In New Orleans, Undefeated Saints Go Marching On

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STEVE INSKEEP, host:

The New Orleans Saints are now eight and 0, undefeated at the midpoint of their season. They beat the Carolina Panthers yesterday. The final score was 30 to 20. The perfect start has given hope to a city that has often hosted a Super Bowl, but never quite managed to get its team into one. Melanie Peeples listened in to what a football Sunday sounds like now in New Orleans.

MELANIE PEEPLES: Sunday morning in this devoutly Catholic city finds much of New Orleans in church.

OUR LADY STAR OF THE SEA Choir: (Singing) Holy, Holy, Holy Lord, God of far and wide

PEEPLES: At Our Lady Star of the Sea in a St. Roch neighborhood, Father Tony Ricard(ph) leads a full congregation decked out in black and gold, many of them in Saints jerseys looking like they plan on dashing straight from the pews to the big game. Services are running a little long today and Father Tony knows it.

Father TONY RICHARD (Preacher, Our Lady Star of the Sea Catholic Church): We all know it is almost time for us to get out of here, even though weve got like three hours and 27 minutes before we have to be somewhere. But all I can tell yall is, what a joy it is to be in a church as a church family thats undivided and have a team whos the New Orleans Saints thats undefeated. We know what were talking about now.

(Soundbite of applause)

PEEPLES: This kind of Saints fever cant be contained. It spills over into everything. And while the stained-glass Saints looking down from above are glorious, there are praises to be sung in another kind of cathedral just a couple miles away.

(Soundbite of jazz music)

PEEPLES: Outside the Superdome, amidst the strains of a brass band stopping traffic, the fervent faithful gather.

Ms. MARTHA ELLIOT(ph): This years different. Im so excited I cant hardly stand it.

PEEPLES: Martha Elliot has been a Saints fan her whole life, but this year, shes enraptured in pure Ecclesiastical ecstasy.

Ms. ELLIOT: Because its just got that feeling. Its the spirit. Its the spirit. Its there. This years our year.

PEEPLES: Lets just say there have been a lot of seasons when it wasnt their year.

Mr. KEVIN DELCAM(ph): Oh yeah, I was a fan whenever the years when they were one and 15 and two and 14 and stuff like that.

PEEPLES: Kevin Delcam is another lifelong fan, one who never donned a paper bag over his head in shame or referred to the team as the Aints.

Mr. DELCAM: I mean I went through the rough years and youre kind of like, man, golly, what are they going to do? And now, youre finally see that theyre doing good and then everybody gets behind them and I think the whole state is behind them.

PEEPLES: Its not the first time. Three years ago the Saints made it to the playoffs when New Orleans really needed a lift.

Mr. DELCAM: Its like Hurricane Katrina. Everybody got together and they got behind the Saints and the same thing now.

PEEPLES: With only one difference: last time everyone was united in tragedy. This time, with the citys population around 78 percent of what it was before Katrina, and people no longer asking whether or not New Orleans would come back, everyones united in pure fun. Thats a real milestone, and it feels good to people like Dennis Hallogan(ph).

Mr. DENNIS HALLOGAN (Saints fan): Black and gold everywhere you go, everyone, its just like a big family now. Its just all come together on Sundays. Its like Thanksgiving, a big turkey dinner, I mean just everybody comes together. Its a blast.

PEEPLES: And the national attention isnt bad either. New Orleans is in the news again and for a change of pace, for something other than that dreadful hurricane. That makes a city feel pretty good, almost normal. Its the kind of happiness that spills all the way into Monday morning and beyond.

For NPR News, Im Melanie Peeples in New Orleans.

(Soundbite of music)

INSKEEP: This is NPR News.

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