Every time I jumped up, pumped the air with my fist and yelled, “Who Dat? Who Dat?” my dogs jumped up too, started barking and thought someone was outside or at the door.
As the world probably knows after Sunday night’s incredible Super Bowl game in Miami between the New Orleans Saints and the Indianapolis Colts – “Who Dat” is short for “Who Dat?! Who Dat?! Who Dat say dey gonna beat dem saints?!”
The blaring headline on the New Orleans Times-Picayune website Sunday night was: “WHO DAT? NOBODY!”
“Who Dat?” was the background chant to Rachel Maddow’s Friday night show from New Orleans, which she dubbed “The Rachel Maddeaux Sheaux.”
At one point she said: “I am here to tell you that America wants New Orleans to be back – and in the run-up to this big, dumb game, it totally feels like it is.”
The Times-Picayune – whose reporters virtually lived in their offices to cover Hurricane Katrina for which they received Pulitizer Prizes – wrote an editorial thanking the Saints for the role they played in the recovery of the beloved city. Here’s an excerpt (and please check out their photos from which these were taken):
Merci beaucoup, New Orleans Saints: An editorial
By Editorial page staff, The Times-Picayune
February 07, 2010, 10:15PM
Years from now, when the memories of Sunday begin to fade, New Orleans Saints fans will still remember where they were when cornerback Tracy Porter intercepted Colts quarterback Peyton Manning and returned the ball 70 yards for the decisive touchdown of Super Bowl XLIV.
As the score flashed 34-17 and the game clock ticked away, Who Dat chants began to fall like a shower over Sun Life Stadium in Miami and fans across metro New Orleans screamed, hugged and cried — free at last from 43 years of frustrations.
The Saints, our lovable underdogs, are world champions.
New Orleans native Peyton Manning and the Colts played their hearts out. But they were no match for a squad that through this miraculous season carried the aura of a team of destiny. Fans across our metro area, the state and the nation can’t express how proud we are of quarterback Drew Brees, the Super Bowl’s most valuable player, and the rest of the team.
But this is especially gratifying for Southeast Louisiana residents. Sunday’s game was about much more than Xs and Os for us, because since Hurricane Katrina the Saints are much more than just a football team — they are a civic cause. The storm transformed our region into a metaphor for despair and tragedy in the eyes of the world, but the Saints gave us reason for optimism. They embodied our resilience and our unity. That’s priceless for a region still in recovery.”
Yes, merci beaucoup, New Orleans Saints – thank you for reminding us that no matter how far down the scale we have gone, there is still hope that we can do better and that one day our journeys, too, might one day benefit others.
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We were all doing it. My dog was a bit confused when I hit my feet and ran up toward the screen shouting when Porter intercepted that pass.
I’m the only guy with two female roommates, and I’m the only gay with two straight roommates…the kind that acted shocked beyond belief that a gay guy was watching football. I was like…actually, I didn’t know what to say, but I was thinking “Yeah, whatever, anyway, who DAT!”
Needless to say, I’m thrilled, and I’m also thrilled I’m moving out of this house in 2 weeks, away from people who think of gay people as a stereotype.
/rant
LOL!!!!
Yeah – I was going to start out with something about lesbians and football – but I thought Rachel and I just talking about it handled THAT.
But this story transcends stereotypes and I’m glad you’ve moving, too since your roommates obvious didn’t get that, either!
But WHAT A GAME!!!!!