More people watch the Super Bowl than any other sports event.

Sadly, the media and corporate America just want us to watch the commercials.

Nearly 30 companies have lined up to advertise during the big game for an average price of $1.6 million each for the 58 half-minute commercial slots on Sunday’s telecast from Super Bowl XXXIII in Miami.

The commercials will cost $53,333 per second, which would buy a full page black and white in the nation’s most-read paper — USA Today.

A recent survey by the research firm Eisner and Associates indicates that nearly 7 percent of all Super Bowl viewers just watch the ads, and more than one-third expect to discuss them Monday morning.

This a far cry from where the Super Bowl started.

The first Super Bowl did not even sell-out, and throughout the last 33 years, it has become the Mount Olympus of advertising.

Instead of the NFL Championship game, it has simply become more about commercialism than football’s shining moment in the sun.

Now it is merely a playground for big companies to parade their tawdry wares.

Gone are the days of wine and roses; now it’s about who can spend the most money.

No longer is it a game of pure athleticism. The modern game is nothing but good-time Charlies pushing product and slapping down dollar bills.

Americans would rather watch Michael Jordan and Bugs Bunny play basketball or a dork beat up a Pepsi machine than watch John Elway win his first championship ring in his storybook and illustrious career.

Advertising has made the game more of a billboard for products. What is next, the McDonald’s logo in the middle of John Elway’s helmet? The Nike logo on the Broncos jersey and Reebok’s on the Falcons?

Some “modern” intellectuals are throwing parties just to watch the commercials.

The Super Bowl is a showcase for perplexed athletes who have worked for years to make it to the big game but are simply stunned at the media blitz.

They are the best at what they do and they deserve the best stage to show their talents.

The Super Bowl needs to be what it was originally intended to be, the last game featuring the two best teams not a game squeezed between commercials.