Who crunked it up deep into Monday morning? Big Daddy and the Who Dats showed tireless endurance to commemorate the Saints’ monumental achievement. Bourbon Street became ground zero as Saints fans taught national TV media outlets that they can no longer treat the Saints like they’re in Kansas. The all-night celebration has South Beach feeling pretty nervous. Over the Saints 43-year lifespan, traversing the yellow brick road brought some good times, and even though the Black ’ n’ Gold always fought hard, staying a loyal Saints through years of painful heartache was a true challenge. Forget wearing bags or being called Aints ever again! Now it’s our time to watch broadcasters get a little brown on their beaks complimenting Saints football. In this week’s edition of the Section 645 Saints Beat, Big Daddy sees $Thousand Dollar Car, tailgates at the Kingpin, feels the passion of Saints fans, reports from Section 645, recaps the NFC Championship, rides the ferry to cast his vote in the Mayor’s race, and releases his World Famous Pregame Information.
Friday night, Le Bon Temps Roule hosted Kingpin regulars who came to pay homage to $Thousand Dollar Car. The happy crowd knew the words to their songs, so they sang along with band all night. To say the beers were going down easy, is more understated than seeing mayoral candidates avoiding an endorsement from C. Ray Nagin. The Car got Big Daddy’ s blood flowing like a Devery Henderson touchdown, when they broke into What a Way to Live, as he entered the club’ s back bar. Derek Houston’ s smooth saxophone joined the party, filling the air with melodies so sweet, ladies threw any inhibitions right out the window. Jake’ s buddy, Marc Noone sat in, adding the soothing sounds of Johnny Cash to the fantastic show. Infusing a Who Dat theme—pure genius, sending the packed house into a frenzy that Minnesota fans could never understand. Derek even led a When Saints Go Marching In/Who Dat second line out the back door, down to Magazine, through the front bar, and back to the stage. Totally Awesome! A Security Guard encore closed things out, reminding everyone that Rite Aid’s crappy inventory equals George W. Bush’ s eloquent speaking ability.
Pregame partying inside the Kingpin primed patrons to handle an intense grid-iron battle for the ages. A collaboration of the area’s finest chefs (Eric Labouchere, Nat Carrier, David Wright, and Dave Phillips) produced a feast fit for royalty. If Henry VIII ate like that, he might’ ve unloaded some son-bearing seeds. The spectacular menu included: Redfish courtboullion, beef brisket, mac and cheese, and corn bread, energizing patrons quicker than Scottie beaming Captain Kirk out of danger. After Big Daddy’s tanks were fueled, the posse piled into the mystery van bound for the Superdome. Section 645 Saints Beat Kingpin correspondents reported the bar’s electric atmosphere surpassed all records dating back to this national treasure’s origin. What will happen come Super Bowl Sunday?
Time constraints meant Big Daddy’s gang conducted their usual weather checking safety meeting in transit. Several passes of the vital information ensured that each crew member was mentally equipped to handle the outrageous tailgating scene on Loyola Avenue. Larry Flynt’s mobile stage, complete with stripper pole and tatooed dancers eased the tension for thousands of jacked up Saints fans. Big Daddy has witnessed countless occasions of wild tailgating—but Sunday folks went postal hosting the NFC Championship.
Section 645 felt like heaven when Big Daddy reached row 22, gazing down at the beautiful blue NFC Championship insignias on the Saints home field mesmerized the entire stadium. Camera flashes went off constantly immortalizing the moment, bulbs lit up faster than Troy Aikman or Joe Buck could kiss Brett Favre’s ass. Riding the epic game’s emotional rollercoaster proved too much for some 645 veterans. They simply couldn’t bear to watch, while momentum swings shifted back-and-forth between the Viqueens and the Saints. When Tracy Porter picked off Favre’s ill-advised pass to force overtime, 645ers understood whomever won the coin toss was going to Miami. Big Daddy knows tails never fails, Minnesota called heads ... that’s why The Clevelander better look out!
The NFC Championship started when Minnesota quarterback Brett Favre drove 80 yards on 10 plays, capped by Adrian Peterson’s 19-yard touchdown run. The Vikings led 7-0. Drew Brees answered with a screen pass to Pierre Thomas, who rumbled 39 yards and tied it 7-7. On the visitors ensuing possession, Favre’s 5-yard toss to Sidney Rice gave Minnesota the 14-7 lead after one. Devery Henderson caught another Brees scoring throw, knotting things 14-14. Just before halftime, Reggie Bush’ s muffed punt put Minny on the Saints’ 10. Two plays later, extremely disruptive crowd noise contributed to a botched Favre/Peterson handoff, which linebacker Scott Fujita pounced on. The huge turnover sent the Saints to locker room all square at 14-14. The Saints opened the third quarter with Courtney Roby’s spectacular 61-yard kick return. Pierre Thomas’ dive landed on the goal line, putting the Saints ahead 21-14. Adrian Peterson’s 1-yard plunge made it 21-21 to begin the fourth. Reggie Bush’s 5-yard TD reception (utilized Michael Vick’ s infinity rule) put the Saints back on top 28-21 with 12:39 remaining in regulation. Peterson pounded it in again from 2 yards, changing the scoreboard to 28-28 with 4:58 left on the clock. Cornerback Tracy Porter’s interception salvaged the season and thwarted Viking hopes of a buzzer-beating field goal. In overtime, Pierre Thomas responded, going in for Courtney Roby, his huge 40-yard kick return established good field position, the offense got Garrett Hartley a 40-yard game-winning chance. Hartley’s sudden-death kick split the uprights, making the Saints victorious NFC Champions 31-28.
Since Mardi Gras is here and the Saints earned their third bye going to Super Bowl XLIV, Big Daddy decided to pass the time by exercising his civic duty. He grabbed his lovely bride and hopped on the Thomas Jefferson Ferry to Algiers Point. Feeling the unbelievable power of the mighty Mississippi below your feet demonstrates why life revolves around the “Old Man.” Walking around Old Algiers reminded Big Daddy of movie reviewer Rex Reed. Remember the 1986 Richard Gere and Kim Basinger gem named No Mercy set in Algiers? Who could forget Reed panning the flick when he stated that Algiers didn’t exist because he couldn’ t find it on a map? As Big Daddy stood inside the Algiers Courthouse located at 225 Morgan St., participating in early voting for the Feb. 6 mayor’s race, he wondered if the CIA employs guys gifted in investigative research like Rex Reed; those must be the highly skilled lads who discovered Saddam Hussein’s WMDs.
Tune in to the next Section 645 Saints Beat as Big Daddy recaps the Pro Bowl, highlights the Senior Bowl, enjoys Krewe du vieux and Harry Shearer’s inaugural Krewe Delusions, attends Buddy and Bobby’s Brawds Dress March, goes to the Second Guess Show, and unveils his Super Bowl prediction. If people still require more evidence to believe the insanity of Saints fans, direct them to this video: Fleur D Licious Post NFC Championship Rally Sexy Dress Required!, located on: www.youtube.com to silence the doubters. As Super Bowl XLIV approaches and the Who Dat Nation grows, teach rookies how tough the Saints rise to the top of the NFL was by turning them on to: www.NOSaints History.com so they get hooked on America’s team. Now Big Daddy releases his World Famous Pregame Information: — Take the North plus 3.5 in the Senior Bowl and the AFC plus 3 in the Pro Bowl —
