(Win McNamee/Getty Images)

A couple of early observations. One of the fascinating aspects of an event this size is the number of people it takes to pull it off. Security, in particular, is something to witness.

Going through security into Raymond James Stadium was quick and painless. I hadn’t noticed this earlier, but the photo credential it takes to get into the stadium actually has a bar code on it. A security person scans it with a hand-held device, and it recognizes that your credential is legit, and you are who you say you are. I am who they thought I was.

As we waited for the bomb-sniffing dog to go through the rows of bags that were brought in, another security person told me he estimated that there were 3,000 security personnel in and around the stadium today. That’s a number to think about.

Here’s another: I walked by the stadium kitchen on my way in and there were about 25 cooks preparing food. One of them was rolling sushi. Football and sushi. Go Super Bowl.

Outside Pittsburgh’s locker room, former Steelers RB Jerome Bettis was with others from the NBC game broadcast crew getting ready. I saw Dan Patrick too, another member of NBC’s crew. I was just told NBC has 21 people who will be on camera for today’s broadcast. I can’t imagine there is any part of the stadium they won’t have covered.

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