On Sunday, the Indianapolis Colts and New Orleans Saints square off in Super Bowl XLIV (44). To get you and your family ready for the most-watched sporting event in America, we have some activity suggestions you can do in the days and minutes leading up to the big game. Just don’t get so involved in the activities that you forget to watch the game (and the commercials)! Kickoff is at 6:30 p.m. EST on CBS.
Movie night
Want a good football movie to get you in the mood? There’s a film for any type of fan: football movies females will like (“Jerry Maguire”), football classics (“Friday Night Lights”), football comedies (“Waterboy”) and more. Here are our top suggestions:
- “Any Given Sunday” (1999)
- “Brian's Song” (1971)
- “The Express” (2008)
- “Friday Night Lights” (2004)
- “Invincible” (2006)
- “Jerry Maguire” (1996)
- “The Longest Yard” (1974)
- “Necessary Roughness” (1991)
- “Remember the Titans” (2000)
- “The Replacements” (2000)
- “Rudy” (1993)
- “Waterboy” (1998)
- “We Are Marshall” (2006)
- “Wildcats” (1986)
Hold your own Super Bowl
This one works for adults or kids, and everyone involved is sure to have a good time – hold a tournament by playing “Madden NFL 10” (or another football video game), with the champion winning a predetermined prize (we suggest a gift certificate to a theater or something in that vein). Or even better, if you know someone who has one of those classic electric football games, hold a tournament with that. The game, for those who might not know, is a metal field that vibrates when it’s turned on, and the football figurines jerk and drift around the field. More often than not, hilarity ensues, and this game is all about luck, so contestants of all ages are on an equal playing field.
Games for kids and the young at heart
To get your children in a Super Bowl mood or to keep them occupied during the actual game, plan some games they can play. There are a host of options out there (simply google “kids’ Super Bowl games” and you’ll get an idea), but a couple suggestions are:
- Bingo: Make your own football bingo sheets (or print some out from online), and replace “bingo” with “touchdown” or some other football term. There are many ways to football-ize this game, so get creative.
- Charades: Play charades as usual, but have all the words be football-related. Some examples are “pass,” “tackle,” “touchdown” and “field goal.”
- Olympics: Get in the Super Bowl mood and the Winter Olympics mood by playing some hybrid games. For example, you could play hurling or hockey using a football. Or simply play touch football in the snow. Get creative!
