beware the underdog

Who Dat?

I love the Saints. Superbowl winners. Representin' NOLA.

I love who they are as a team, those Saints. Love what they've given to the people of New Orleans. Love how they played last night and who they were while they won. Even enjoyed myself while watching them play.

Geaux Saints!

HA....
underdog |ˈəndərˌdôg; -ˌdäg|
noun
a competitor thought to have little chance of winning a fight or contest.
• a person who has little status in society
• with reference to the beaten dog in a dogfight.
• yesterday's underdog is today's champion long shot, dark horse, weaker one, little guy, David; downtrodden, victim, loser, fall guy.

Underdogs no more. They are now the Top Dogs for a Year. Swell with pride New Orleans, swell.

Who Dat?

New Orleans nicknames include "The Big Easy" & "The City that Care Forgot" ... Amen! Both true.....There's no where I'd rather be sometimes, eatin' a po-boy, a beignet, a king cake; walkin' the Quarter, Audubon Park or the neighborhoods; listenin' to the jazz, the blues, the soul; with my grandmother, an old friend, a familiar stranger.

I watched the game mesmerized and full of energy (hoopin and hollerin'....lettin' myself express the thrill) by the Saints' continued creation of the game. They commanded attention; they played their own game, their own way.....from an on-side kick, to a two point play post-touchdown, to a beautifully smooth interception.

Who Dat?

The Saints played independently of the Colts tactics and plays. They never cowered; they gained confidence play by play, quarter by quarter, point by point. They were sensational!

And if that isn't representing New Orleans I don't know what is.

In fact, I believe their game might well stand as a model for how to win, how to live, how to believe in yourself. Since Katrina that's what New Orleans has done. Since FEMA let my city down, the people of New Orleans have come together playing the game of life. Since the levees broke, nothing's been the same and the years past underdog, over-beaten Saints are no longer who they were. They are now who they are.....Winners.

As ace a player as the Colts' quarterback is, and there's no doubt he's preeminent, and as top-ranking as his team is, the Saints surpassed their game and their professionalism throughout the game.

I say WHO DAT? to that and from now on Beware the Underdog.