Congratulations!!! Indianapolis and Colts AFC Champs!

[Cincinnatis]

That was one HELL of a game!!!

Peyton Manning is the shit, no question about it!

http://msn.foxsports.com/id/6388480_18_1.jpg

Represent'n midwest, beotch!

[hydrobond]

Congrats to both Indy and Chicago. That was a very entertaining game.

I am worried about Purdue at the moment, this super bowl may very well tear this school apart!

[thewack]

As a Purdue Alumnus, I can only imagine the tension.

[DenverMatty]

i'm very excited for the whole region with both the Bears and Colts in it! Now having said that, i'm a HUGE Colts fan and am so happy for them! Go Horse!!:tup:

[hydrobond]

As a Purdue Alumnus, I can only imagine the tension.

By the end of the week I'm sure I'll be able to let you know just how bad it is. I would say Indy has a slight edge as far as Purdue goes.

[Halovet]

As a Purdue Alumnus, I can only imagine the tension.Indeed for all of Northern Indiana. Like Dungey said, "They may as well play the game in Fort Wayne. ESPN Mentioned the game could be at Notre Dame Stadium. Here in South Bend, most are fans of both teams, but the Bears probably have a slight edge. They are going to be at each other for two long weeks before it's settled. There we were, wife in Colts gear, sister in law Bears, I adopted the Colts as I'm a die~hard Bills fan, and feel a loyalty to The AFC. Never liked Da Bears, so GO INDY!

No. Indiana is the center of attention for Colts-Bears, so expect a lot of media coverage in Laffeyette, South Bend, and even Fort Wayne. But I agree with ESPN SportCenter, "SOUTH BEND IS GROUND ZERO". Let the battle begin.:poke:

[Xing]

Yay!

http://hoinews.com/uploadedImages/whoi/Sports/Stories/Chicago%20Bears.jpg

[Halovet]

Gee thats a Big Helmet Xing. Did you post that at the Bears thread too, or are you just firing the first shot? No, wait, I did that whe I said, THE BEARS WON'T WIN! :righton:

[bigcubfan]

Bear down Indy Colts!

PS: I like the Bears too:cheers:

[Halovet]

PS: I like the Bears too:cheers:I'm sure this is true for fans of both teams, especially south and just east of Chicagoland, but now, that issue is Irrelevant, YOU MUST CHOOSE! There won't be a tie.

[bigcubfan]

The Colts. Peyton deserves one and so do several others.

[Halovet]

I hate to be the one to spoil all the love Colts fans but, watch how quickly Die~Hard Bear Fans turn on you. The sooner you drop the "nice nicey" attitude toward them, the better. The average Chicagoen thinks "Indiana is a Suburb of Chicago", and the Colts, a step-team (at least right now) so it's time to slap hands and come out swingin, cause that's exactly what the Bears have in mind.

YOU TELL EM LIL FELLA!
http://i10.ebayimg.com/01/i/000/86/69/1523_1.JPG

[Steely Dan]

^ the only fact that we know right now is that regardless of the outcome two weeks from now, us chicagoans will still be living in magnificent chicago and you hoosiers will still be living in......... indiana. ewwwwwww. ;)

but seriously, this is gonna be a lot of fun. an all midwest superbowl, a battle for the nation's heart(land).

so who's going down to miami?

[Buckeye Native 001]

Maybe now all those annoying Manning-Marino comparisons will be put to rest. At least the Colts beat the Pats, but I was kind of hoping the Saints would beat the Bears, but hey, Midwestern Sooooooooooper Bowl!

[Cincinnatis]

I like the Bears too, but I don't see Chicago winning this game.

Keep in mind, they are an NFC team, doesn't take much to climb the ladder these days.

[Steely Dan]

but hey, Midwestern Sooooooooooper Bowl!

and this just after we had a midwestern world series.

the douche bags at ESPN can go fuck themselves, HAHAHAHAHAHA!

[Buckeye Native 001]

Tomorrow's ESPN.com headline:

Midwest Teams Continue to make it to Big Games, ESPN Officials at a Loss for Explanation

[DenverMatty]

It's interesting... being a Fort Wayne native... i would say Fort Wayne is the mirror/opposite image of South Bend... a divided city that leans toward the Colts the way South Bend seems to lean toward the Bears. Probably why Dungy mentioned Fort Wayne and not South Bend.... haha!

PS: Chicago is a great town, but at the end of the day, i'd much rather live in Indianapolis... but i'm biased :) Just saying, there are those of us out there : )

[Wheelingman04]

I am just glad the Midwest is totally represented in this SuperBowl. I hope these two great cities get good attention and a positive economic spinoff from being in the spotlight.

THE BATTLE OF THE MIDWEST!!!!!!!:tup: :notacrook:

[Paintrain]

plus the afc champoinship game will help get the super bowl in Indy

[mobyhead]

Indy is due for a championship of some kind. Our Pacers always made the play-offs in the 90's only to be routed by the Bulls and MJ. This would be great for our city. :banana:

[BnaBreaker]

BWAHAHA! Ve vill cdush jou.

Peyton Manning will get destroyed by Brian Urlacher.

[Halovet]

It's interesting... being a Fort Wayne native... i would say Fort Wayne is the mirror/opposite image of South Bend... a divided city that leans toward the Colts the way South Bend seems to lean toward the Bears. Probably why Dungy mentioned Fort Wayne and not South Bend.... haha!

PS: Chicago is a great town, but at the end of the day, i'd much rather live in Indianapolis... but i'm biased :) Just saying, there are those of us out there : )You put that very well, and you're right. One thing though, Fort Wayne is the larger of the two.




BWAHAHA! Ve vill cdush jou.

Peyton Manning will get destroyed by Brian Urlacher.
Not so, Monroe! This thing will come down to who has the best QB, and that's Manning. The wheels are due to come off that Grossman Wagon.

[hoosier]

LET'S GO COLTS!!!! :banana: :banana:

Indy has beaten the #1 (BAL) and #2 (NE) scoring defenses in the league this postseason. Why should the Bears intimidate them? I believe both the Ravens and Patriots are better teams than the Bears so the Colts SHOULD win. Freeney and Mathis need to pressure Grossman because he WILL make bad decisions with the ball if he feels the heat of the pass rush.

[Halovet]

LET'S GO COLTS!!!! :banana: :banana:

Indy has beaten the #1 (BAL) and #2 (NE) scoring defenses in the league this postseason. Why should the Bears intimidate them? I believe both the Ravens and Patriots are better teams than the Bears so the Colts SHOULD win. Freeney and Mathis need to pressure Grossman because he WILL make bad decisions with the ball if he feels the heat of the pass rush.
Great defenses
Indeed, but I would not say They are better than the Bears. Someone said the line was like, 8 points. If true, that's ridiculous, and would only serve as a rally cry, pumping up the opposing team. Colts don't need that.:yes:

[BnaBreaker]

Not so, Monroe! This thing will come down to who has the best QB, and that's Manning. The wheels are due to come off that Grossman Wagon.

Wrong! That may be true for conventional teams, but the Bears aren't a conventional team. If it really all came down to who had the best QB, then the Bears would be 1-15 this season. lol Look for T. JONES to bulldoze over your pathetic run defense. :D

[DenverMatty]

Look for T. JONES to bulldoze over your pathetic run defense. :D

Kind of like the Ravens and the Chiefs and the Pats did, right?

[Steely Dan]

here's a nice little condescending piece from the chicago tribune's editorial page. please don't take this too seriously, this is the kind of pot-shotting every newspaper does against the enemy city every time one of their teams ends up in a championship game. i thought this might be some nice fuel for the fire in this thread, but if it's too much, i'll delete it.

remember, it's all in good fun of the hype leading up to the big game. colts fans, please post any articles from your city's perspective regarding the two cities.




Indianapolis vs. Chicago

Published January 23, 2007

Time now to compare and contrast two great Midwestern cities that will be sending their football teams to Miami to decide who is the best in the Super Bowl.

Let's see, Chicago has just about everything a normal, healthy human being could want, from fabulous restaurants to wonderful entertainment to a vibrant ethnic culture to art so lovely it would make a real French person weep.

It has a persistent mayor, alleys that are better-lighted and cleaner than the streets of many cities, a long stretch of Lake Michigan beachfront that acts as an air conditioner in the boiling middle of summer and as a warming force in winter.

It has deep-dish pizza, Polish sausage, bridges that go up and a vastly busy airport.

And of course, the Bears.

And Indianapolis has ... hmmmm.

Pie?

OK. That's not fair. Although, to be sure, there is whopping great pie of all kinds in Indiana.

Indianapolis is undoubtedly a utopia in its own eyes, as every hometown is. Of course, it has a racetrack that is the focus of the nation-on-wheels once a year, a race car fantasyland. It has a symphony. Churches. Highways that let you zip by without even looking at downtown.

It has the Colts.

In the spirit of regional friendship, we think this comparison should stop right here, because from our shiny bean at Millennium Park to our big buildings, our pizza to die for, our baseball teams, our mass transit and our style of serving up hot dogs, nothing quite compares.

We will see who is better at football in a couple of short weeks in Miami.

As for comparing cities, if you are in Indianapolis, where do you go to sample Big City life?

Do you go to Dayton?

No.

Do you go to St. Louis?

No.

Do you take the trek to New York?

No.

You know where you go.

Right here to Sweet Home.

When it's all over, we'll keep a light on for you and a hot deep-dish pizza in the oven because, win or lose, you're always welcome and there is no place we would rather be.

[BnaBreaker]

Kind of like the Ravens and the Chiefs and the Pats did, right?

And the Colts are going to win because they have an amazing quarterback right? Kind of like Drew Brees and Matt Hasselback?

[Halovet]

Wrong! That may be true for conventional teams, but the Bears aren't a conventional team. If it really all came down to who had the best QB, then the Bears would be 1-15 this season. lol Look for T. JONES to bulldoze over your pathetic run defense. :D



One must be mindful that Indy has beaten the #1 (BAL) and #2 (NE) scoring defenses in the league this postseason. Freeney and Mathis need to pressure Grossman because he WILL make bad decisions with the ball if he feels the heat of the pass rush. Also, it's odd, but seems like every time The Colts are in trouble, the camera pans over to Manning studying film, then when he comes back on the field, the Colts turn it around. I don't think that's a coincidence.

Having said that, there are a few intangibles that could make all of that moot.

A: The Bears have 2 weeks to put a game plan together. (of course so do the Colts)

B: In the Super Bowl, Teams can ( and often) have the assistance of ANY other coach or staff in the conference. This practice was started during Super Bowl 25 by Bill Parcells, and he's free right now to assist Lovie Smith. I'm confident that Bill Belicheck and others will lend a hand to boost the Colts chances.

One thing for sure, NORTHERN INDIANA NFL FANS CAN'T LOSE! Having a local Super Bowl is going to be Great.

[ColDayMan]

Do you go to Dayton?

No.


Remind me when Chicago gets good chicken :P.

;)

[bigcubfan]

What a cute picture of Rex Grossman.:haha: :haha:

[BnaBreaker]

One thing for sure, NORTHERN INDIANA NFL FANS CAN'T LOSE! Having a local Super Bowl is going to be Great.

LOL, that much we can definitely agree on. We sure did hit the jackpot didn't we? :haha:

[mobyhead]

sent to me via e-mail.....

Tom Brady, after living a full life, died. When he got to heaven, God
was showing him around. They came to a modest little house with a
faded Patriots flag in the window.
"Tom," said God. "This is very
special; not everyone gets a house up here."

Tom felt special, indeed, and walked up to his house.
On his way up the porch, he noticed another house just around the
corner. It was a 3-story mansion with a blue and white sidewalk, a
50-foot tall flagpole with an enormous Colts logo flag, and in every
window, an Indianapolis Colts towel.

Tom looked at God and said "God, I'm not trying to be ungrateful, but
I have a question. I was an all-pro QB who won the Super Bowl, and I
even went to the Hall of Fame."

God said "So what's your point Tom?"

"Well, why does Peyton Manning get a better house than me?"

God chuckled, and said: Tom, that's not Peyton's house, it's mine."

[cwilson758]

What is so cool about this is Indy FINALLY has some NFL legacy that doesn't belong to Baltimore. I know that B-more think that Indianapolis "stole" the Colts and their history, but in the game of sports and cities, it is cut-throat. Indy wanted the NFL and the Colts wanted out of Baltimore. HOWEVER, the residents here could care less about what the Colts did while in Baltimore and would gladly give Baltimore all of their history while there. The beef should be with the NFL and not Indy.

Anyway, GO COLTS!

[cwilson758]

Wrong! That may be true for conventional teams, but the Bears aren't a conventional team. If it really all came down to who had the best QB, then the Bears would be 1-15 this season. lol Look for T. JONES to bulldoze over your pathetic run defense. :D

Look for who to bulldoze our run defense??? In the playoffs we have been able to stuff much bigger names than Jones and have liimited to every team to under 80 yards rushing. The Chicago fans fail to realize that you won the JV conference and only beat 4 teams with winning records this year! If the Colts get up by a touchdown, the game is over. Your QB couldn't throw a hot dog down a hallway!

[Halovet]

What is so cool about this is Indy FINALLY has some NFL legacy that doesn't belong to Baltimore. I know that B-more think that Indianapolis "stole" the Colts and their history, but in the game of sports and cities, it is cut-throat. Indy wanted the NFL and the Colts wanted out of Baltimore. HOWEVER, the residents here could care less about what the Colts did while in Baltimore and would gladly give Baltimore all of their history while there. The beef should be with the NFL and not Indy.



Anyway, GO COLTS!I agree with most of what you said except, Baltimore got over the move when The Ravens won the SB a few years back. The animosity was not toward the city of Indy, but the team ownership. Now Indy must do it's part to not just gain NFL Legacy, but neutralize any remaining "undue" loyalty to The Bears in the region. No more than four of the Northern counties should be Bear's country. A SB win would solidify the Colts fan base once and for all.

[mobyhead]

From Bill Benner in the IBJ...
http://www.ibj.com/html/detail_page.asp?content=414
There is conjecture that the hosting of the AFC Championship game between the Indianapolis Colts and New England Patriots is the biggest/greatest/most significant—choose your superlative—sports-related event in the city’s history.

That got me to thinking.

Is it greater than the 1911 Indianapolis 500, which led to the other 88 500s that, in their current form, generate far more annual economic impact than even a Super Bowl?

Is it greater than the 1946 Indianapolis 500, when Tony Hulman took ownership of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, rescued IMS from the crumbling, weed-infested relic it had become, and began the transformation—spurred further by grandson Tony George—that has turned it into the undisputed motor-racing capital of the world?

Is it greater than either the 1994 Brickyard 400 or the 2000 U.S. Grand Prix, two other events that, when combined with the Indy 500, produce far more local economic impact and easily as much national and international focus on Indianapolis?

Is it greater than that March day in 1984 when Colts owner Robert Irsay and Indianapolis Mayor Bill Hudnut marched handin-hand into the Hoosier Dome, signaling the arrival of the Colts from Baltimore? (And while I’m on the subject, it really is time for Balti-morons to get over it.) After all, had there been no move in ’84, there might still be no team and, hence, no AFC Championship game to host.

Is it greater than the hemispheric gathering that was the 1987 Pan American Games, which were embraced by more than 30,000 volunteers and could well be the greatest community-wide event ever held here?

Is it greater than the 1980 NCAA Men’s Final Four at Market Square Arena, which gave Indianapolis a foothold with the NCAA, which later led to the hosting of more Final Fours, which led to a strengthening of the relationship with the NCAA that helped Indianapolis bring the NCAA headquarters to the city in 1999?

Is it greater than the 1997 announcement that the NCAA was moving from a Kansas City suburb, which led to the subsequent announcement that the NCAA has agreed to place men’s and women’s Final Fours, men’s and women’s basketball tournament regionals and its annual convention in the city on a five-year rotation through 2039 with an additional 30-year option to 2069, resulting in billions—yes, billions—of dollars in direct spending and untold value in exposure for the city?

Is it greater than the 1974 opening of Market Square Arena as home to the Indiana Pacers and Indianapolis Racers (a hockey team, for those who don’t know or remember, and, yes, some 17-year-old named Wayne Gretzky scored his first professional goal there) that was the first step in the downtown redevelopment that has reinvigorated and redefined our city?

Is it greater than the 1999 opening of Conseco Fieldhouse as home to the Indiana Pacers and many other events, notable among them the boys’ and girls’ state high school tournaments and the men’s and women’s Big Ten tournaments, the latter of which will be in Indy (chosen over Chicago) for a five-year run beginning in 2008?

Is it greater than any of those Hicks-versus-Knicks Pacer home playoff games, that Pacers-Bulls Game Six in 1998, or when the Pacers were hosting playoff games on the same weekend—in a couple of instances, the same day—as the Indianapolis 500?

Is it greater than the 1954 Milan-Muncie Central game in Butler Fieldhouse, which forever sealed our basketball legacy and served as the basis for “Hoosiers,” generally regarded as the best sports movie ever?

Is it greater, individually, than all the events—amateur and pro—that have raised Indy’s national and international profile?

Will it be as big as the opening of Lucas Oil Stadium and its potential for the city, including those future Final Fours and perhaps a Super Bowl?

Now, don’t get me wrong, this is big … as big as they get. But as always, I try to serve as the guardian of perspective in a sports world that exists in the realm of hyperbole and hysteria.

In that regard, the AFC Championship is another in a series of big sports-related happenings—all the result of enormous hard work, investment and relationship-building—that have made our town Indy one happenin’ place.

One by one, you lay the bricks. Then one day you look up and—how about that?—there stands a skyscraper

[mobyhead]

I know it's old news but I found the last word appropriate. :D

[Halovet]

From Bill Benner in the IBJ...
http://www.ibj.com/html/detail_page.asp?content=414
There is conjecture that the hosting of the AFC Championship game between the Indianapolis Colts and New England Patriots is the biggest/greatest/most significant—choose your superlative—sports-related event in the city’s history.

Is it Bigger? Probably not, but it sounds like it was the most watched, and could then in effect,
be the Biggest. Eather way Indy wins BIG!



I know it's old news but I found the last word appropriate. :D In this case, Old news is Good news! :skyscraper:

[DenverMatty]

I love the condescending Tribune article! heh... it IS true that we Hoosiers like to visit Chicago from time to time... but you know where we go when we want some shopping and restaurants and sports without the 25 dollar parking and traffic gridlock? Yup... Indy. Also, as i read that i kept thinking... "and you'll continue to send your kids here to our universities (IU, Notre Dame, Purdue, etc.) for a good value at great universities... and you'll continue to send tourists here for the 500, to see the Amish, etc. etc. etc.

It's a symbiotic relationship for sure... Go Chicago *and* Indiana :)