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Super Bowl Preview with the Falcons' Ovie Mughelli

Super Bowl Preview with the Falcons' Ovie Mughelli

Date: Jan 30 2009

Themes: Sports

Grammar: Verbs with "-ing"

Intro

1. Learn Vocabulary - Learn some new vocabulary before you start the lesson.

2. Read and Prepare - Read the introduction and prepare to hear the audio.

This Sunday is not just any Sunday. It’s Super Bowl Sunday. The day of the most widely watched sporting event in the United States, the Super Bowl.

Super Bowl Sunday is like a holiday in the US. People get together at parties to watch the game. Even people who don’t like football watch the game because the advertisements are really expensive and really cool. And the city that hosts the Super Bowl is like one giant party. This year it’s in Tampa, Florida.

But what do NFL players who aren’t on one of the two teams playing for the championship do on Super Bowl Sunday? Where do they watch the game? Earlier this week, Jason got on the phone with Ovie Mughelli, the Atlanta Falcons unstoppable fullback, to talk about his plans for the big game.

Dialog

1. Listen and Read - Listen to the audio and read the dialog at the same time.

Log in to Listen

2. Study - Read the dialog again to see how the vocab words are used.

Jason

Jason

Ovie

Ovie

Jason:  Hey, Ovie. I just wanted to talk to you about what your plans for the Super Bowl are.

Ovie:  Well, my plan for the Super Bowl is really to go down to Tampa and enjoy all the festivities, my teammates, hanging out with my colleagues. Hopefully there will be a bunch of fun events and parties. And the actual game I’m going to watch probably with some friends. I got a couple of nice offers from watching on big screens in an airport hangar to watching on a hundred screens in a hotel to watching it at a friend’s mansion. I’ve got to decide which one I want to go to. Either way, it’s going to be a lot of fun.

Jason:  Who are you pulling for?

Ovie:  I’m pulling for the Arizona Cardinals. They beat us, so I know first-hand they’re a hell of a good team. It took them to play out of their minds to beat us. I may be a little biased, but they’ve been playing great football every game in the playoffs. I think they’re not gonna stop doing that.

Jason:  Do you think it was an exceptionally good game when they beat you?

Ovie:  Yeah, they played exceptionally. They played their best football when they beat us and they’ve been doing that every single game. The closest game they’ve had in the playoffs has been against us. They blew out the Carolina Panthers as well as beating the Eagles pretty good. I think this Super Bowl will be very interesting but I think the Cardinals are gonna end up on top.

Jason:  So you’re really into video games and I just wondered, what’s the Super Bowl of video games to you?

Ovie:  The Super Bowl of video games would have to be the John Madden Football franchise on video games, I think. Every kid, every adult, even older people play Madden. It’s been out so long and it’s one of the best-selling video games out there, especially in the sports world. But I’d say Halo would have to be the Super Bowl of video games in non-sports games. I absolutely love that game. I think it’s the best thing ever. I’m actually going to play when I finish talking to you.

Jason:  Nice. Are you about as good at Halo as you are at blocking?

Ovie:  Yeah, actually, I am pretty good at Halo. I’m a pretty high rank and when I get out there I talk trash because I can definitely back it up.

 

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Discussion

On Sunday, Ovie will be in Tampa, but he won’t be at the stadium watching the game. He’ll be with his teammates and friends at a big party. He has three to choose from!

Ovie is rooting for the Arizona Cardinals to beat the Pittsburgh Steelers. His team made it to the playoffs, but lost to the Cardinals, so he knows very well how good they are.

Since the Super Bowl is the biggest, most important football game there is, people often describe other really important events as “the Super Bowl of” something. For instance, election day is the Super Bowl of politics. For English students, the TOEFL is the Super Bowl of tests.

Jason knows that when Ovie isn’t blocking defenders or carrying the ball on the football field, he likes to play video games. So Jason asks him what he thinks is the Super Bowl of video games. Ovie says that for sports games, it’s Madden NFL. He thinks it’s the most important sports game to be good at. Ovie’s favorite game, Halo, is the Super Bowl of non-sports games, he says.

What’s the Super Bowl of your favorite hobby or activity?

For more with Ovie Mughelli, take a look at his website, his blog or Jason’s blog about interviewing him.

 

Comments

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kpl

kpl

Taiwan

oh , no

I have no idea about football and which team I should be rooting for .Also the playoffs happening and any festivities .It totaly make me want to talk some trash to myself. Surely,I'm not biased on this sport .I think  at least I have to know which team will end up on top at this season. I had better like living at village  than living around mansion . 

06:20 AM Mar 18 2010 |

Koja

Hungary

American football has become very popular in Hungary in the last five years. We can watch the NFL matches on tv week by week. My favorites are the monday night matches and the playoffs. If you want to know more about it you should go to NFL webpage: http://www.nfl.com/videos/nfl-game-highlights You can watch amazing scenes here.

 

08:09 AM Nov 29 2009 |

zeinabou

zeinabou

Egypt

don t give up try again and again..

07:43 PM Mar 15 2009 |

zeinabou

zeinabou

Egypt

i like that all the city is interested in the same thing ..

07:42 PM Mar 15 2009 |

tjapa

tjapa

Tunisia

i had a difficulties in listening what can i do to improve this probleme?

05:13 PM Mar 09 2009 |

ola3

ola3Super Member!

Ukraine

Yeah, that was a great game for football fans. Can imagine all that hype around. Great conversation, though it was difficult to get what Ovie was saying, but it's a good practice in listening. Smile

01:54 AM Feb 06 2009 |

Marcelolic

Marcelolic

Brazil

I’m lazy to watch soccer(the most important sport of Brazil),more american football hehe :P

07:16 PM Feb 03 2009 |

Marcelolic

Marcelolic

Brazil

I don't know super bowl and I don't like this sport too…But I would like of the parties hehe :D

07:08 PM Feb 03 2009 |

Phiphi

Phiphi

Peru

WinkHi Jason, thnx for your answer!

03:02 AM Feb 02 2009 |

EDITH ^.~

EDITH ^.~

United States

I am not that into American football, it is one of the most popular sports in US though. This is a very good lesson, giving people a picture about American sports culture, along with the slang cames from it (the Super Bowl of sth).  

02:11 AM Feb 02 2009 |

EDITH ^.~

EDITH ^.~

United States

NBA Playoffs is the Super Bowl of basketball games.

12:56 AM Feb 02 2009 |

lorayrover

United States

 

  Hi Jason Simms,

  My name is Loray Rover and full time for my business in Prepaid Legal Services Inc.  I have been able to position myself and other on our team to keep other outsiders from defeating our purpose in business.  We always carry the ball to the next associate while someone doing the running for us.  Let me give you our website.  www.prepaidlegal.com\hub\lorayrrover  Let Prepaid Legal Services unit the world around you and others.

Thanks

Loray Rover

08:39 PM Feb 01 2009 |

Mugiwara L.

Indonesia

Why does people like it?

Hmm… can anyone teach me about it??

11:42 AM Feb 01 2009 |

sobeidat

sobeidat

Jordan

its a tuff game,, i saw it in movie,, but its fun.

04:22 AM Feb 01 2009 |

sobeidat

sobeidat

Jordan

i didn't play football before, but i watched it in the maovie its good game,,

04:07 AM Feb 01 2009 |

loong song

China

     I have heard the game,but i have not seen it even on the TV.

03:19 AM Feb 01 2009 |

Gabgat

Oman

hi Cathy,

 

can i have some chat with ?

11:46 AM Jan 31 2009 |

OLDOILMAN

OLDOILMAN

Kazakhstan

the Super Bowl?

what is it ?

i d like it.

08:01 AM Jan 31 2009 |

Kyle A

Kyle A

United States

Football was originally designed as a more organized form of rugby. 

06:26 AM Jan 31 2009 |

- Cathy

- Cathy

China

Hi.I never heard this kind of games, but it looks very interesting.

06:11 AM Jan 31 2009 |

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