There are ways to have some fun on Super Bowl Sunday even if you don't care about the two teams playing or you're not necessarily a football fan. With Super Bowl LIV just about ready for kickoff, it's the perfect time for such fun to begin. Of course, we're talking about Super Bowl squares -- or boxes, whatever you prefer to call them. It's impossible to know exactly what to expect when the 54th Super Bowl kicks off in Miami Gardens. Patrick Mahomes leads one of the top offenses in the NFL in the Kansas City Chiefs, but the San Francisco 49ers have allowed just 252.5 yards per game this postseason.
Here's how it works if you've never played Super Bowl squares before: Whoever is in charge of the game creates a 10x10 grid. Or, you can print it out right here. Interested players then write their names into one or more of the 100 boxes available. On the outside of the 100-square grid (in the gray squares of our template), a number 0-9 is assigned to each row and column, either randomly after the squares are filled up or prior to opening up the action. One of the Super Bowl teams is designated as the horizontal axis, and the other the vertical axis.
Players track the score at the end of each quarter, and whoever has the square that corresponds to the last number in each team's score is the winner of that portion of the game. For example, the score after the first quarter in Super Bowl LIII was 0-0, so whoever had the square that corresponded to "Patriots 0, Rams 0" was the winner. The person holding the "Patriots 3, Rams 0" square won the halftime margin, and the person who had the "Patriots 3, Rams 3" square won the third quarter. With double digits, the correct square corresponds to the last digit. So since the Patriots won 13-3, the "Patriots 3, Rams 3" square won.
Squares aren't just limited to each quarter. Once you have 100 squares filled up and numbers assigned, you can create all sorts of versions for the game. For example, I know of one game where winners are determined after each minute on the clock in regulation, giving players 60 chances to win! Good luck!
So what numbers should you pay a premium for in your Super Bowl pool, and in what combinations? Visit SportsLine now to get Mike Tierney's detailed squares strategy, all from the seasoned expert who's reported from seven Super Bowls, and find out.
