STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- The game came down to a controversial play in the end zone
- Women with amazing vocals inspired and entertained
- Jacoby Jones scores two remarkable touchdowns
- Some commercials touched hearts, others were meh
(CNN) -- It may not have been a great game until after the lights went out and came back up, but the Super Bowl showdown Sunday night created quite a few memorable moments on the field and off, even before kickoff.
There were powerful performances, including a much buzzed-about halftime show by superstar Beyonce.
But there was also a lack of electricity in the stadium and in some of the commercials.
And San Francisco 49ers fans are sure to get emotional over that last play they ran on offense, when two players met in the end zone and despite contact, no penalty was called.
Here are the five moments you can expect your coworkers to talk about Monday morning.
Grrrl Power
The men may have duked it out during the game. But when it came to the non-football entertainment at the Superdome, women ruled the day.
First up was Jennifer Hudson with a stirring rendition of "America the Beautiful." The choir backing her comprised of students from Sandy Hook Elementary, the Connecticut school where 20 students and six school staff were shot dead in December.
Players on the sidelines and fans on the stand wiped away tears.
"Our wish is to demonstrate to America and the world that, 'We are Sandy Hook and We Choose Love,'" the choir said in a statement.
Next, Alicia Keys belted out the "Star-Spangled Banner" as the children, in white polo shirts with green ribbons pinned to them, stood with their hands on their hearts.
"It's football. But I just cried," tweeted actor Brian Baumgartner about the Sandy Hook performance.
The big show, however, came once the 49ers and the Baltimore Ravens got through the first half.
Welcome, Beyonce.
For 12 minutes, she rocked the stage clad in above-the-knee black stiletto boots and a leather minidress.
Powered by an all-female backing band, there was little doubt Beyonce sang live -- unlike during President Barack Obama's inauguration last month where she admitted singing along to a prerecorded track.
And as if that wasn't enough girl power for the night, Beyonce was joined by her Destiny's Child bandmates, Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams.
"My heart just stopped," tweeted actress Mindy Kaling.
She wasn't the only one. Beyonce's performance generated 5.5 million tweets!
Lack of power
For the first two quarters, the Ravens seemed unstoppable, steamrolling the 49ers to a 28-6 lead.
But then, half the lights in the Superdome went mysteriously black.
The NFL released a statement saying it was "investigating." The power company said it was not to blame and that electricity in the rest of the city was fine.
The outage left players, coaches and fans to wait, wait and wait some more.
Social media lit up.
After 35 minutes when the lights slowly went back on, so did San Francisco -- prompting many to wonder if the break in play played to the 49ers advantage.
Running back Frank Gore felt differently.
"You have to wait. Football is a game of adjustments. The elements don't matter," he told NFL.com. "I've been saying it all year, the elements don't matter in football. You've just got to learn how to make adjustments."
The real MVP?
Quarterbacks often get the glory in the Super Bowl, but wide receiver Jacoby Jones had a strong case for Most Valuable Player. He lost out to Joe Flacco.
Jones scored on two of the most incredible plays in Super Bowl history, including a record 108-yard kickoff return. It took him just 11 seconds on the clock to slice through the 49ers coverage team.
"Jacoby's been a blessing to this team," said Ravens coach John Harbaugh. "We're grateful to have him on this team."
Jones, who grew up in New Orleans, also caught a 56-yard touchdown pass -- his only reception. He fell, got up, decked a defender and sprinted at an angle toward the goal line, beating two 49ers into the end zone.
"Everybody dreams of scoring a touchdown in the Super Bowl. But two of 'em? That's what's up!" Jones told NOLA.com. "It was always a goal to win a Super Bowl. To come home and do it, that's the icing on the cake."
Jones is definitely the MVP for some Baltimoreans who bought furniture this weekend at a Baltimore store.
The Baltimore Sun reported Gardiners Furniture promised to wipe out the charges for anything purchased on Saturday or Sunday -- if the Ravens returned a kick for a touchdown to start a half.
Probably seemed like a good bet at the time.
A geek makeout makes us gag
Some of the Super Bowl commercials made us weep for different reasons.
There were quite a few that played on our sentiment, from Budweiser's "Brotherhood" to Jeep's Oprah-narrated America Will Be Whole Again" to Dodge's ode, "Farmer."
Then there was the racy GoDaddy ad that made us want to cry, burn our eyes out and have the Men in Black wipe out our memories.
In it, model Bar Refaeli shares a long kiss with a red-cheeked "nerd" that prompted its own hashtag: #NoDaddy.
"Oh my gosh those kissing noises," tweeted Chicago college student Grace Barnes.
Bleacher Report: Grading the best & worst ads
A no-call to rue until next year
Despite trailing by 22 in the second half, San Francisco nearly won it in the final minutes.
With 1:50 left, the 49ers had the ball on the Ravens 5, trailing 34-29. It was 4th and goal.
San Francisco quarterback Colin Kaepernick tossed a throw toward the right side of the end zone where the Ravens' Jimmy Smith and the Niners' Michael Crabtree made contact.
"No flag, incomplete," CBS announcer Jim Nantz said as the ball sailed over Crabtree's head. The cameras cut to a shot off 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh making the signal for holding.
Many believe it should have been a penalty on Smith.
"There's no question in my mind that there was a pass interference and then a hold on Crabtree on the last one," the 49ers coach said.
New England wide receiver Dante Stallworth tweeted there should have been a flag, even if the ball seemed like it was so high no one could catch it.
"For all y'all saying that ball was uncatchable for Crabtree in the endzone... DUH!! Because dude held thee sh*t outta him..." he tweeted.
NFL Network commentators Warren Sapp and Steve Mariucci disagreed.
Sapp said it was obviously pass interference but Mariucci, a former 49ers coach, pointed out the Crabtree also made contact, putting his hand on Smith's helmet.
Crabtree told Yahoo Sports it was "a missed call."
"I don't want to talk about it. I don't want to think about it," he said.
Five sizzling Super Bowl moments to talk about
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Five sizzling Super Bowl moments to talk about