Caldwell gets his second Super Bowl ring as Ravens' OC

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Beloit native Jim Caldwell will get his second Super Bowl ring, after the Baltimore Ravens hung on to beat San Francisco 34-to-31 in Super Bowl-47 in New Orleans. Caldwell, the Ravens’ offensive coordinator, won his first title under Tony Dungy in Indianapolis six years ago. He weathered a strong 49’er run defense as quarterback Joe Flacco carved through the Niners’ pass defense with play action. Flacco threw for 287 yards and three first-half touchdowns. He had a passer rating of 124-point-two as he won the game’s M-V-P award. The Ravens were up 28-to-6 when about half the Mercedes-Benz Superdome lost its power for 34 minutes early in the third quarter. That knocked Baltimore out of its rhythm, and the 49’ers out-scored the Ravens 25-to-6 after the lights went back on. Former Fond du Lac and New London resident Colin Kaepernick completed 16-of-28 passes for 302 yards, a touchdown, and an interception for San Francisco. Kaepernick also had a 15-yard touchdown scamper – the longest by a quarterback in Super Bowl history. All told, he had seven carries for 62 yards. Ravens’ fullback Vonta Leach, who played his first two-plus seasons in Green Bay, won his first championship. He provided some key blocks and had three catches for 10 yards, plus one carry for another yard.

Of course, John and Jackie Harbaugh of Mequon were guaranteed winners, as their sons coached the first brother-against-brother contest in the Super Bowl. The post-game greeting was not emotional – and it did not even last five seconds. Ravens’ coach John Harbaugh said his brother him only said, “Congratulations.” The Niners lost their first Super Bowl since 1995. It was a loss for their general manager, Trent Baalke from Rosendale in Fond du Lac County – and for quarterbacks’ coach Geep Chryst from Madison.

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Former Packers’ quarterback Brett Favre says he has no “ill feelings” toward his successor, Aaron Rodgers. Until now, the two have hardly spoken to each other – and Favre occasionally made digs at Rodgers’ success, saying it was due to the offensive line that Favre cultivated. But on the N-F-L Network’s “Game Day Morning” yesterday, a grayer-looking Favre said Rodgers has had an “unbelievable career” to this point. He also said the two laughed about their awkward-looking skit during Saturday night’s N-F-L Honors show. Favre joked about his play after his first retirement, saying “Everyone loves it when a great player makes a comeback.” Rodgers replied, “Not always – You know some people wish great players would just retire and stay retired.” Favre then faked a hug and Rodgers called it awkward. The next day, Favre said it wasn’t awkward – and the two shared laughs about it as they left the stage. Meanwhile, on C-B-S, Packers’ linebacker Clay Matthews changed his mind about a prediction he made earlier in the week that the Ravens would win. He said it was disconcerting how the Niners picked his team apart in two games so quote, “It’s going to be hard for me to pick against them.” Matthews had picked the Niners to win 24-21.

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