Super Bowl alcohol ban in San Francisco is not likely, says Mayor Ed Lee. But there's a chance the city will riot depending on the outcome. Here is a prediction of the game.
San Francisco is known as a fun town, which makes it perfect that the home team in the city is headed down to the New Orleans for the 2013 Super Bowl. One problem though? A possible alcohol ban in the city for Sunday.
According to SFGate.com, best served by restricting hard alcohol, Mayor Ed Lee is suggesting that safety might be best served by restricting hard alcohol for the big game.
Lee previously said last year that restaurants and other places should "...serve something (other) than heavy alcohol during times of celebration, because that inebriation sometimes doesn't help with people who want to maybe go beyond the bounds of acceptability in their celebration."
The city has been through a number of championships in recent years, including the San Francisco Giants this past baseball season. During the celebration for the World Series, there were riots around the city in celebration. Lee hopes to avoid the same thing again.
The mayor said he would tour with the police chief the neighborhoods hit by vandalism after the World Series and during Occupy Wall Street protests last year. Lee said that there would be no ban on hard alcohol though during the game.
Adam DeMezza, co-owner of the Giordano Brother's sandwich and sports bar in the Mission District, understands Lee's position.
"It's a good idea, but it's going to be a tough sell. I can see where he's coming from," DeMezza said. "I'm right on 16th and Valencia. We saw it go down between 16th and 18th" streets after the World Series.
Lee said that he likely would spend the day of the game in the city to oversee the celebration, rather than travel to New Orleans to watch the Super Bowl. Over the years there has been even worse riots for team's that lose, including in the Stanley Cup two years ago when there was a full-scale riot in Vancouver.
San Francisco is hoping to avoid that this year. They are also hoping for a Super Bowl victory.
The 49ers have been one of the most impressive teams in football all year and have really come on in the playoffs behind quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who has gone 6-2 as a starter and had a passer rating of 98.7 with 13.1 yards per rushing attempt during the regular season.
Against Green Bay two weeks ago, Kaepernick had a coming out party, setting a record with 181 rushing yards to go along with 263 yards and two touchdowns while also adding another two scores on the ground. The Ravens will need to contain Kaepnerick for a chance to win in New Orleans, or it could be the Packers game all over again.
Kaepernick has been one of the primary reasons the 49ers are still alive in the playoffs and was a huge part of Sunday's 28-24 win over the Falcons in the NFC Championship Game, throwing for 233 yards and one touchdown. He had a much different game from the one he played against the Packers, proving he can be a running and throwing quarterback.
