It's time to start our last entry of the Decade Series. This time, we count down the Top 10 Stories of the Decade. These are the 10 defining moments, images, and memories from the 2000's that we will remember. We start our countdown with one of the most traumatic events in US History, and a team that symbolizes a community. It's the story of tragedy, redemption, and hope. It's the story of the New Orleans Saints Katrina Comeback.
I'll be honest and fully disclosed from the start, I am a lifelong, diehard Saints fan (weird for a kid who grew up in Central Ohio, but I've never been easily explained). I've been a fan for as long as I can remember. I dressed up as Bobby Hebert for Halloween for crying out loud. I was there for the days of the Dome Patrol, through the diddly-poo press conferences, through Ricky Williams and the wedding dress. I was there for the good and bad of Aaron Brooks and when Hakim dropped the ball. I was there for the River City Relay and John Carney's missed PAT. I was there for the lost season and the comeback, and I'm glad to say I'm here now for 13-0.
I also had an urge to try to help the city after seeing what Hurricane Katrina did to New Orleans. Hurricane Katrina is to date the single worst natural disaster to ever affect the United States. You can check out the Wikipedia page for the facts if you're interested. My brother and I have been to New Orleans twice to help with Katrina relief, in 2005 and 2006. These trips were life changing experiences for us. Especially in the months after the storm, the pictures and video could not do justice to what happened. But, even in the destruction, the spirit of the city and its people remained as strong as ever.
The people of New Orleans have an indomitable spirit. Just being in the presence of the people of New Orleans is enough to inspire a person for a lifetime. Even though most of them lost everything, they still had hope. I'll never understand how someone could come through a tragedy on that scale, but New Orleans is proving that it is possible. I'm firmly convinced that it is the most special city that we have in this country. There is nothing like New Orleans anywhere else on the globe, and the Saints are an integral part of the city.
One thing I'll never forget in my second trip to New Orleans in the Spring of 2006 was a sign that hung from the Superdome with the date of the Saints return home in a Monday Night game against the Atlanta Falcons. It was more than a sports team coming back, it was a statement that New Orleans was coming back. The Saints mean more to New Orleans than perhaps any franchise in any city. To someone who hasn't been there, or hasn't followed the team, that's impossible to believe, but it's true. Sure, they've been awful for 97% of their existence, but that doesn't take away from the affection of the fans.
In conversations in New Orleans, I heard stories of folks who would walk to Tulane Stadium to see the Saints play in the 60s and 70s. I heard from people that prayed the team wouldn't abandon the city and relocate. I heard about the hope that Drew Brees and Sean Payton brought to the team. I heard about the reminiscing to the days of the Dome Patrol and even Archie Manning. I heard about the opening of the Superdome. I heard just how much that team meant to that community. If the Saints just came back, and could play in the Superdome, then maybe that could be one piece of normalcy that could come back to New Orleans. Maybe that could show the nation and the world that New Orleans was going to fight, and beat Hurricane Katrina.
The Saints did come back to New Orleans on September 25, 2006.
When you look at that night on its own, it may be one of the most magical sporting events to ever take place. The atmosphere in the building was unbelievable. The Saints of course beat the Falcons 23-3 in what was a special night for the team and the city of New Orleans. Here are some videos from the Superdome that night including the pregame concert by Green Day and U2, the MNF intros, and finally the legendary blocked punt by Steve Gleason in the 1st Quarter that told you maybe New Orleans and the Saints would be able to make it after all...
That night in the Superdome was so much more than a football game, or the reopening of a building. In fact, it may be one of the most meaningful and memorable sporting events in American sports history, and it had absolutely nothing to do with the action on the field. Now that Katrina is more than 4 years in the past, it's tough to remember how awful and traumatic it was. How crippled the city of New Orleans was. How some people said that we shouldn't bother to rebuild the city. How the Saints were going to move to Los Angeles or San Antonio. How the city would never recover.
But, on September 25, 2006, the Saints and the city of New Orleans showed the world that they would recover. There is still a lot of work that needs to be done to recover from Katrina. There are many homes and neighborhoods that will never be rebuilt, and some scars from Katrina will always remain. But, slowly the city is on its way back. New Orleans still needs the attention and care of the nation even in these years after Katrina to continue to rebuild and make the city a better place. Amazingly, a lot of people never thought those words possible in the wake of the worst natural disaster to hit the United States.
On the field, the Saints would ride the wave of emotion to their best ever season. After the vagabond season of 2005 saw them finish 3-13, their 2006 return home saw them win the NFC South and finish 10-6. New stars like Brees, Bush, and Colston along with Coach of the Year Sean Payton rejuvenated the franchise. The Saints won only their 2nd playoff game in franchise history beating the Eagles in the divisional round before losing in Chicago to the Bears in the NFC Title Game. It was the first Championship game appearance for the franchise. Here's a season highlight package, the first 7 minutes are the 2006 season...
Sure, the success on the field for the Saints was a great story. But just the fact that they were playing football in New Orleans was even more beautiful. Now, three years later, the Saints sit at a historic 13-0, pursuing an undefeated season. Saints fans will tell you that this season is the one that they have waited their whole lives for. That one day their beloved team would maybe be able to bring New Orleans a championship. That a team who has been a laughing stock for their entire existence could rise up and be winners, and represent the city of New Orleans.
The greatness of the 2009 season is only made more sweeter knowing where the city and the team have come from in the days since Hurricane Katrina. Regardless of which team you root for, save a place in your heart for the Saints and New Orleans. If anyone deserves a championship team, it's the people of that great city. Those people who refused to give in, who said yes we can and will rebuild, and who continue to this day to make New Orleans a better place... those people of New Orleans, who are champions of the human spirit.
1 comment:
Beautiful! Geaux Saints!!!
Post a Comment