Dayton: I’ll be at the Super Bowl but, you know, I’m less excited
Gov. Mark Dayton says he'll be inside U.S. Bank Stadium Feb. 4 for the Super Bowl, although he was hoping to see more purple on the field.
"Well, I'm going with less enthusiasm than I had hoped for," Dayton told reporters Wednesday in a reference to the Minnesota Vikings loss Sunday in the NFC Championship game against the Philadelphia Eagles. A win would have put the Vikings in the Super Bowl at home.
The goal now is to have a great event, said Dayton. "I'm going to do everything I can to be a good host. We want to showcase this magnificent state and we want everything to go as well as is humanly possible." He said the New England Patriots and Eagles are terrific teams.
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Dayton also noted that he bought his own ticket to the game, with his own money, and will sit in the stands with his sons. Dayton couldn't recall what kind of cash he had to come up with for the ticket. An aide said later that Dayton paid $6,000 for his seat.
Dayton would not say which team he wanted to win it all but added that he is hoping for good weather.
"I'm seriously down on my knees praying that we don't have a repeat of Monday's snowstorm on Super Bowl Sunday," he said. "That's beyond our control."