By By ERIKA PICKLES / Niles Daily Star
NILES – The Chicago Bears and Indianapolis Colts will meet in Miami, Fla. on Feb. 4 for Super Bowl XLI and local fans couldn't be more pumped up.
Jay's Lounge in Niles was packed full of Chicago fans Sunday evening, anxiously watching their blue and orange team thump New Orleans, 39-14, to earn a trip to the Super Bowl. Indianapolis edged the New England Patriots, 38-34, in a wild comeback win, allowing two teams fairly close to home to go head-to-head in the biggest sporting event of the year.
Drink and food specials were on tap at Jay's during the championship contest, which drew many of people out to watch the game on the big screen.
"It helps to have that screen. You can see it from anywhere in the bar. Plus, we had specials going on during the game and every time the Bears scored, customers were given free drinks," Jay's Lounge owner Silvio Martino said.
Martino added the turnout was much bigger than he expected, but with Chicago being so close and with so many fans in the area, it wasn't a big surprise.
"It's great to see Chicago win. I've been a Bears fan since I was a kid and after everything that happened with Notre Dame, it's nice to see a team so close make it to the Super Bowl," Martino added.
While the majority of the fans in Jay's were rooting for the Bears, a few were hoping the Saints would have ended up with the victory.
"It's a shame they lost because they deserved it," Brent Daus, a New Orleans fan, said after the game. "They had a chance to pull through, but they didn't."
The Saints were playing in the semifinals for the first time in their 40-year history.
Chicago will play for the NFL title for the first time in 21 years, after Mike Ditka's Bears shuffled through the regular season and playoffs and defeated New England.
The Colts are playing in the Super Bowl for the first time since they beat Dallas in 1971, when they were still based in Baltimore.
Bears or Colts fan, Martino said that Jay's will be busy the next two weeks, preparing for the Super Bowl, which will surely draw a lot of people out again.
"We will have drink and food specials like we did tonight, as well as giveaways," Martino added.