The greatest city in the world (as David Letterman likes to call it) is going to make the most of the Super Bowl coming to MetLife Stadium, even if the home of the Giants and the Jets isn’t anywhere near Manhattan.

The NFL plans to put a “Super Bowl Boulevard” down between 34th and 44th streets in New York City in time for the big game next year, the New York Daily News reports. The “football-themed extravaganza” will have several features, including large screens showing NFL Films footage, but the centerpiece will be a toboggan run.

That’s right: a toboggan run. An eight-lane, 180-foot-long, 58-foot-high toboggan run will be set up in the middle of Broadway. Up to 1,000 people will be able to ride it each hour, according to the Daily News.

More official details are expected to be released Tuesday, but really, what more do you need to know?

Check out the toboggan run — toward the uprights! — in the photo below.

Photo via Twitter/dkaplanSBJ

Photo of the Day

There appears to be some water at Merion Country Club.

Tweet of the Day

Sounds like a good night to us.

Only took 5 hours & 24 mins for that 10-8 #RedSox victory. Goodnight.

—
Jenny Dell (@JennyDellNESN) June 11, 2013

Video of the Day

Behind the back! In baseball!

After San Francisco (Super Bowl L) and Houston (Super Bowl LI) were selected as the sites for the 2016 and 2017 games on Tuesday, Patriots owner Robert Kraft made his pitch for the game to be played in Foxboro, Mass.

“We would love one day to hold it here if it’s a good experience there,” Kraft told reporters at the owners meetings on Tuesday. “We’re looking forward to seeing this experience in New York and New Jersey.”

If the outdoor Super Bowl in New York/New Jersey turns out to be a big success, then the NFL would be inclined to make cold-weather Super Bowls a more common occurrence in the future. Kraft is eyeing the Boston-Providence area as the primary location, highlighting two of New England best geographical assets.

“It would be great. I sort of like Boston/Providence,” Kraft said. “This is where it all started. Right here.”

Kraft understands there could be some hurdles to get past before the game actually is awarded to the region, but he believes they can be easily overcome.

“Part of what it will require is political people in Boston and Providence coming together so we could really have the right number of hotel rooms and have the support,” he said. “It would require cooperation from all of the political folks who would have to gather together and want this and come together, like they do in other parts of the country.”

The NFL owners might feel compelled to lend Kraft their support in the venture, especially given how integral he was in resolving the lockout between the league and its players in 2011. Although, they might not like it so much if the ever-dominant Patriots are playing in the very game they host. That’s something Kraft would like to see but isn’t going to prioritize.

“I hope we can be in the game. We like playing in cold weather.” Kraft added. “I’d rather be in the game than attract it here though, that’s going to be our priority.”

The earliest the Patriots would be able to host the Super Bowl would be in 2018, the same season Tom Brady is expected to retire. What a sendoff that would be.

Have a question for Luke Hughes? Send it to him via Twitter at @LukeFHughes or send it here.

The 50th Super Bowl will be held in the 49ers’ new Levis Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif. The Super Bowl will tentatively take place on Feb. 7, 2016.

Super Bowl LI will be held in Houston. The 51st Super Bowl, for those who are not roman numerally inclined, will be held on Feb. 5, 2017.

Will Brinson of CBS Sports had the best joke of the day. Enjoy it below.

Second straight year San Francisco gets a Super Bowl L. HEY-O.

—
Will Brinson (@WillBrinson) May 21, 2013

Photo via Facebook/San Francisco 49ers

According to ESPN, the NHL is in the final planning stages of its outdoor stadium series scheduled for next season. The series will include six games — including both American and Canadian teams. The games will be played in various football and baseball stadiums across North America.

The first game will be the rescheduled and much-anticipated matchup in Ann Arbor at the “Big House” — the largest stadium in North American – between the Detroit Red Wings and the Toronto Maple Leafs. The next five games will follow in the coming weeks proceeding the Winter Classic. The report includes cities such as New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and Vancouver — additional cities will be announced in the next two weeks.

One game to have leaked is an All-California matchup at Dodger Stadium between the Anaheim Ducks and the Los Angeles Kings on Jan. 25. This will be one of three games outdoor games scheduled that week leading up to Super Bowl XLVIII on Feb. 2, 2014, in New Jersey.

The league would like to schedule two of those games in the New York area during Super Bowl week — both featuring the New York Rangers. The plan proposes two outdoor games at Yankee Stadium on Jan. 26 and Jan. 29. The Rangers would play the New Jersey Devils in the first game and the New York Islanders would make the trip down the Long Island Expressway on the 29th — oddly enough the Rangers would be the visiting team in both contests.

The next two games will take place after the Super Bowl during Hockey Week Across America — which starts Feb. 28 and runs through Mar. 2. One of the NFL’s most popular stadiums, Solider Field, will host one of those games. The Pittsburgh Penguins will make the trip out to Chicago to take on the Blackhawks on Mar. 1 — the last outdoor game in Chicago was in 2009 at Chicago’s other classic park, Wrigley Field.

On Mar. 2 the last outdoor game will take place. The Vancouver Canucks will host the third Canadian-based Heritage Classic in a matchup against the Ottawa Senators at B.C. Place.

“We set the bar pretty high on all these. If you’re going into a market that’s had [a Winter Classic], the bar is high,” NHL chief operating officer John Collins told ESPN.com’s Craig Custance. “If you’re going into a market that hasn’t had it and they’ve seen it, they’ve heard about it and they want to experience it. The bar is possibly even higher for them.”

What the people want is what the people get — eventually. Man, are we in for a show next season.

In an interview with NFL Network on Thursday, Crabtree said after taking a hard hit from Ravens cornerback Jimmy Smith, he temporarily lost vision in the fourth quarter.

“When the guy hit me, he hit me all in the face,” Crabtree said. “I’m not tripping. I’m not one to whine about nothing, but he hit me all in the face and I couldn’t really see after he hit me.”

Crabtree said the scary moment ended before the next snap as his vision returned prior to the following play, but the wide receiver wasn’t upset that no call was made on the play near the goal line on third down. When pushed to describe the aftermath of the hit further, Crabtree noted this wasn’t an isolated incident.

“They hit me, I really couldn’t see. … Then [my vision] just came back. It’s not concussion-like. When you get hit in football, it’s going to feel like you can’t see. It’s going to feel intense. But it snapped back. It happens all the time in football.”

Crabtree was the target of all three of the 49ers’ last plays of the game, which all went as incompletions giving the Ravens the ball back on downs. Baltimore eventually went on to win 34-31.

According to thelensnola.com, CBS has applied for a tax credit for broadcasting the daily talk show The Talk during Super Bowl week in New Orleans.

CBS is eligible for $700,000 in tax credits, “whether deducted from other taxes owed the state, sold into the tax-credit market at 85 cents on the dollar or sold back to the state for cash,” according to the report.

The local leaders aren’t feeling it.

“It’s obvious to everyone involved that The Talk was coming here anyway,” state Sen. J.P. Morrell said. “It doesn’t pass the smell test.”

CBS Studios spokeswoman Lauri Metrose emailed a statement to thelensnola.com to explain why CBS applied for the credit.

“Traveling and shooting a live, daily entertainment talk show on location is a considerable expense,” she said. “This was the first time we’ve ever done it for a Super Bowl, showcasing New Orleans to a national audience every day for an hour in daytime in the process. The growing production infrastructure and support services in the state, as well as the tax incentive, continue to make Louisiana an attractive option for a variety of television productions. We currently have two drama pilots filming in the state right now.”

Thumbnail via Facebook/The Talk

A new chip-and-dip bowl would probably be nice, especially considering what the Super Bowl-winning Ravens did this week to thank the city of New Orleans for hosting their Ray Lewis retirement bash. The team is reportedly ready to unveil a set of 2013 Harley Davidson FLHP motorcycles for the city police department’s traffic division on Wednesday, according to Pro Football Talk. (The bikes look something like this.)

The team also took out a full-page advertisement in the New Orleans Times-Picayune to thank the city, its police department and its fans for the excellent weekend.

Check it out in the photo below, and go get that bowl and a thank-you card.

@AdamSchefter classy move by Ravens http://t.co/e2rzXjj1eb

—
Glen Mercer (@gmercer9) March 06, 2013

Thumbnail photo via Twitter/@gmercer9

The second-year linebacker took to Twitter on Tuesday morning to declare that Denver will represent the AFC in next year’s Super Bowl.

You can post this where ever.. Denver broncos will win the Super Bowl 2013 #4UJEREMIAH #IGUARANTEEIT58 if you are with us Retweet

—
Von Miller (@MillerLite40) March 05, 2013

The Broncos were the top seed in the AFC this season before losing 38-35 in double overtime to the eventual Super Bowl champions, the Baltimore Ravens, in the divisional round.

Thumbnail photo via Facebook/Denver Broncos

Joe Flacco

Flacco, who was slated to hit free agency on March 12, has agreed to a new long-term contract with the Ravens, according to Jay Glazer of Fox Sports. The deal will reportedly make him the highest-paid quarterback in NFL history as well, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

Ravens have agreed to a new contract with QB Joe Flacco. He will sign it on Monday—
Jay Glazer (@JayGlazer) March 01, 2013

Ravens and Super Bowl MVP Joe Flacco have agreed to deal, as @JayGlazer reported. Expected to make Flacco highest-paid QB in NFL history.—
Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 01, 2013

The Ravens have even confirmed that the deal is in place, according to the team’s Twitter feed, which usually wouldn’t take place until after a player actually signs.

Reports: #Ravens and Joe Flacco have agreed to a new deal.—
Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) March 01, 2013

Sealing the deal now means avoiding hitting Flacco with the franchise tag before Monday’s deadline, and will allow the Ravens to utilize that tag on one of their other big free agents, if they so desire.

Flacco played near perfect football this postseason, throwing 11 touchdowns and zero interceptions, while leading the Ravens to a Super Bowl victory. The epic playoff performance earned Flacco endless praise, even from his former doubters, and was asking for nearly $20 million per season for his efforts.

The terms of the contract have not yet been revealed, but you can be sure he’ll make somewhere at least close to that $20 million range.

Have a question for Luke Hughes? Send it to him via Twitter at @LukeFHughes or send it here.

While it sounds like fun, it’s not likely. The Super Bowl is scheduled to come to MetLife Stadium, home of the New York Jets and New York Giants, next year, but the NFL is not taking any chances, according to Sports Business Daily.

If snow is in the forecast, the league will likely move the day the game is played — either bringing it up a day or pushing it back further in the week, according to the report. The league is working on a variety of contingency plans based around not only snow during the big game but also the possibility that the area could be shut down, similar to what happened this past weekend during the nor’easter that overtook New York, Boston and surrounding areas.

A storm that takes several days to clean up could cause serious problems for what has become a multiweek sporting spectacle, but that’s what the NFL got itself into by committing the game to a “cold-weather stadium.” Earlier concerns about quarterbacks’ hands getting chilly have now morphed into much bigger problems, with not only the game being affected but possibly also the revenue streams of the NFL and local areas.

The Sports Business Daily report notes that adjusting the game time could affect flight plans and hotel accommodations, not to mention viewership. Demand for tickets and perks surrounding the game is already high in the media capital of the world, with one company that sells “on-site Super Bowl hospitality packages” taking deposits since last October.

Everyone likes a good snow day, but this one — well, the NFL may have joined the fun before it knew quite what it was getting into.

Photo via Flickr/Schen Photography

Saturday Night Live

Recent sports headlines have provided SNL with plenty to work with, from the Manti Te’o and Lance Armstrong stories a few weeks ago to Ray Lewis making himself a fully mockable figure heading into the Super Bowl.

This week, SNL decided to poke fun at an occasion most of America had to sit through together: the half-hour power outage during the Super Bowl. From the frantic scrambling as the CBS analysts tried to find one more thing to talk about to a crack at the recent news about Dan Marino‘s love life, SNL made sure to say what most people were thinking during the interminable outage.

As far as great sports skits go, though, the power outage one will not live on in SNL lore. The show has offered up too many other great sketches based on sports throughout the years, with much more memorable performances.

With a few weeks of sports-related sketches in the books, though, it’s about time to look back and see which ones were best — and, no, this doesn’t even include the many SNL sketches featuring sports stars, which deserves its own Top 10. Will Ferrell, John Belushi, John Hamm and Ray Romano are among the comedians impersonating the likes of Tim Tebow, Harry Caray, Manti Te’o and Ray Lewis as SNL turns the tragedy of defeat into comedic gold.

Click here for the Top 10 best sports spoofs in SNL history>>

Click here for the Top 10 athlete performances on SNL>>

The device, called a relay, had been installed to protect the Superdome from problems in the cable that links the company’s incoming power line with the lines that run into the stadium.

Officials from Entergy New Orleans said the relay functioned with no problems during January’s Sugar Bowl and other earlier events. It has been removed and will be replaced.

All systems at the Superdome are now working, and the dome was to host a major Mardi Gras event Saturday night, said Doug Thornton, an executive with SMG, the company that manages the stadium for the state.

The device was installed in a building near the stadium known as “the vault,” which receives a line directly from a nearby Entergy substation. Once the line reaches the vault, it splits into two cables that go into the Superdome.

Sunday’s power failure cut lights to about half of the stadium for 34 minutes, halting play between the Baltimore Ravens and San Francisco 49ers.

Not long after Friday’s announcement, the manufacturer of the relay, Chicago-based S&C Electric Co., released a statement saying that the blackout occurred because system operators had put the device’s so-called trip setting too low to allow the device to handle the incoming electric load.

The statement did not name the operators, but the equipment was owned and installed by Entergy New Orleans, a subsidiary of New Orleans-based Entergy Corp.

“If higher settings had been applied, the equipment would not have disconnected the power,” said Michael J.S. Edmonds, vice president of strategic solutions for S&C.

In a follow-up statement, Entergy said that tests conducted by S&C and Entergy on the two relays at the Superdome showed that one worked as expected, the other did not.

Entergy spokesman Mike Burns said both relays had the same trip setting.

Entergy’s announcement came shortly before company officials were to answer questions about the outage from a committee of the City Council, which is the regulatory body for the company.

During the committee hearing, City Council member Susan Guidry asked Entergy executives whether they were “fairly certain” that the relay was faulty.

“That is correct,” said Dennis Dawsey, an Entergy vice president.

However, when asked if the outage was caused by the design or a defect in a part of the equipment, Entergy New Orleans CEO Charles Rice said that had not been determined.

“The equipment did not function properly,” Rice said. “At this particular time, based upon our analysis, we cannot say definitively that there was a defect in design. What we do know is that the equipment for some unknown reason, at this particular time, did not react the way that it should have.”

Asked if Entergy and SMG still plan to hire a third-party investigator to get to the bottom of the cause, Rice said that possibility remains open.

“We’ll work closely with SMG, and if there is a need for a third-party investigation, we will do that,” Rice said, adding that Entergy was also working with the manufacturer.

Shabab Mehraeen, an assistant professor of electrical engineering at Louisiana State University, said the relay device is a common electrical fixture in businesses and massive facilities such as the Superdome.

“They are designed to keep a problem they sense from becoming something bigger, like a fire or catastrophic event,” said Mehraeen, who holds a doctorate from the Missouri University of Science and Technology in Rolla, Mo.

The devices vary in size. Mehraeen, who was not familiar with the relay at the Superdome, said he “wouldn’t be surprised if it was bigger than a truck.”

Mehraeen said the reasons the devices fail are the subject of much academic research into the interaction of relays with the complex electrical systems they regulate.

“It’s not unusual for them to have problems,” he said. “They can be unpredictable, despite national testing standards recommended by manufacturers.”

Entergy and SMG had both upgraded lines and equipment in the months leading up to the Super Bowl. Rice said the new switching gear, with the faulty relay, was installed as part of a $4.2 million upgrade by Entergy, including the installation of a new power line dedicated solely to the stadium.

In a separate project, SMG replaced lines coming into the stadium after managers expressed concerns the Superdome might be vulnerable to a power failure like the one that struck Candlestick Park during an NFL game in 2011. That outage was blamed at least partly on a transformer explosion.

Thornton stressed Friday that the dome was drawing only about two-thirds of its power capacity Super Bowl night, and said typical NFL games in late August or September can draw a little more.

City officials had worried that the Super Bowl outage might harm New Orleans’ chances of getting another NFL championship game.

But NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell downplayed that possibility, saying the NFL planned to keep New Orleans in its Super Bowl plans. Mayor Mitch Landrieu said the city intends to bid for the game again in 2018.

John, head coach for the Ravens, headed to Late Show With David Letterman this week to bask in his Super Bowl win, and Letterman wanted to know whether the loss had created any animosity. John acknowledged that the two brothers hadn’t spoken since the Super Bowl, but he said there was no ill intent.

When Letterman asked about the dynamic between the two as they were growing up, though, things got interesting.

“I felt like Jim was the favorite,” John said, noting that his brother likely agreed.

John also agreed with Letterman’s assessment that he’s breathing easier now that the older brother came through with the win.

“You do wake up thinking ‘Thank God I beat him,’” John said. “It would have been a long life.”

Check out everything he had to say in the video below, including Letterman’s send-off, when he mistakenly calls the Super Bowl champs the “Raisins.”

Joe Flacco

“If he starts to break it, go tackle him,” Flacco told Ravens tight end Dennis Pitta on the sidelines, as overheard by NFL Films microphones.

“I don’t know,” Flacco said, when pressed by his teammate about the legality of his idea. “I mean, what else … what could they … I don’t know. They might be able to give him a touchdown on that, but I don’t know.”

According to NFL rules, the officials would have been able to award Ginn a score due to the “palpably unfair act” committed by the Ravens sideline. However, Flacco seemed ready to run the risk of committing a foul if it meant keeping the 49ers out of the end zone.

“Why can’t you [tackle him]?” center Matt Birk asked his quarterback after Flacco yelled the plan to his team’s offensive line.

“I will,” Flacco said. “I’m going to.”

Baltimore’s special teams unit never needed any help, however, as Ginn was tackled and the Ravens were crowned champions.

While Rice and his teammates were parading through the streets of Balimore, the Rutgers alum tried reaching out to some nearby fans when he was suddenly tossed off the float.

Rice responded to the incident on WFAN’s Boomer and Carton show on Wednesday morning.

“The float stopped short and I fell off of it, but I caught myself,” Rice explained. “I’m good though. I’m telling y’all that because y’all are my boys. Ray Rice has no injuries. I fell off the float, but I’m good.”

Rice went on to say that after he fell, he collected himself, and proclaimed, “Let’s party.”

Rice hasn’t missed a game since becoming the Ravens’ starting running back, but Baltimore fans should hope he doesn’t plan on repeating any falls this offseason while celebrating the team’s Super Bowl win.

If you’re having football withdrawals, NFL fans can now relive the season through animation. Austin Madison has been an animator on such hit Pixar films as Ratatouille, Up and Brave. The Pixar animator has uploaded almost two dozen artistic renderings of NFL games, including the Super Bowl, to his blog. In most cases, Madison took a literal approach to his artwork. For example, the animator depicted actual giants versus actual steelers in his Week 9 post.

Madison also posted drawings of the World Series and the BCS National Championship game. He depicted one matchup per week during the NFL’s regular season and continued through the playoffs.

Click here to see Madison’s creative NFL animations >>

The last time a Super Bowl champion repeated that feat the next season was the New England Patriots eight years ago, and the quarterback who won those titles is still at large. In fact, of the 94 teams to reach the Super Bowl since the era began in 1967, only eight teams have repeated as champions and just 11 have even returned to the game the following season. So, a repeat performance in New Jersey next year seems unlikely.

Adding even more doubt to the Ravens’ postseason aspirations for next season, no champion has won a postseason game the following season since the Patriots’ repeat in 2004. Not to mention that just six of the past 10 champions have even made the playoffs that next year.

Now, every team is different and this Ravens squad has a young core with tons of talent locked up for the future. But they also have some major issues awaiting them this offseason, of which Ray Lewis‘ retirement ranks near the bottom of the list.

Just to reflect on Lewis’ impact this season, including the playoffs the Ravens were 9-1 with Lewis and just 5-5 without him. So, there’s that. Then comes the inherent issues with this roster moving forward.

Entering the offseason, the Ravens currently project at $5 million over the salary cap for the 2013 season, and that’s even without Joe Flacco‘s certain salary bump which even with the franchise tag would be a lofty $14.6 million. So, general manager Ozzie Newsome definitely has some work ahead of him. First on that list is dealing with the long list of free agents ready to hit the market.

The Ravens have 13 impending unrestricted free agents and a bevy of guys on the restricted market, many of whom made a significant impact on the team’s Super Bowl run. The unrestricted list is highlighted by linebackers Dannell Ellerbe and Paul Kruger, cornerback Cary Williams, safety Ed Reed and left tackle Bryant McKinnie, while the restricted players include tight ends Dennis Pitta and Ed Dickson and defensive lineman Arthur Jones. With so many players in need of new deals, some of them surely won’t be back in Baltimore next season and the Ravens’ roster could see a serious overhaul.

In order to keep the core of this team intact, Newsome may have to make some gutsy and unpopular decisions. Wide receivers Anquan Boldin and Jacoby Jones both played a major role in the Super Bowl victory, but with the pair combined to account for almost $12.5 million in salary space next year they could be cap casualties this offseason.

There are a multitude of issues facing the Ravens, so don’t expect to see the same Super Bowl contender taking the field in Baltimore next season. Newsome is a great talent evaluator and a terrific money manager, but this situation appears just too complicated for even him to counter.

Not to say that the Ravens won’t be competitive in 2013, because they will. Anytime you have a quarterback with the skills of Flacco, a running back with the elusiveness of Ray Rice and a premier defender like Terrell Suggs, you are going to compete at a high level. But don’t expect the same sort of success from next year’s Ravens as we were made witness to this season.

The Super Bowl was a perfect way for Lewis to cement his legacy and John Harbaugh to begin his own, but this was a do-or-die year for the Ravens. Next year won’t be quite as promising.

The Bengals are building something special in Cincinnati and the Steelers won’t settle for another third-place finish in the AFC North. The Ravens have their work cut out for them this offseason and the regular season that follows will be just as daunting.

So, while you shouldn’t count out the now defending Super Bowl champs, they do have quite the difficult journey ahead of them. One that might not even have playoffs in the plans.

Have a question for Luke Hughes? Send it to him via Twitter at @LukeFHughes or send it here.

The improvements apparently weren’t enough, however, to prevent an embarrassing and puzzling 34-minute power outage during the third quarter of the game between the Baltimore Ravens and San Francisco 49ers on Sunday.

Two days later, officials still had not pinpointed the cause of the outage. The Superdome’s management company, SMG, and the utility that supplies the stadium, Entergy New Orleans, announced Tuesday that they would hire outside experts to investigate.

“We wanted to leave no stone unturned,” Entergy spokesman Chanel Lagarde told the AP. He said the two companies had not been able to reach a conclusion on the cause and wanted a third-party analysis.

“We thought it was important to get another party looking at this to make sure we were looking at everything that we need to examine,” Lagarde said.

SMG Vice President Doug Thornton told a news conference at City Hall later Tuesday that the hiring of a third party does not signify a disagreement between SMG and Entergy.

“It’s important for us to have total transparency and we have agreed among ourselves that we will exchange records,” Thornton said. “We were metering the power. They were doing the same on their side. We need to figure out what the root cause of this is and fix it.”

Documents obtained Monday through a records request by The Associated Press show that Superdome officials worried months ago about losing power during the NFL championship.

Tests on the electrical feeders that connect incoming power from utility lines to the stadium showed decay and “a chance of failure,” state officials warned in a memo dated Oct. 15. The documents, obtained by the AP through a records request, also show that Entergy expressed concern about the reliability of the service before the Super Bowl.

The memo said Entergy and the Superdome’s engineering staff “had concerns regarding the reliability of the Dome service from Entergy’s connection point to the Dome.”

The memo was prepared for the Louisiana Stadium & Exposition District, the state body responsible for the Superdome.

Authorities subsequently authorized spending nearly $1 million on Superdome improvements, including more than $600,000 for upgrading the dome’s electrical feeder cable system, work that was done in December.

“As discussed in previous board meetings, this enhancement is necessary to maintain both the Superdome and the New Orleans Arena as top tier facilities, and to ensure that we do not experience any electrical issues during the Super Bowl,” said an LSED document dated Dec. 19.

Superdome commission records show a $513,250 contract to replace feeder cables was awarded to Allstar Electric, a company based in suburban New Orleans.

Arthur Westbrook, Allstar’s project manager for the job, referred all questions about possible causes of the outage to the management company.

A lawyer for the LSED, Larry Roedel, said Monday a preliminary investigation found the replacement work done in December did not appear to have caused Sunday’s outage.

Eric Grubman, NFL executive vice president of business operations, told the AP on Tuesday that the league was aware of the city’s pre-game upgrades to the utility lines, “which we understood to be important and beneficial.”

“SMG and others kept us apprised and those reports gave us no real cause for concern,” Grubman said. “It is natural and understandable for energy suppliers to be concerned prior to a huge event. If an engineer is asked whether something is 100 percent failsafe, an engineer will normally say, `No, there is always a risk of failure.’”

Both Entergy and SMG said Sunday that an “abnormality” occurred where stadium equipment intersects with an Entergy electric feed, causing a breaker to create the outage. It remained unclear Monday exactly what the abnormality was or why it occurred.

The lights-out championship game proved an embarrassment for New Orleans just when it was hoping to show the rest of the world how far it has come since Hurricane Katrina in 2005. But many fans were forgiving, and officials expressed confidence that the episode wouldn’t hurt the city’s hopes of hosting the championship again.

When Tom O’Brien abandoned the Heights for greener pastures at North Carolina State in 2007, BC was forced to find a man to lead the program. Then-BC athletic director Gene DeFillipo put on a full-court press to find another talented head coach. The search yielded plenty of good candidates and the Eagles nearly landed a program-changing hire in John Harbaugh.

After winning his first Super Bowl, Harbaugh reflected on his journey to the top of the NFL in an interview with the Philadelphia Daily News on Monday, which included being turned down for a number of college jobs, including BC’s.

“I mean, I can’t even believe we’re having this conversation walking down the hallway after winning the Super Bowl,” Harbaugh said of his career arc. “To me, I can’t believe we’re having this conversation, in all honesty.”

Harbaugh specified that Syracuse and UCLA didn’t hire him for their openings and indicated that BC wouldn’t even talk to him during their interview process.

“I came in second for the UCLA job to Rick Neuheisel [in '08], and got close in a couple of other [college] jobs. But other jobs, I couldn’t even get an interview,” Harbaugh said.

DeFillipo refuted that notion and disclosed that he had interviewed the elder Harbaugh back in 2007, according to the Boston Herald, even referring to Harbaugh as a “great candidate.”

“I thought he was a great person, and a great coach,” DeFilippo said. “[Former Philadelphia Eagles coach] Andy Reid told me he was as good a coach as he had on his staff. So to the best of my recollection, we interviewed John Harbaugh. He was very well-organized. I can’t say enough good things about him. I could not have been more impressed.’”

Impressed or not, DeFillipo clearly dropped the ball on this pick. Rather than taking Reid’s advice and hiring the championship-caliber coach, he settled on a two-year loaner in Jeff Jagodzinski.

Not to say that Harbuagh would’ve stayed much longer than Jags, but if what Jim Harbaugh did for Stanford is any measure, then BC football would at least be in a much better position than they are now.

Have a question for Luke Hughes? Send it to him via Twitter at @LukeFHughes or send it here.

Ravens fans are ready to rock.

Just two days after the winning the Super Bowl in New Orleans, the Ravens will parade through the streets of Baltimore, traveling south from City Hall on Commerce Street to Pratt and Howard streets before ending at M&T Bank Stadium, according to The Baltimore Sun.

The parade will end in a celebration at the stadium about 12:30 p.m. ET, “featuring celebrity entertainers,” according to The Sun.

“It’s Ravens players, the Ravens band, Ravens cheerleaders, Ravens coaches and the Ravens mascot,” Tracy Baskerville, a spokeswoman for the Baltimore Office of Promotion and the Arts, told The Sun. “And confetti. Of course, you can’t have any event without confetti.”

Check out a live stream of the parade above.