Okay. .. I confess I didn’t actually have a bash. But we DID make queso dip and hot wings.

And even though this is a basketball site, I’ve gotta salute the Super Bowl. What kind of un-patriotic, non-red-blooded, un-American would I be if I didn’t pay homage to our nation’s NUMBER 1 quasi-religious sporting event?

That’s right — it’s Super Bowl Sunday. The biggest snacking day of the year. And the culmination of FOOTBALL SEASON. That’s true-blue, home-grown, U-S-of-A football, by the way. As in the National Football League. Not to be confused with “football,” otherwise known, in countries with lower testosterone levels, as soccer.

And on Super Bowl Sunday, there’s the Super Bowl. An advertising and media extravaganza interrupted at times by an actual football game.

This time, the game held “historical significance,” as the New England Patriots aimed at becoming the first team in NFL history to have a perfect 19-0 season.

The great thing about sports is that, outside of two rules, you can love or hate a team for any reason whatsoever. The only rules you really need to follow are 1) root for your home team (eg. Go Jayhawks!) and 2) hate with a passion your traditional rivals (eg. Grrrrr — KState Wildcats and Mizzou Tigers!). Otherwise, anything goes. And here in Kansas, given the sorry state of the Kansas City Chiefs, we have the whole NFL to love or hate at will.

So. . . for no rational reason, no one in this family was pulling for the Patriots. At least that was the case until the middle of the first quarter, when my daughter Quent piped up with “Hey, Number 12 is Hot!” My sons looked at her as if she’d just sprouted horns.

“Do you know who that is?” an incredulous Snacky asked her.

Well, no. Of course she didn’t know “who that is.” Or which team he’s on. Or which position he plays. Because despite the fact that her father both played football AND coaches football; on top of the fact that BOTH of her brothers play football; ALONG WITH the fact that she’s watched (or so we thought!) many football games, the little darling has evidently picked up absolutely no football knowledge along the way. Bless her innocent little self.

Lack of football knowledge aside, she had rave reviews for Tom Brady. By the second quarter, she had her next Halloween costume picked out: A form-fitting women’s Brady jersey, navy soffee shorts, long football socks and black paint under the eyes.

My sons, who nurse an irrational hatred of the Patriots, were horrified.

Regardless of her discovery of Tom Brady, though, Quent didn’t last past the first half. Off she went to her room for her nightly phone marathon.

The rest of us watched the game, though, and I have to say that the seasoned analyst in me pretty much had her mind made up that there was no way the Patriots would lose this game. After all, they were going to make history and set the new standard for future uber-teams to strive for. How do you stop history in the making?

But I watched the last game between the Giants and the Pats. And the football lover in me HAD A LITTLE FEELING that if anyone could beat the Pats, it was the Giants. They had certainly shown they were capable. And they had won 10 straight road games, including all of their playoff games this post-season.

So, in the last three minutes of the fourth quarter, I had the absolute pleasure of seeing balls-out football as Eli Manning and the Giants refused to believe in the Patriots manifest destiny. With 35 seconds to go in the game, Manning connected with Plaxico Burress (one of the best sports names EVER) for the winning touchdown and created historical significance for the WRONG team. Go Giants!

My sons promptly started calling every one of their friends who were rooting for the Patriots. No one was answering.

But it was a bittersweet cheer for the Bonner boys. They may soon have to relinquish their status as Patriot haters. Why? Because the Patriots have the 7th pick in the first round of the draft this year, and guess who the smart money is saying they’re gonna pick? Aqib Talib — superstar cornerback (and sometimes wide receiver and punt returner) for the Kansas Jayhawks. And here in Lawrence, we bleed red AND blue (unless you happen to be a misguided KSU Wildcat fan who’s wandered too far east).    Which matches pretty well with those Patriot uniforms, right?

In sports, it’s a thin line between love and hate.