Who Dat!!!!

Elation.  Jubilation. Pandemonium. Ecstasy.  Bedlam. Delirium. Joy.

There’s no English word in existence to convey the emotion of the people in this city and this region after the Saints win in Super Bowl XLIV.  I want to capture and keep it and take it out every once in a while when I need it.  So this post will have to suffice as preservation of the memory of an unforgettable experience.

The day began with our annual Barkus parade pilgrimage.  This was Bugsy’s ninth outing and Wyatt’s first.  The “Tailgate” theme was of course tied to the Saints.  The French Quarter was packed as it seemed that is many people poured into New Orleans for the Super Bowl as Miami.  Barkus’ short walking route actually crosses Bourbon which was solid with people so I had to pick up Bugsy. My favorite moment was holding him up to push through the crush as he scowled and started swatting at people passing by with his front paws.

We decided to make the day a neighborhood night, going to the nearby Bridge Lounge to take it in.  They were taking donations for Doctors Without Borders for Haiti and serving free food all night. Sounded like a great deal to us so we joined the packed crowd inside and took seats in the rear.

Spirits were high and cheering, Who Datting and dancing broke out even before the kick off.  The first half was tense as initially Manning picked us apart to take a 10-0 lead and our offense couldn’t get anything going.  But we started driving and things started getting riled up a bit with people cheering every offensive play of every drive.  The guy in front of me at one point asked if we were local because he thought we were too quiet and subdued.  I explained to him that we were in fact local and that I wasn’t subdued; I couldn’t breathe.  I couldn’t believe we were here and there was this growing realization that we were going to take this thing.

And then came the onside kick to open the second half. Things just went wild from that point on.  We were screaming at every play of every drive like it was a near touchdown. Watching Drew push that offense methodically, decisively down the field was just amazing.  And you could just feel that we had the thing.

And finally Manning, like Farve before him, made his mistake. And Porter, for the second time, made the pick except this time it went all the way in to put us up by two touchdowns. It was very hard to watch the game after that.  Just sitting here writing about it and I can feel my pulse quicken and the adrenaline rush in.  We danced and sang and screamed and knew that tonight would be unlike any other in New Orleans.

We made sure to stay and watch the trophy presentation and let the tears come as Brees held up his son Baylen. Because, after all, this was always about much more than football.  After that there was only one thing to do. The same thing all of New Orleans and all of Southern Louisiana and Mississippi wanted to do — take to the streets and share this moment with everyone else who understood and felt like we did.

I can’t really describe the night. I hugged more strangers than I could ever have imagined.  We danced and sang and marveled as NOPD blocked off downtown from Poydras to Rampart to Esplanade and the River as people just poured into the city.  As someone said, we don’t burn cars here, we dance on ‘em!  New Orleans is a town known for celebrating life, the moment and its culture and traditions, but this was all that and more.  We had just elected a new mayor the day before by a huge margin.  Something has changed.   This was always about so much more than a game.

Here are my pics from the evening.  And here is Barkus and as a bonus, my pics from the NFC Championship game.  I’ll post more of my own videos from that night and the parade two days later soon.

This is by far my favorite video of the post-game party in the streets. This is Uptown on Magazine.

Saints Superbowl Victory Celebration from Cottage Films on Vimeo.

This video, which accompanies this ESPN column is by far the best explanation I can find to put this Saints season into context.  Also, this editorial by Richard Campanella is required reading.

Next, here is Drew Brees at Lucy’s in the Warehouse District after the parade, teaching the patrons a pre-game warmup chant:

Last but not least, here’s my own video of Super Bowl night, first from the Bridge Lounge in the Lower Garden and then heading down into the Quarter after the game:


Scott Harney

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