Steeler Nation rejoices

There's nothing in American sports that quite compares to the Super Bowl.

And for Steeler fans, there's nothing that compares to a Super Bowl win.

For the second time in the last four years, I watched from my couch as the Black 'n' Gold secured the Lombardi trophy, this time for a record sixth Super Bowl championship with a 27-23 win over the Arizona Cardinals in Super Bowl XLIII.

Any debate over who the best franchise in the NFL is went out the window in my humble, unbiased opinion.

This Super Bowl was quite a bit different from the last. As a sixth seed, Pittsburgh won Super Bowl XL largely as an underdog in a year no one (besides Steeler Nation of course) thought they could do it.

The current champions are different. With the toughest schedule in the league, they went 12-4 before winning three home playoff games for the championship.

Yes, I said three home games because anyone watching the Super Bowl was hard pressed to find more than a couple Cardinal fans on the screen at any given time. And as any Steeler fan knows, just because the game isn't in Pittsburgh doesn't mean it's an away game.

Anyone not a member of Steeler Nation has a hard time understanding the devotion Steeler fans have. And in truth, I can't explain it either. I was born and raised in Turbeville, a small town in South Carolina, but my mother was from a small town about 25 minutes outside of Pittsburgh. While I've visited the Burgh on numerous occasions, it was never for more than a week or two a year.

But like all people with some family connection to western Pennsylvania, rooting for the Steelers became something that was passed down to me through blood. Can't explain it. It was just something that you felt the first time you turned on the TV and saw the team play.

And it just gets even better the more times you see them win. After suffering through numerous AFC championship game losses (not to mention the debacle that was Super Bowl XXX), witnessing two championship runs have been the best two sports memories that I have.

So Steeler Nation, we get to celebrate for another year. Soak in the 28 hours of postgame coverage they show every day and keep those Terrible Towels ready.

Maybe by this time next year, they'll stop referring to the Cowboys as "America's Team."

(P.S. - For those non-believers, Ben Roethlisberger might not put up big numbers, but I'll take grit, determination and most of all winning percentage over the other statistics any day of the week).

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