also increased, gradually surpassing the combined value of the Olympic Games and the World Cup...invincible in the world.

In the foreseeable future, perhaps no sports event can surpass the Super Bowl, unless a certain Eastern Conference makes a big effort... (Don't think too much, I'm talking about cricket!)

As the world's number one sporting event. Each Super Bowl has its own logo and organizing committee.

The preparatory committee is responsible for selecting venues every year, cooperating with local police, fire and medical departments to determine emergency plans, and also cooperating with local tourism, transportation, hotel and other departments and industries to provide travel, accommodation, sightseeing and other services to meet the needs of the Super Bowl tourist needs.

Of course, the Super Bowl also requires cooperation with media, advertising, public relations and other departments to formulate publicity strategies and spread its influence. We also have to cooperate with local culture, art, education, charity and other departments to organize various activities.

Last but not least, we need to continuously coordinate and communicate with various sponsors and partners to ensure quality and efficiency.

Various activities and hardware indicators are also full.

In principle, the Super Bowl can only be held in cities with NFL teams. The stadium must have at least 70000 seats. There must be 35000 parking spaces within one mile of the stadium. There must be no less than one-third of the number of guest rooms within an hour's drive of the stadium.

The host city must also set up an NFL experience space with an indoor venue of no less than 850 square feet and an outdoor venue of no less than 000 square feet, and have other supporting facilities, including media and team training facilities. In addition, there are too many miscellaneous hard requirements. All in all, the competition specifications are comparable to those of world competitions.

The host city of the Super Bowl is announced three to four years in advance. For example, currently, Miami, Atlanta and Tampa have been selected as the hosts of the 33rd, 34th and 35th Super Bowl respectively.

Major cities also took great pains to obtain the right to host the event. For example, the city of Jacksonville docked several luxury cruise ships at their ports as temporary hotel spaces. In order to host Super Bowl XLVII, New Orleans invested an additional $10 billion in infrastructure improvements.

But considering the local economy it can boost, it is a good deal no matter how you calculate it.

·

"Dear viewers, welcome to FOX's Super Bowl special program, Super Bowl Observer. As the exclusive broadcaster of Super Bowl XXXIII, FOX Sports will bring you all-round detailed consultation about the Super Bowl. Please Don’t forget to tune in to Fox Sports on January 1st.”

"In three days, Super Bowl XXXIII will be held at Miami Stadium. Let's take a look at the current situation in the city. Penny, can you tell me where you are now?"

The TV broadcast signal then switched to an outdoor scene. Standing in front of the camera was Penny in a dark blue suit. Behind her was a lively event venue. Tourists in swimsuits were wandering on the beach amidst the loud music.

"Thank you John, I am now located in Miami's famous South Beach, which attracts many tourists every year. This year, driven by the 'Super Bowl Economy', the number of tourists in Miami is expected to double. The beach behind me is hosting the Super Bowl Concerts, in the coming days, include Stevie Wonder, Gloria Estefan, Keith Richards, Alicia Keys, Britney Spears, Jenny Lopez and others will be on stage to sing the songs.”

"A grand Super Bowl carnival is being held outside the beach, with many amusement facilities, hundreds of food stalls, a series of souvenir shops, football star autograph sessions, Super Bowl historical exhibitions, etc."

"On the day the Super Bowl ends, there will also be a grand Super Bowl party in South Beach, inviting many well-known DJs and dancers."

“Not only South Beach, but also the Miami Zoo and Aquarium will offer ticket discounts during the Super Bowl, and Little Havana will host a grand carnival during the Super Bowl.”

"Okay, thank you Penny for sending us the frontline report. Can you tell us about Ethan O'Connor's preparations?"

The host joked that since the scandal with Ethan came out, the FOX host would often ask Penny alone about Ethan's situation during the connection.

"He is making preparations closely." Penny said with a smile.

"It can be seen that you are very optimistic about Ethan's performance. Ethan should have revealed a lot of tactical details to you last night. Can you reveal some to us? For example, an iron? A leaping frog? A unicycle?"

"Oh, I can't tell you that." Penny smiled.

"Just kidding, be careful of the angry Dallas fans. They are leaving messages on the Internet asking you to stay away from Ethan. At least don't bother him now. Penny, thank you for your connection."

In this age where entertainment is paramount, everything is focused on ratings. As media professionals, they naturally do whatever they can to avoid being consumed.

But the benefits that Penny got were real. The scandal with Ethan alone made her appear on many Fox programs. Moreover, Penny's performance was also extremely good. Fox Sports took advantage of the opportunity to let her Responsible for the location hosting of this year's Super Bowl, this is a position that almost all reporters in the station are jealous of.

The scene switched back to the studio.

"This period of Super Bowl observation is over. Finally, please allow me to give you a preview. This year, FOX Sports will start a round-the-clock live broadcast of the Super Bowl. After the game, a new animated pilot episode will be broadcast..."

Not only Fox, as the broadcaster of the game, broadcasts Super Bowl programs, but other TV stations also sent reporters to participate in Super Bowl coverage.

"If all goes well, John Elway will become the first quarterback in history to appear in five Super Bowls, joining Broncos defensive lineman Mike Lodish, who will also set the record. Welcome to the sixth appearance in the Super Bowl." In ESPN's frontline broadcast, Michelle Besner talked in front of the camera, and the background behind him was the training base of the Broncos this time.

"Just yesterday, some media broke the news that John Elway and his former coach were involved in a dispute, with both sides insisting on their own opinions." The host asked.

"Yes, John Elway has been to the Super Bowl many times, but failed the first few times, which caused a gap between him and the head coach at the time..."

"In addition, John Elway has stated more than once that he will retire after this season. As a 38-year-old veteran, John Elway's physical condition has reached the limit. This will be his first career in professional football. The last dance on the field..."

"Except for John Elway, all the Broncos' main players showed excellent form. In public training, including Terrell Davis, the only running back to get 2000 yards this season, completed 64 times. Wide receivers Ed McCaffrey, who caught 1 yards and 053 touchdowns, Rod Smith, who caught 10 yards, and tight end Shannon Sharpe, these four players will effectively share the load of John Elway’s offensive pressure.”

At the same time, CBS TV station was paying attention to the Cowboys' training situation.

CBS TV star Bonnie Bernstein said from the front: "Compared to the Broncos, the Cowboys did not announce much information before the game. This time the Cowboys were extremely low-key, even though there were a large number of fans outside the training ground every day. , but they didn’t do any open training.”

"It is worth mentioning that Ethan seemed to be subject to more stringent guidelines. He did not have meals with other team members at noon. Through some filming, we found that he was undergoing additional arm strength training on his right arm, which may be related to Super Bowl tactics related..."

·

Unknowingly, three days passed quietly.

Starting from the afternoon, fans began to enter the stadium one after another. At 4: pm in Central America, Hard Rock Stadium began to warm up. An hour later, the performances before the game officially started.

Actress Tori Spelling begins using narrative to describe adventures from Caribbean cruises to exotic destinations.

Along with the narration, KISS, a well-known rock band with black and white face paint, took the stage and began their iconic "shock rock" style performance.

Amid the intense fireworks, America's national treasure artist Cher took the stage to sing "The Star-Spangled Banner."

A brief celebration followed, as participants from that year were invited into the stadium to commemorate the 1958th anniversary of the NFL Championship Game, where they were invited to participate in a ceremonial coin toss.

And when one of the balding middle-aged men appeared on the field, all the Cowboys fans cheered loudly. They were using this way to express respect for this man...

"We saw that Tom Landry, the legendary coach who has coached the Cowboys for 20 years, appeared in the stadium as a guest. He will also witness the new generation of Cowboys charging for Super Bowl honors." Commentator Madden said.

This time he teamed up with Pat Summers again to commentate on Super Bowl XXXIII.

Finally, amid the gorgeous fireworks and smoke columns, the Cowboys led by Ethan took the lead.

"Spring Festival Gala" starts!

(End of this chapter)