J.D. Shanko, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
What a great memory for all Saints fans. The paper bag heads can be vanished forever!
As British Saints fans we were distanced from the epic moment in Louisiana but we were there in spirit. We actually grew up as Bears, Giants, and 49ers fans - since they were the popular teams that were shown on television in the United Kingdom. However, the three of us met in Baton Rouge whilst studying at LSU and it was due to our time there and the impact of Hurricane Katrina that we developed strong ties to Louisiana. It also meant that we were able to attend all the Saints game in Tiger Stadium. It wasn't a pretty team then but we became diehard Saints fans. Geaux Saints!
We were also lucky enough that the Saints came to London for a home game and we were able to represent the UK Who Dat Nation!
Jason Sutton
Super Bowl XLIV was special for us because we were at Walt Disney World in Orlando for the UDA Nationals Dance competition with our daughter. We were at Disney World and the Saints were in the Super Bowl, it couldn't get much better, then they WON!!! It was an amazing night, everyone in our group was out celebrating on the balconies at our resort. The next morning was even more awesome when we got to see Drew Brees at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom!! I still have confetti from the celebration parade hanging on my cubical wall at work!! It was an amazing time for us and the Saints! We'll never forget it.
Angela Moser
I don't think I've cried that hard since some dumb boy broke my heart in junior high school!! Mascara everywhere but who cares?!?!
John Weaver
I am 36 years old, a lifelong Saints fan, and a season-ticket holder for the past 14 years. My grandfather is the reason I am a Saints fan. He was born and raised in NOLA and attended the very first Saints game. Since I was 7 years old we would place a bet on the Super Bowl. When I was a kid the bet was if I won he would buy me ice cream and if he won I would give my dad some money to buy him a 6-pack of beer. Once I became of drinking age the bet was beer. Sometimes we would watch the Super Bowl together and pick on each other throughout the game. If we weren't together we would call each other and harass each other throughout the game. Then at the end of the game there was always the victory phone call made by the victor.
When I was younger I was a huge John Elway fan (not much to cheer about in those days as a Saints fan). I had to go through three phone calls of my grandfather giving me the business that my idol "Mr Elway"(as he would put it) had lost, I would cry, complain that I was sick, and hang up. He never let me live it down.
Of course, my grandfather would always let me pick whichever team I wanted. Well, when the Saints made the Super Bowl in 2009 he told me I could have the Saints. I told him there was no way I would let him root against the Saints (not that he would've). He insisted on us placing a bet so we bet that the spread and I cannot remember the line or how the bet went.
We agreed for this Super Bowl that we would not call each other during the game and that we would wait until it was over.
Once the game was over I called him and for the first 10 minutes of the phone call neither of us could get any words out because we were both so choked up. All either of us could say was that "We did it."
I was there for the NFC championship win against the Vikings. I was there in 2006 when Gleason blocked the punt. I remember watching the Saints clinch there first playoff spot in the early 1990s. My proudest moment as a Saints fan was when for the first time in my life; I witnessed my grandfather crying when WE won the Super Bowl.
Who Dat for LIFE!!
Gabriel Williams, Francesca Daymil, Colo.
Super Bowl XLIV, February 7, 2010, the day that changed my life forever. Football was never my thing, in fact I found it stupid we were making a big deal over a day that seemed more like a holiday then Christmas. Today, seven days shy of the five-year anniversary of the day my life changed forever, I can say I was completely mistaken. That day I decided to make the best of the situation and cheer for the underdogs, The New Orleans Saints. I knew enough to know the Saints were always the "Aints" and were likely going to lose. I thought just MAYBE if they could pull it off that would be pretty awesome. But you want to know what really got me? Pre-game and commercials were spent recapping the story of the city of New Orleans.
Five years prior to the day that changed my life forever had changed this teams and the life of this city forever, Hurricane Katrina. I watched in ahh as a man with a career ending injury signed to a team with no stadium, no hope, and no importance. He up and moved his family to a war zone because it was his last chance at his career. I watched and you know what I saw? I saw a team, a leader, a city, and a nation different then any other. In that moment I realized this was more than just a football team and a Super Bowl, I realized this was a dream I wanted to be a part of. I cheered for the Saints because for once I felt a team NEEDED a stupid win in this game for whatever reason. I cheered as I watched this team give every dying effort to win this. And lastly, I cried as the confetti came pouring onto the field and as a man who was supposed to be washed out of the league held his son and kissed his wife in the moment he realized he was meant to play this game and meant to be a Saint. I watched as a team of misfits brought hope to a city that was lost. I watched a city of chaos become a city with hope and belief. And I knew in that moment I became a part of something great.
Five years later, I believe dat I made the best choice becoming a football fan, but most importantly a New Orleans Saints fan. I haven't missed a single game since the Super Bowl win, even being from Colorado where the games never air on regular television. I've imagined what it'd be like to be in Who Dat Nation's Superdome, with all the people who believe in this team the way I do. I've imagined what it would feel like to meet the leader, the players, and the couches that brought hope to my life. I found something to believe in and in turn began believing in myself. I say this day changed my life forever because it did. This win and this team brought light into a life that was dimming. This man brought belief to a dream that was fading. Five years later I am following my dream to become a police officer. I have learned to never let people's opinions of what you can and can't do dictate what you know you're capable of. Drew Brees is one of the greatest quarterbacks in the league and the Saints have finally made a name for themselves. I watched the day this team held their Super Bowl XLIV trophy in the air in complete happiness. I hope to have that same feeling the day I pin my badge on my chest. Feb. 7, 2010 was the day that changed my life forever, all because Drew Brees, the New Orleans Saints, and the city of New Orleans have proved that dreams really do come true with enough hard work and belief (Believe Dat!).
Jeremy Killingsworth, Biloxi, Miss.
My grandfather died last year and he always "had" said that he would die before the Saints would win a Super Bowl!! That's my memory, I never had heard him so happy in his life, he was a hard-working man and his Saints meant the world to him.
That morning I called him and I'll never forget what he said "Boy, the Saints are gonna win this by two ouchdowns"!! I called him when the game had ended and he was in tears just so happy that the Saints had won the Super Bowl! We all are so proud of what our team has become!! So RIP PAPS and WHO DAT!
Pamela R. Carr
I was sitting near a family of five generations of Saints fans, all men, and they were wearing Saints shirts from their time period. I was happier for the older men being there than myself and sooo pleased they got to share that moment with the younger generations. I've wondered if that was on their bucket list and if so; thank you for giving them that wish. And especially the WIN!!!!
