Every year in late January, over 100 of the country's best players who are coached by the NFL's best coaches play the most important game of their lives. And guess what? You probably missed it.

Now, I love football, I love the NFL and like most everybody else I love the Super Bowl. What I hate however is the mind-numbing sportswriting you find plastered on newspapers all around the country and Internet in the weeks leading up to the big game.

Go ahead and Google "Super Bowl" and you will find that since Jan. 22nd, when the Seattle Seahawks and Pittsburgh Steelers were officially the participants, over 57,000 news articles, features and commentaries have been written on the most world-wide watched American sporting event. By the time you read this, the number could very well be over 70,000.

Lets face it, as cool as "Super Sunday" is all of these stories hyping it are repetitive and boring, so I refuse to become Google hit number 70,001. I mean, if I have to read one more line about Jerome Bettis' return to Detroit, or the Steelers going against tradition and wearing white, I'm going to Super Bowl Shuffle myself into some heavy traffic.

Instead of piling on to the problem, I will tell you about the most significant game played in January: The Senior Bowl, the final game for many college football players to show the NFL brass that they belong in the league.

With the exception of the Seahawks and Steelers, the most important game left on the NFL schedule was already played. More NFL personnel than credentialed media members probably watched the Senior Bowl, if you can believe that. Over 700 coaches, GM's and scouts were present for the game and the practices leading up to the game. A couple of NFL teams who really can't afford to pick a draft bust even got a closer look, as the North and South squads were coached by the staffs of the Tennessee Titans and San Francisco 49ers, respectively.

The game creates two all-star teams made up only of seniors (making Reggie Bush ineligible, which marks the last time anyone will be saying "no" to Reggie for quite some time) who are declaring for the NFL Draft. The game offers talent evaluators a chance to see the nation's best perform in person, not only during the game, but during the week of practice leading up to it.

Now, I can understand why the game is not exactly at the top of Joe Sportsfan's list of things to get excited about. In fact, on that list it is probably found just ahead of the US Curling Championships and the next episode of Oprah.

The fact is there are some things not to like about the Senior Bowl. First off, the game is overshadowed by the NFL Championship game, as earlier shown through the magic of Google technology (the Senior Bowl, by the way, had only about 12,000 hits).

Secondly, even though the best players participate, it doesn't mean that they participate that much. Take DeAngelo Williams of Memphis, who was on the field for maybe 10 plays. He ran the ball three times for 31 yards, caught two passes for 28 yards; he didn't score, but still was the offensive MVP for the South. The best of the best like Williams, want to raise their draft stock, but don't want to risk injury to do so.

Also, the game typically isn't that close, as the North's 31-14 victory over the South this year is much more characteristic than their 24-21 classic in 2000, though the Super Bowl has been a dud in recent years unless Adam Vinitieri has been a part of it.

For the game's shortcomings however, there is much more to love about it. The players, even the ones who play sparingly, play with everything they've got. Miami's Sinorce Moss is the perfect example.

At 5-foot-7, he was looking at second day (rounds four through seven) draft status. Moss, brother of NFL all-pro Santana, turned in an outstanding weeklong performance and by the time he was named the game's overall MVP (after catching three passes for 46 yards and a touchdown, taking a reverse for 27 yards) he has worked himself into a first round prospect, one publication calling him a lock to be one of the top-40 guys selected.

What is the difference in being picked in the first round and the fifth round? Oh, only about 10 million dollars. How hard would you play with 10 million possibly on the line?

How hard would you play if you knew a $225,000 a year job was on the line? That is the minimum salary for an NFL rookie and what guys who were off the draft radar before the game were playing to reach.

When comparing the overall impact of the two games, the Senior Bowl is obviously the more important for the league's future. What does the Super Bowl mean to the 2006 season? It means some new jewelry for some players and a new banner hanging from the façade of one team. The Senior Bowl on the other hand is the future for many NFL teams. The 2006 season first begins to take shape in the Senior Bowl, as evidenced by the Seahawks' Shaun Alexander (2000) and Steve Hutchinson (2001), and the Steelers' Joey Porter (1999), all of whom are starting in the Super Bowl and participated in the Senior Bowl.

Basically, the Senior Bowl stacks up well to the Super Bowl on all fronts, with the exception of location as the game is played in Mobile, Ala. while Super Bowl XL is being played in fabulous. … Detroit? Never mind, the Senior Bowl is now officially the most important game played in January. Maybe that is why the NFL's big game is being played in February these days.