There will be a lot of friendly wagers for today?s Super Bowl match-up between the Arizona Cardinals and the Pittsburgh Steelers, but maybe none more interesting in Lake Havasu City than the wager between resident March Schwartz, a Steelers fan, and his fianc?e Carol Sanders, a Cardinals fan.

Submitted photo Lake Havasu City residents March Schwartz, originally of Pittsburgh, left, and fianc?e (and Cardinals fan) Carol Sanders are not only on opposite sides of the fence concerning Sunday?s Super Bowl, the pair have placed a bet on the game: The person that picks the losing team has to pay for the upcoming wedding.

The odds-makers in Las Vegas may want to factor in what Schwartz and Sanders have on the line, the cost of a wedding.

It won?t just be the typical chapel and church wedding. Schwartz and Sanders are making their way to Catalina Beach in Long Beach, Calif., in early April to tie the not. The cost of flying relatives and a wedding dress in the sand are on the line, and Schwartz is confident his Steelers will come out victorious. He?s just sorry it would have to be against the Cardinals.

?I?m a big Cardinals fan,? he said. ?I live in Arizona, and it would not kill me to see the Cardinals win, but once a Steeler, always a Steeler.?

Schwartz says he understands the excitement Cardinals fans are feeling right now. He grew up just a few blocks from where the Steelers play and was there in the Steelers heyday of the ?70s. He remembers the excitement ?Steeltown? felt during those days.

?Carol has a small quote,? he said. ?Growing up in Arizona, we?ve been starving for this.?

Schwartz understands the way Cardinals fans are feeling, because they have never been in this position before, with so much on the line in the National Football League?s biggest game.

?I?m happy for Cardinals? fans,? he said. ?Having grown up in Pittsburgh and attending two Super Bowls, I know the feeling of excitement Cards fans are feeling for the first time and the pride a Super Bowl champion can bring to a city and state. I want Cardinal fans to experience that feeling, just not today.?

Sanders has made him a Cardinals fan when they are not playing the Steelers. In fact, two weeks ago the couple was at the NFC Championship game in Phoenix. Underneath that Cardinals jersey he was wearing at the game was a Steelers jersey, though.

?Although my body resides in Havasu, my heart still lives in Pittsburgh.?

The couple will make their way to a friend?s Super Bowl party today. When they do, Schwartz said, it is likely he would be the only Steelers fan in the crowd. He says he and Sanders will probably have to sit on separate sides of the room, just in case a blowout incurs on the Steelers end and elbows are thrown. He is predicting a 40-10 blowout, in favor of his Steelers, but out of kindness, he is giving his fianc?e the seven-point spread odds-makers in Las Vegas are predicting.

Both Schwartz and Sanders hold respective jobs. He works for FedEx. She works as a realtor at Above All Realty in Lake Havasu City. The cost of the couple?s wedding is not something they take lightly, despite the bet. The tough economic times, Schwartz said, aren?t going to stop the wedding from being a huge family affair. But, he and Sanders had been battling back and forth on how they were going to pay for the wedding. The idea came to them after both teams won their league championships.

Is it an unusual proposition? The answer to that could be linked to the way the couple met two years ago.

?I believe timing is everything,? Schwartz said. ?It just happened because the circumstances dictated it. We met at a Super Bowl party two years ago, so it just seemed logical.?

Is the couple gambling on their wedding? Schwartz doesn?t think so. He doesn?t see himself as a gambler. He is a poker player. He even made it to the World Series of Poker in 2006. To him, poker is a game of skill, where the smart bet wins. Sunday, Schwartz is going to use his poker skills and wager on what he thinks is the smartest bet, the Steelers.

If Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger can keep the ball in the hands of his team, the defense will take care of Cardinals quarterback Kurt Warner and wide receivers Larry Fitzgerald and Antoine Boldin, and the game and Schwartz wedding will belong to Pittsburgh.

Schwartz and Sanders house may be divided Sunday, but no matter how much trash is talked, mainly by Schwartz, or how much class the winner and loser will have, the couple would likely have something to cheer about in April no matter who foots the bill, a wedding and the rest of their lives together.

You may contact this reporter at twaggoner@havasunews.com.