A decade later, frustrated Saints fans can take solace in Super Bowl victory
Close your eyes and open your mind and think back 10 long years ago.
It is Feb. 7, 2010, Sun Life Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida, site of Super Bowl XLIV between the New Orleans Saints and Indianapolis Colts.
Remember where you were that night, who you partied with, the festive pre-game atmosphere and the uncontrollable excitement and unfettered pride raging through your body prior to kickoff of the most important game in Black and Gold history.
And the utter euphoria that followed after the historic 31-17 victory, including a Super Bowl parade rolling through the streets of downtown New Orleans two days later as hundreds of thousands of fans cheered their heroes.
I was in Miami covering the game for a New Orleans website, two months after taking a buyout from The Times-Picayune where I had spent the previous 33 years chronicling the local sports scene, the last 23 as a Saints beat writer and a prickly thorn in the side of coaches Jim Mora, Mike Ditka, Jim Haslett and, of course, Sean Payton.
Come relive the key moments with me on that fateful night in south Miami when the Black and Gold reigned supreme, when “Pigs Could Fly’‘ and Who Dat Nation “partied with the Lombardi’‘ all through the night.
The trip back in time may serve as a momentary distraction for disappointed/disgruntled/dismayed but undaunted Saints fans who don’t have a dog in the fight on Super Bowl Sunday.
Who Dats worldwide can only watch as the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers square off in Super Bowl LIV (5:30 p.m., Fox) at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens and wonder what might have been if the Black and Gold had taken care of their business.
Climb aboard the Sun Herald time machine for a trip down memory lane.
Super Bowl XLIV started off slowly under a moonlit night for the Saints, who trailed 10-0 after the first quarter. Two field goals by Garrett Hartley cut the deficit to 10-6, the second coming from 46 yards out on the last play of the first half.
With momentum on their side, Sean Payton shocked the football world by calling for an onsides kick to open the second half.
Not just any onsides kick but a scrum for the ages, with the ball probably changing hands untold times under a pile of humanity before sleuthing officials somehow deduced that special teams dynamo Chris Reis had recovered at the Saints 42.
Six plays later, the Saints owned a 13-10 lead on a 16-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Drew Brees to running back Pierre Thomas.
The lead would change hands twice more before Saints cornerback Tracy Porter sealed the deal with an interception of Colts quarterback Peyton Manning and a 74-yard return for a touchdown and a 31-17 lead with 3:12 remaining.
Afterward, Super Bowl MVP Drew Brees held his 13-month-old son Baylen aloft as confetti fluttered down from the Miami sky and chants of “Who Dat? Who Dat? Who Dat say dey gonna beat dem Saints? Who Dat’‘ ringed the stadium.
These are the best of times, the unforgettable times, the cherished times that get us through the worst of times.