Welcome to "KD Bringing the Heat" and Super Bowl Reactions

The conundrum I found myself in this past week was what should be the topic of my first blog post. Obviously, I wanted to pick a major topic or issue within sports, whether at the professional or amateur level, but there are truly an endless amount of issues that would be worthy of my first post. Whether it was the Cornell Big Red Basketball hoopsters cracking the Top 25 for the first time in 59 years, Danica Patrick making her NASCAR debut at Daytona this weekend, MLB's trade rumors and offseason movement, or the ongoing Tiger Woods saga, there are an innumerable amount of stories that can be discussed. One, however, clearly supersedes the rest.

It should come as little surprise that the Super Bowl, America's highest rated sporting event annually, is the topic for my first blog post. To the casual sports fan, or even to the fan who could not tell the difference between a football and hockey puck, the Super Bowl is a nationwide event that brings family and friends together on the first Sunday in February every year. Sure, the Stanley Cup or NBA Championship are the pinnacle of the NHL's and NBA's respective seasons, but does the country really look forward to these series as much as the Super Bowl? The commercials, alone, are reason enough to tune into the Super Bowl.


Super Bowl XLIV was one of the most anticipated and hyped Super Bowls of recent memory. It brought the feel-good-story and underdog New Orleans Saints against the experienced and seemingly unstoppable Indianapolis Colts (the only two losses for the Colts came in Weeks 16 and 17 of the season when they rolled over and rested their starters for virtually the entire game). Plus, it is hard to bet against Peyton Manning and the vaunted Colts offense in any game. The Saints, however, had the entire nation on their side (with the exception of those in Indiana), the swagger of Drew Brees, and even the support of President Barack Obama. Watching Brees and the rest of the "Who Dat?" crew should have been reason enough to watch the Super Bowl.

With all of the external factors aside, once the game began it seemed as if it would be the Peyton Manning show once again. Manning hit a streaking Pierre Garcon in the waning moments of the first quarter giving his Colts a 10-0 advantage. The Saints mustered only one first down in the opening quarter, while the Colts moved the chains six times and were in complete control of the game. The Saints would finally light the scoreboard on two occasions with field goals from Garrett Hartley (one of the unsung heroes in the game, who also hit the game-winning field goal against the Vikings just two weeks prior). Although New Orleans found themselves down by just four points heading into the lockeroom, their inability to sustain drives and move the ball with consistency must have been a concern for head coach Sean Payton. To make matters worse, the Colts would be receiving the ball to begin the second half . . . or would they?

In one of the gutsier calls in Super Bowl history, Payton elected to kick an onside kick to begin the second half. Payton's call was successful, and his decision would pay off as Brees found a shifty Pierre Thomas just minutes later to give the Saints a three point lead. It seemed as if New Orleans was destined to win the Super Bowl following their good fortune with the onside kick. A fortuitous bounce off the hands of Hank Baskett and into the welcoming arms of Chris Reis was the game-changer for New Orleans; all of the momentum had suddenly shifted from the Colts' sideline over to the Saints'. Indianapolis would go on to score once more off a four yard run by Joseph Addai, but Brees and the Saints owned the 4th quarter by scoring 15 points. A Tracy Porter 74 yard interception returned for a touchdown sealed the deal for New Orleans.

The flashes of the French Quarter and Bourbon Street following Porter's interception were absolute pandemonium. If there were a city that deserved to party hard after a Super Bowl win, it certainly would be New Orleans. And, why shouldn't they? Just four years ago much of the city and surrounding areas were devastated by Hurricane Katrina.

I can attest first hand to not just the physical destruction the city endured, but also the emotional and psychological depression of New Orleans. Something so trivial and meaningless as a sports victory, in the grand scheme of things, can uplift an entire city. Sean Payton, Drew Brees, and the rest of the Saints squad have given New Orleans something to hold onto and root for all year long.

Party on New Orleans; you deserve it!

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