Everyone remembers the excitement stirring in Baltimore this time last year. It was play-offs season, and our beloved Ravens were slowly – but surely – making their way to the Super Bowl. Purple was the new black, and Fridays were even more highly anticipated. And on February 3, 2013, despite a very suspicious black-out during the second half, the Ravens were Super Bowl champions again. Raven mania lingered well into the start of the Orioles’ season.

Sadly, that is not the case this year; after a disappointing loss to the Cincinnati Bengals, the Ravens season is over. Though we won’t be sporting our Purple Pride on February 2, that doesn’t mean that Super Bowl will be any less interesting.

The snowflake on the Super Bowl logo for this year hints at the opponent that could be facing teams and fans alike: weather. Poor Richard’s Almanac’s predictions of a particularly nasty and “bitterly cold” winter have so far been brutally accurate. These predicted storms may stand to impede on Super Bowl (which some have come to call the “Storm Bowl”) festivities and the game itself. In my opinion, the best games are those when weather is a factor, especially snow, though the hosts of pre-game events probably disagree with me. The Host Committee has made back up plans in case of extremely inclement weather on game day, but only time will tell if the Super Bowl will in fact by a Storm Bowl this year.

As playoffs kick off January 11, fans root on their favorite bowl-bound teams. The betting is already underway: in the NFC the odds are in favor of Russel Wilson and the Seahawks making it to the Super Bowl, while Tom Brady and the Patriots are projected to represent the AFC. But if there’s one thing that’s certain in football, at the end of the day, it really is anyone’s game.