In the CBS Sports broadcast booth, Jim Nantz and Phil Simms watched their TV monitors go dark in the blink of an eye.  

Down on the field, players from the Ravens and 49ers nervously searched for their wives and kids in the darkening stands.

On the Ravens sideline, the first instinct of Solomon Wilcots was an act of terrorism. The CBS sideline reporter immediately thought of his family. 

“I can tell you this. It was total chaos: In my ear, in the truck, in the broadcast,” Wilcots recalled during an interview with Front Office Sports. “If you lose power, what do you do? Run a bunch of commercials? Reruns? Think of it: The entire world is watching.”

Of course, we’re talking about the infamous 34-minute blackout during the 34–31 Ravens win over the 49ers at Super Bowl XLVII. 

On Feb. 9, the Super Bowl will return to the former Mercedes-Benz Superdome for the first time since the power outage heard around the world. Heading into the Big Game, power company Entergy New Orleans has told reporters it is confident it won’t happen again after upgrades to the Superdome’s infrastructure. We’ll see.

Before Super Bowl XLVII, there were many good reasons why the game would have gone down in history. It was the last hurrah for Hall of Fame Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis. It was the first time brothers faced off as opposing head coaches: John Harbaugh of the Ravens and Jim Harbaugh of the 49ers. Young 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick was wowing fans with his dual-threat ability. To top it off, superstar Beyoncé and Destiny’s Child were the halftime entertainment.

But that’s been forgotten, noted Nantz during an interview with The Dan Patrick Show. Instead, the power outage has overshadowed one of the more “compelling” Super Bowls of the past 15 years. 

“It was a game that was in the 30s. It was a one-score game. And no one remembers that. All they remember is the night the lights went out in New Orleans,” said Nantz, who remembered the power going out in his headset mid-call.

For more memories of the New Orleans Super Bowl blackout, read our full story here.

• Mike Mayock joined his daughter Leigh’s podcast, Bleav in Eagles, to break down the NFC championship and preview the Super Bowl. The former Raiders GM has been a weekly guest on his daughter’s show this football season.
• SiriusXM announced Wednesday that popular podcast The Fantasy Footballers will be joining its podcast umbrella and air on its Fantasy Sports channel. The satellite radio company will also have exclusive global advertising rights to the show.
• Amazon announced that host Danielle Trotta and analyst Corey LaJoie will be a part of Prime Video’s studio coverage of NASCAR.

57.7 million

That was the monster audience CBS Sports averaged for Sunday’s thrilling AFC title game between the Chiefs and the Bills. The Chiefs’ 32–29 win was the most-watched AFC title tilt since the late 1980s. Sunday night’s game also ranks No. 2 in all-time viewership for non–Super Bowl games over the last 37 years, trailing only the 2009 overtime NFC title game between the Saints and Vikings, which pulled 57.9 million.

“If you’re not a Chiefs fan, that’s O.K.”

—Nate Burleson of CBS’s The NFL Today, to sports TV viewers suffering from fatigue over Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs. “But resist the urge to fall for the narrative that we’re tired of seeing them win, that we might be fatigued of watching K.C. go to the Super Bowl over and over again. You are witnessing greatness. And just be happy that you are alive to be there to see it,” Burleson said.

Two interesting suggestions came up about breaking up the NFL conference championship on Sunday into two days. Paul Pabst of The Dan Patrick Show suggested showing the AFC and NFC title games on consecutive Saturday and Sunday nights, both with a 6 p.m. ET kickoff, to maximize viewership. “Alternate every year,” he suggested on X/Twitter. “Games don’t bump up against each other. You own two days. Double the pregame shows/postgame shows. Both teams still get lots of rest.” Meanwhile, former Packers executive Andrew Brandt predicted the league will divide up the two conference championships between Sunday and Monday nights within two years. Makes sense from a TV standpoint.

Gabby was pleased by our scoop that former ESPN personality Michael Smith has held “exploratory talks” about a reunion with his former network. “I hope he returns. He was definitely one of my faves, ESPN got rid of & let a lot of great talent leave,” she tweeted. Keith A. Turner Sr. added: “Smith and Hill should have never been let go. Bring them both back.” SK praised Smith for loyally standing by partner Jemele Hill when she was suspended for going after Donald Trump and Jerry Jones. “Would love for him to come back. His and Hers was great and the Sportcenter run was awful and wasn’t his nor Jemele’s fault. Just a bad idea. He also died on the sword for Jemele which is honorable but his career never really recovered.”

But even if Smith returns to ESPN, CMorpheusAlphonsoBelweather doesn’t think he will have the same edgy personality. “He’ll be the opposite of what he was last time. A passionless straight shooter walking the company line for the sake of self preservation,” he tweeted.

Meanwhile, Stephanie Stradley, Texans beat writer for the Houston Chronicle enjoyed our look back at the infamous Super Blackout in 2013. “Incredibly memorable. When the power went out, my husband texted me. Got lots of texts,” she tweeted. “Then I kind of needed a nap because New Orleans stayed up late, it was a fun busy week.”

LSU star Flau’jae Johnson was not happy after South Carolina’s arena DJ played a song by her late father, Camouflage, during the Gamecocks’ 66–56 win over the Tigers on Friday night. Johnson posted a picture on X/Twitter referencing the song, adding: “I’ll take my L on the chin, but this just nasty behavior. Nun funny bout that.”

“DJ TO,” who mocked Johnson by playing her late father’s song “Cut Friends” got suspended for a game. South Carolina’s athletic department issued an apology: “We regret that it came to that in our venue after a game that saw both teams capture the level of national attention that women’s basketball has earned, and we apologize to Flau’Jae, her family and LSU.”

But there’s good news for Johnson: She’ll headline the Stagwell Sport Beach Clubhouse in New Orleans during Super Bowl week. Johnson will host several panel discussions with other athletes as well as corporate decision-makers. The Tigers guard, who’s averaging 19.7 points per game this season, will be the latest college athlete to cash in on the Big Game thanks to NIL (name, image, and likeness). Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders and Lake Erie College offensive lineman Dieunerst Collin previously had cameos in Super Bowl commercials for Oikos Yogurt and Popeyes, respectively.