Morgan Cox of the Baltimore Ravens lies on the field while celebrating after defeating the San Francisco 49ers 34-31 in Super Bowl XLVII at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on Sunday, February 3, in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Editor's note: Mike Downey is a former Los Angeles Times and Chicago Tribune columnist.
(CNN) -- 1. Good football game.
2. How could that ref not call that?!
3. The blackout.
4. Beyonce, wow, man.
5. A lot of bad ads.
Well, that's basically it. Did I leave out anything?
These would be your top five Super Bowl talking points, wouldn't you agree? Because if something more interesting happened on Super Bowl Sunday that's still got you talking on Monday, I would very much like to know what it was.
F-words overheard in the winning team's celebration, perhaps? (Hey, watch your Flacco mouth, pal!) Or that guy going 108 yards with a kickoff? How about a Harbaugh mentioned every 10 or 20 seconds on TV? Oh, and that cute Clydesdale. And the losing team's quarterback, Colin I'm-So-Good-I-Can-Kiss-Myself.
And there were those sweet kids from Sandy Hook, singing "America the Beautiful" so beautifully, alongside the increasingly beautiful Jennifer Hudson.
OK, I suppose somebody out there might be talking about some of these things, too.
I personally thought John Harbaugh's Ravens 34, Jim Harbaugh's 49ers 31 was a truly cool Super Bowl, possibly one of the 10 best ever played. I have sat through quite a few bad, bad Super Bowls in my day, including one inside this same New Orleans dome where a 49ers team beat the living gumbo out of a Denver Broncos team. Compared to that clinker, trust me, Sunday's game between Baltimore and San Francisco was a classic.
But it sure didn't start out that way.
Kickoff came in the late afternoon in Los Angeles, where I watched Super Bowl XLVII on a XLIII-inch screen. It was still light outdoors out west as the game drew close to halftime, and the score was so one-sided -- Baltimore was up by 21-3 at one point -- I reached for the remote control of my TV.
Let's see, what else was on? ESPN: "World's Strongest Man" competition. ESPN2: Auburn vs. Florida women's gymnastics. TNT: A rerun of "Law & Order" (what a surprise). AMC: "The Walking Dead."
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No, I stuck with CBS, where, on their way to the locker room, the 49ers also appeared to be the walking dead.
Beyonce came out next and sang -- really sang, not like at Barack Obama's inauguration. And then her two old teammates from Destiny's Child sang along with her. I think they sang "Bootylicious," a song that I believe Beyonce was not asked to sing at Obama's inauguration.
Soon the second half began.
It took approximately 12 seconds for a Raven named Jacoby Jones to fly 108 yards for a touchdown. Baltimore was now up by 28-6 and Mr. and Mrs. Harbaugh's son John was looking more and more like destiny's child.
I picked up that remote once more.
HBO: "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close." TLC: "My Big Fat American Gypsy." MTV: "Snooki and JWOWW." VH1: "Mob Wives." ID: "Wives With Knives."
A tough choice, obviously. I decided no, I cannot change this channel now, because I might miss a Super Bowl commercial that everybody else will be buzzing about tomorrow. Maybe a funny one with a talking baby or a chimpanzee. Maybe a sexy one with somebody classy like Danica Patrick or Snooki or JWOWW.
Then the whole screen went dark. The players on my TV were suddenly harder to see than Manti Te'o's girlfriend.
I sat there squinting until I realized that the City of New Orleans' combination football stadium and hurricane shelter had just blown a fuse. A power blackout caused an interruption to the TV event everybody wanted to see, or at least everybody who didn't prefer watching Auburn vs. Florida women's gymnastics.
A lot of perplexed,mixed-up people began running around in that dome, some of them probably calling Louisiana Gas & Electric to make sure that the city had remembered to mail in the February payment. A number of lame jokes made the rounds -- yes, this is why the 49ers play their home games in a park called Candlestick -- and I was asked by more than one person what would happen if New Orleans failed to get the lights back on. I lied that the game would be moved to Baton Rouge and played on Super Bowl Tuesday.
Thirty-four long minutes later, lights, camera, action. It was OK to play. Somebody (maybe FEMA?) did a heck of a job.
Up to then, everything had been going Baltimore's way. Joe Flacco was having a Joe Montana kind of day at quarterback, Michael Oher was throwing blocks the way Sandra Bullock taught him to in that movie, Ray Rice ran hard and Ray Lewis apparently made a lot of tackles, because those TV guys kept talking and talking and talking about Ray Lewis, even though I didn't actually see him make tackles.
Ahhh, but as soon as Joe the Electrician (or whoever they called) screwed in all the new light bulbs, the Super Bowl looked entirely different. Colin Kaepernick began making great plays at quarterback for the 49ers, giving himself a great big kiss on the arm for a job well done. Colin's the kind of kid who would pour Gatorade over his own head after a win.
We had ourselves a football game all of a sudden, San Francisco coming within two points, 31-29. I should have seen it coming because the 49ers never choke in a big game. I can't recall the Niners ever playing poorly in a Super Bowl, just as I can't recall the Niners ever playing a good game before the NFL had a Super Bowl.
Could they actually win this game? Could they solve Baltimore's defense one more time -- as soon as CBS ran 20 or 30 more commercials? Elementary, as Sherlock Holmes almost never says to Lucy Liu.
Kaepernick looked great. He was fast. He was bootylicious. He got the 49ers within striking distance. The Ravens were trapped between a pit and a pendulum.
A pass was thrown, lobbed high above Niner receiver Michael Crabtree's head, but Jimmy Smith of the Ravens seemed to have Crabtree in his pincers. Would it be called pass interference? Would it be a first down for the 49ers, a yard or two away from a winning touchdown? Would Kaepernick run for a score and then kiss himself on the mouth?
Nope, no flag. No call by the ref on that pass.
Maybe he lost it in the lights.
It was a memorable ending. Certainly more memorable than most of the commercials, which didn't even star any funny chimps. Baltimore's post-game celebration was colorful and wild. Flacco apparently could be heard by TV viewers using some bad flaccin' language. He also accepted an award for being voted the Most Valuable Player of the game, but at least he didn't accidentally say that he was going to flaccin' Disneyland.
Another big game had come and gone. I am sure that many of you would agree that this was one of the best Super Bowls that you have ever seen.
You know, except for the dark part.
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The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Mike Downey.
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Super bowl MVP Joe Flacco of the Baltimore Ravens celebreates with his teammates.
Head coach John Harbaugh of the Baltimore Ravens, left, shakes hands with his brother, head coach Jim Harbaugh of the San Francisco 49ers, after winning Super Bowl XLVII in a close contest.
Retiring linebacker Ray Lewis of the Baltimore Ravens celebrates as confetti falls after the game.
Perrish Cox of the San Francisco 49ers kneels on the sideline after his team lost the Super Bowl to the Baltimore Ravens.
Ed Reed of the Baltimore Ravens hoists the Vince Lombardi Trophy after the win.
Quarterback Joe Flacco is tackled by teammates while celebrating after the game.
The Ravens' Ray Lewis celebrates his team's win.
49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick walks off the field after the game.
Bobbie Williams of the Baltimore Ravens, right, and his teammates celebrate their win against the San Francisco 49ers.
Confetti falls on the field as the Ravens celebrate their 34-31 victory over the 49ers.
Cornerback Perrish Cox of the San Francisco 49ers kneels down among the confetti following his team's loss.
Vonta Leach, left, and Ray Lewis of the Baltimore Ravens celebrate on the field after the game.
Michael Crabtree of the San Francisco 49ers fails to make a catch in the end zone late in the fourth quarter against Ed Reed of the Baltimore Ravens.
Ray Lewis, left, and Ed Reed of the Baltimore Ravens celebrate after the San Francisco 49ers couldn't convert on a fourth down play in the final two minutes of the fourth quarter.
Michael Oher of the Ravens lifts teammate Arthur Jones into the air as the clock runs out.
Patrick Willis of the San Francisco 49ers makes contact with Bernard Pierce of the Baltimore Ravens.
Joe Flacco of the Baltimore Ravens throws a pass in the fourth quarter against the San Francisco 49ers.
Quarterback Colin Kaepernick of the 49ers scores a 15-yard rushing touchdown in the fourth quarter against the Ravens.
Anquan Boldin of the Baltimore Ravens stiff-arms Chris Culliver of the San Francisco 49ers after catching a 30-yard pass in the third quarter.
Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco throws a pass against the San Francisco 49ers during Super Bowl XLVII.
Ray Lewis of the Baltimore Ravens watches from the bench during the third quarter.
Ted Ginn Jr., left, of the San Francisco 49ers celebrates with teammate Dashon Goldson after a long punt return.
Bernard Pierce of the Baltimore Ravens is tackled by Dashon Goldson of the 49ers.
Arthur Jones of the Baltimore Ravens celebrates after a tackle during Super Bowl XLVII.
Tarell Brown of the San Francisco 49ers causes Ray Rice of the Baltimore Ravens to fumble in the third quarter; Brown recovered the fumble.
Frank Gore of the 49ers runs in for a touchdown in the third quarter past Corey Graham of the Ravens.
Frank Gore, left, and Colin Kaepernick of the 49ers celebrate after Gore scored a 6-yard rushing touchdown in the third quarter.
Running back Frank Gore of the San Francisco 49ers celebrates with quarterback Colin Kaepernick after scoring a touchdown in the third quarter.
Frank Gore of the 49ers celebrates his 6-yard rushing touchdown in the third quarter.
Michael Crabtree of the 49ers scores on a touchdown pass in the third quarter against the Baltimore Ravens.
Ted Ginn Jr. of the 49ers returns a punt 32 yards against Sam Koch of the Ravens.
49er fans react as they watch Super Bowl XLVII at Gold Dust Lounge in San Francisco.
Anquan Boldin of the Baltimore Ravens attempts to catch a pass in front of Chris Culliver, center, and Dashon Goldson of the San Francisco 49ers.
Michael Crabtree of the San Francisco 49ers runs into the end zone on a 31-yard touchdown reception in the third quarter.
Terrell Suggs of the Baltimore Ravens paces on the field during the power outage.
The San Francisco 49ers wait for all the power to come back to the Superdome.
Quarterback Joe Flacco and Baltimore Ravens teammates wait on the field as a third-quarter power outage brings Super Bowl XLVII to a temporary halt.
The Ravens' cheerleaders perform on the sidelines during the power outage.
A sudden power outage at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome causes a 34-minute delay early in the third quarter.
Jacoby Jones of the Baltimore Ravens, No. 12, does "the Ray Lewis dance" to celebrate his 108-yard kickoff return for a touchdown at the start of the third quarter.
Ravens kick returner Jacoby Jones celebrates his touchdown at the start of the second half.
Jacoby Jones of the Baltimore Ravens runs the second-half kickoff back 108 yards for a touchdown.
Jacoby Jones of the Baltimore Ravens returns the second-half kickoff 108 yards for a record-tying touchdown.
Pop singer Beyonce performs during the Pepsi Super Bowl XLVII Halftime Show.
Beyonce sings during her halftime performance.
Beyonce greets fans during the halftime show.
Beyonce lies on stage while performing Sunday night.
Beyonce appears on a rising platform during the halftime show.
Beyonce dances in front of a screen on stage.
Beyonce performs a medley of her hits at halftime on Sunday.
Arthur Jones of the Baltimore Ravens exults as he walks off of the field at halftime.
49ers kicker David Akers celebrates after kicking a 27-yard field goal in the second quarter.
Cary Williams of the Ravens exchanges words with Delanie Walker of the 49ers.
From left, Torrey Smith, Jacoby Jones, Joe Flacco and Kelechi Osemele of the Baltimore Ravens celebrate after Jones scored on a 56-yard touchdown pass from Flacco.
Jacoby Jones, left, and Joe Flacco of the Baltimore Ravens celebrate after their second-quarter touchdown.
Ravens wide receiver Jacoby Jones catches the ball before running it in for a touchdown against Chris Culliver of the 49ers.
Jacoby Jones of the Ravens catches a 56-yard pass. He would get up and score.
Jacoby Jones of the Ravens runs on a 56-yard touchdown pass past Chris Culliver of the San Francisco 49ers.
Fans cheer in the cavernouse Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans during Super Bowl XLVII.
Dennis Pitta of the Baltimore Ravens pulls in a 1-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter.
Ed Dickson of the Baltimore Ravens is brought down by Donte Whitner of the San Francisco 49ers.
Kicker Justin Tucker of the Baltimore Ravens is stopped short of a first down on a fake field goal attempt in the second quarter. Patrick Willis is the tackler.
Dennis Pitta of the Baltimore Ravens, right, celebrates with teammate Matt Birk after catching a touchdown pass in the second quarter.
Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco celebrates after throwing a 1-yard touchdown pass to Dennis Pitta.
Dennis Pitta of the Baltimore Ravens catches a touchdown pass in front of Donte Whitner, left, and Patrick Willis of the San Francisco 49ers.
Quarterback Colin Kaepernick of the San Francisco 49ers rolls out of the pocket against the Ravens.
Baltimore Ravens cornerback Cary Williams reacts angrily after a play as head linesman Steve Stelljes and 49ers fullback Bruce Miller attempt to hold him back.
Joe Flacco, left, and Jacoby Jones of the Baltimore Ravens celebrate after Flacco threw a 1-yard touchdown pass to Dennis Pitta.
Donte Whitner of the San Francisco 49ers commits a face mask penalty against Ed Dickson of the Baltimore Ravens in the second quarter.
Ray Rice of the Baltimore Ravens runs the ball against the 49ers.
Arthur Jones of the Baltimore Ravens celebrates after recovering a fumble from LaMichael James of the San Francisco 49ers in the second quarter of Super Bowl XLVII.
Courtney Upshaw of the Ravens forces LaMichael James of the 49ers to fumble in the second quarter.
Quarterback Joe Flacco of the Ravens attempts to escape pressure from Ahmad Brooks of the 49ers.
Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco scrambles out of the pocket against the 49ers.
Bernard Pollard of the Baltimore Ravens tries to tackle Vernon Davis of the San Francisco 49ers.
Quarterback Colin Kaepernick of the 49ers rolls out of the pocket and looks to pass during the second quarter.
Vernon Davis of the San Francisco 49ers goes airborne after catching a pass against the Baltimore Ravens in the first quarter of Super Bowl XLVII at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana, on Sunday, February 3.
David Akers of the San Francisco 49ers kicks a 36-yard field goal in the first quarter.
Paul Kruger of the Baltimore Ravens sacks 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick.
49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh reacts to a play in the first quarter.
49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick directs his teammates before a snap in the first quarter.
Quarterback Colin Kaepernick of the 49ers runs with the ball in front of Ravens safety Bernard Pollard, No. 31.
Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco scrambles with the ball against 49ers defensive end Ray McDonald.
Anquan Boldin of the Baltimore Ravens makes a 13-yard touchdown reception in the first quarter against the San Francisco 49ers during Super Bowl XLVII at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on Sunday, February 3, in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Ravens wide receiver Anquan Boldin brings the ball down in the end zone.
Donte Whitner of the 49ers tries to defend Anquan Boldin of the Ravens.
Quarterback Colin Kaepernick of the San Francisco 49ers drops back to pass in the first quarter against the Baltimore Ravens.
Justin Tucker of the Baltimore Ravens kicks the ball to the San Francisco 49ers to start Super Bowl XLVII.
Alicia Keys sings the National Anthem before the start of Super Bowl XLVII.
Alicia Keys reaches into the air during her rendition of the National Anthem.
Children in the Sandy Hook Elementary School Chorus walk off the field after singing "America The Beautiful" prior to Super Bowl XLVII.
The Sandy Hook Elementary School Chorus stands on the field for their performance of "America the Beautiful."
Singer Jennifer Hudson performs "America The Beautiful" with the Sandy Hook Elementary School Chorus.
The American flag hangs above the field as Jennifer Hudson performs "America the Beautiful" with the Sandy Hook Elementary School Chorus.
The San Francisco 49ers take the field.
The 49ers huddle up prior to the start of the game.
The 49ers huddle on the field prior to taking on the Baltimore Ravens in Super Bowl XLVII.
C.J. Spillman of the San Francisco 49ers kneels in the endzone prior to the start of Super Bowl XLVII against the Baltimore Ravens.
San Francisco 49ers cheerleaders get ready take the field ahead of the game against the Baltimore Ravens.
Veteran Baltimore Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis runs onto the field as cheerleaders and fans cheer.
Dancers perform on the field before the start of Super Bowl XLVII.
49ers mascot Sourdough Sam waves a flag on the field as players take the field shortly before kickoff.
Quarterback Joe Flacco of the Baltimore Ravens stands on the field prior to kickoff against the San Francisco 49ers.
Ravens cheerleaders stand on the sidelines before Sunday night's game against the 49ers.
The Southern University Marching Band gets ready to perform before the start of Super Bowl XLVII.
Quarterback Colin Kaepernick of the San Francisco 49ers warms up on the field prior to the Super Bowl.
Head coach John Harbaugh of the Baltimore Ravens hugs linebacker Ray Lewis prior to the start of Super Bowl XLVII against the San Francisco 49ers.
Baltimore Ravens players gather around team leader Ray Lewis as he leads them in a rally on the field just before the start of the game.
Ray Lewis of the Baltimore Ravens warms up on field before the start of Super Bowl XLVII against the San Francisco 49ers.
Head coach Jim Harbaugh works with quarterback Colin Kaepernick of the San Francisco 49ers during warm-ups prior to the game.
Head coach Jim Harbaugh, right, of the San Francisco 49ers shakes hands with his brother, head coach John Harbaugh of the Baltimore Ravens, prior to the start of Super Bowl XLVII.
A Baltimore Ravens fan wears his heart on his scalp in New Orleans.
O.J. Brigance, left, senior player development adviser for the Baltimore Ravens, makes his way across the field with his wife, Chanda, prior to the start of Super Bowl XLVII. Brigance, a former Ravens player, was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig's disease in 2007.
A 49ers fan is weighed down with team paraphernalia poses outside the Superdome before the start of the game.
49ers fans cheer for their team from the stands during pre-game warm-ups.
Super Bowl programs are sold outside the stadium as fans stream into the Superdome.
San Francisco fans Shane Knight, left, and Jimmy Bowers are hoping the 49ers earn another ring.
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