You can't have a Super Bowl without Ada, Ohio. But you already know that. The 2013 Super Bowl footballs, made at the Wilson football factory in Ada, are already created and shipped – and there are lots of them.

According to officials at the Ada Wilson factory, 54 balls were shipped to the Baltimore Ravens and 54 to the San Francisco 49ers. Those will be used for pre-Super Bowl practice.

Beyond that, 54 balls are used by each team during the Super Bowl. Then, there are 12 “kicker” balls, called “K” balls used by the game officials.

And, for the historical archives, there are a few official balls in the Wilson factory in Ada.

Production of this year’s Super Bowl footballs began immediately following the AFC and NFL title games – once the winners of both games were determined.

(This story is also posted in The Ada Icon www.adaicon.com)