Quarterbacks Drake Maye and Sam Darnold are facing off in their first Super Bowl appearance. Photo courtesy of the NFL.
It is the time of the year when casual and die-hard football fans gather around the TV to enjoy a night of competition and entertainment. Here is who The Collegian sports section thinks will win the Lombardi Trophy and MVP on Feb. 8.
NHU-HAN BUI | SPORTS CO-EDITOR | hbui@butler.edu
If you told me at the beginning of the season that the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks were facing off in the Super Bowl, I would ask if it was 2015 again. But after a long season with lots of unexpected twists, I learned that truly anything can happen.
As the playoffs drew near and my Cincinnati Bengals were eliminated, I began paying attention to teams that had a chance to go all the way, most notably the Seahawks. Quarterback Sam Darnold’s stellar year in Seattle had me rooting for him, and after watching him take down the Los Angeles Rams and San Francisco 49ers twice in some of the most exciting games I have watched, I had no doubt that he and Seattle would go all the way. The Lombardi Trophy will return to the city for the second time — the first since 2013 — and Darnold will earn his rightful MVP honors. Seahawks 35 — Patriots 14, Super Bowl MVP: Sam Darnold.
DOROTHY LAKSHMANAMURTHY | SPORTS CO-EDITOR | dlakshmanamurthy@butler.edu
Nothing about this Super Bowl excites me — the teams, the hype or Bad Bunny’s halftime show — but I still trust the Seahawks to win it all. Defense wins championships, and the Seattle squad will do just that. With Seattle’s No. 1 scoring defense and offensive consistency, the Seahawks will cap off their nine-game winning streak with the Lombardi Trophy while wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba takes home the MVP honors. Seahawks 24 — Patriots 17, Super Bowl MVP: Jaxon Smith-Njigba.
DAVID JACOBS | MANAGING EDITOR | drjacobs@butler.edu
There is not much I like about this Super Bowl matchup other than getting to see Darnold complete one of the most miraculous career turnarounds of all time. With that being said, I would rather watch paint dry for four hours than see another New England Super Bowl win. Give me the Seahawks in a defensive struggle, and Smith-Njigba to take home the MVP thanks to an absurd stat line of 11 receptions, 163 yards and a score. Seahawks 26 — Patriots 15, Super Bowl MVP: Jaxon Smith-Njigba.
SAWYER GOLDWEIN | MANAGING EDITOR | sgoldwein@butler.edu
Frankly, I think this game is going to get ugly pretty quickly. It is not easy to make it to the Super Bowl, but it truly feels like the Patriots got there more due to subpar play by their opponents — yes, you, C.J. Stroud — than by their own performances. The Seahawks win this one by TKO, with Darnold taking home the Super Bowl MVP award — a statement I never could have imagined I would be making. Seahawks 38 — Patriots 13, Super Bowl MVP: Sam Darnold.
JAMIE HEALY | STAFF REPORTER | jdhealy1@butler.edu
As a die-hard Green Bay Packer fan, my interest in the playoffs really ended as soon as they collapsed in the Wild Card game. Furthermore, the Rams were my Super Bowl champion, and they were eliminated at the hands of the Seahawks in the NFC Championship. Speaking of the Seahawks, this is a team that knows how to win and plays hard every game. NFC Coach of the Year Mike Macdonald has done a great job taking the Seahawks from a team that missed the playoffs a year ago to being one win away from hoisting the Lombardi. Seattle is far and away the best team in football this season, and while the Patriots are an up-and-coming team, I cannot see this game staying within three possessions. I have star receiver Smith-Njigba taking home MVP honors after a 100-yard, two-touchdown performance. Seahawks 35 — Patriots 10, Super Bowl MVP: Jaxon Smith-Njigba.
OWEN PRISCOTT | STAFF REPORTER | opriscott@butler.edu
I am one of the biggest Denver Broncos fans you will ever meet, so I know who I am not picking to win in this game. All jokes aside, the Seahawks truly are one of the best stories in the NFL, and as someone who lives less than an hour outside of New York, no one deserves this more than Sam Darnold. I give credit where credit is due to offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak for putting Darnold in such an explosive system and allowing him to succeed, but so much of Seattle’s success has come solely on the right shoulder of their quarterback. The Patriots are a very good team, of course, but they really could not have had an easier path to this game. Their star quarterback, Drake Maye, has not really impressed me through the air in these playoffs, and Seattle’s stellar secondary will give him issues just like Denver’s did. As for my MVP pick, I think because star wideout Smith-Njigba is lined up against one of the best corners in football — Christian Gonzalez — the MVP will be the other explosive receiver for Seattle, Rashid Shaheed. Shaheed will haul in some deep passes in this game, but I also see him making his mark on special teams, returning either a punt or a kickoff return back to the endzone. Seahawks 31 — Patriots 19, Super Bowl MVP: Rashid Shaheed.
AIDEN CADDELL | STAFF REPORTER | acaddell@butler.edu
If you had asked me in September, I would have never guessed that the 4-13 Patriots would find their way to the Super Bowl in the first year of head coach Mike Vrabel’s tenure. Nonetheless, Maye looks like the real deal and the next player up to join the upper echelon of quarterbacks in the league. On the NFC side, Darnold’s career story is good enough for the big screen. Going from five teams in six years to sportsbook-favorite for Super Bowl MVP is something I would only believe if it came from Hollywood. Darnold has a chance for redemption after his infamous “seeing ghosts” game against the Patriots, and the Seahawks can avenge their Super Bowl XLIX loss. In the end, Klint Kubiak will make the play call that Pete Carroll never could. Running back Kenneth Walker III will punch in the fatal blow from the goal line, cementing his Super Bowl MVP with his second touchdown of the game. Seahawks 24 — Patriots 13, Super Bowl MVP: Kenneth Walker III.
ROCCO SANTORO | STAFF REPORTER | rsantoro@butler.edu
If you told me at the beginning of the season that an AFC East team is in the Super Bowl, I would have agreed with you, but it would not be the team I expected it to be. I 100% thought it would be Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills’ year to finally make it out of the AFC, but I would be wrong. The Patriots proved all of their doubters wrong during their playoff run, knocking off three top-five defenses in the league. They have proved why they are one of the two best teams in the league, even though their regular-season schedule may not have been the hardest. They also have “the people’s MVP” (and mine) in Maye. The Patriots were not the only thing to prove doubters wrong this playoffs. Darnold showed that last year’s Wild Card game against the Rams was a fluke, as he got revenge and outdueled quarterback Matthew Stafford in the NFC Championship Game. Super Bowl LX is set to be a fantastic end to one of the best and most unpredictable NFL seasons in recent memory. I believe that history will repeat itself. I think Vrabel gets his captain, linebacker Robert Spillane, to play through an ankle injury and catch a touchdown pass on the goal line, as Vrabel did twice in Super Bowls XXXVIII and XXXIX. The Seahawks will repeat their history with a kick-return touchdown from Shaheed. In the end, I think the most important piece of history will repeat with Darnold throwing a game-losing interception. Patriots 30 — Seahawks 24, Super Bowl MVP: Robert Spillane.
BROOKS BAKER-WATSON | STAFF REPORTER | bbakerwatson@butler.edu
Watching this game as a Baltimore Ravens fan, there is nothing I would love more than a crushing Patriots loss to deny New England their dynasty revival dream. Luckily, it appears that all roads for the AFC champions end brutally.
The Seahawks are a team with a modus operandi of, “When we want to, we will and we’ll succeed.” If they want to run Walker down the New England defense’s throat, they will do so effectively. If they have a goal for Smith-Njigba and wide receiver Cooper Kupp to combine for over 300 passing yards, they’ll reach that mark and then some. If Seattle’s defense wants to make Feb. 8 a day Drake Maye will never forget, they’ll ensure that by halftime, the only New England highlight is what treats Ann Michael Maye brought with her. Their success is inevitable as long as they keep wanting. Seahawks 42 — Patriots 13, Super Bowl MVP: Ernest Jones IV.
MARIA CLARA KOLLER | STAFF REPORTER | mkollerfernandez@butler.edu
Both teams have defied the odds to make it back to the big dance in a rematch of the iconic Super Bowl XLIX, which ended in Seattle heartbreak. However, it is important to note that one of the two teams had a significantly easier ride to the Super Bowl than the other, and of course I am talking about the Patriots. Twelve of their wins this season came from teams that did not even make the playoffs, while only two of their wins came from teams that did. In the postseason, they faced an injury-ravaged Los Angeles Chargers offensive line, five turnovers from Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud and a backup quarterback. The Seahawks, on the other hand, have been one of the most entertaining teams to watch this year, and they have rightfully earned their spot in this year’s big game. This year, the scars left in that endzone in Arizona 11 years ago will finally be healed. Seahawks 35 — Patriots 27, Super Bowl MVP: Kenneth Walker III.
CALEB BALL | STAFF REPORTER | cdball@butler.edu
New England is where I call home. I remember the last matchup between these two teams like it was yesterday, although the Patriots have played at this stage quite a few times. I doubted Maye when he was drafted in 2024, but I cannot doubt him anymore. He has taken this team to the promised land and put them in position to win the Super Bowl. Cornerback Malcolm Butler is not securing the goal line, but Gonzalez is healthy and ready to go. In Super Bowl LX, I am going with the underdog. Patriots 27 — Seahawks 24, Super Bowl MVP: Drake Maye.
