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The Associated Press
Swarms of fans in black and gold greeted the players as they stepped off a chartered plane at the suburban airport, cheering them with "Who Dat!" chants. The Saints, cellar dwellers for decades, delivered not just their first Lombardi trophy but optimism for their city, a new sense that the unimaginable -- better schools, less crime and even honest politicians -- really is possible.
"The Saints kept hope alive in this city that better days were coming," said Shannon Sims, a 45-year-old criminal-court administrator in the crowd. They "were the force that kept us moving forward."
Hurricane Katrina battered the Saints and even knocked them out of town for a while, as it did to many New Orleanians. Now the team is better than ever, and its hometown fans hope to follow suit.
"It shows the rest of the country that we have resilient people and this is a city of winners," said Dwight Henry, 46, a co-owner of the Buttermilk Drop bakery and cafe off St. Claude Avenue near the Lower 9th Ward, one of the areas hardest hit by Katrina.
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The Associated Press
She certainly has her detractors, the ones who have dismissed her as nothing more than a well-marketed, attractive female who has tallied all of one victory in five seasons of IndyCar racing. So she of course was written off long before she ever climbed into a stock car with the intention of giving NASCAR a spin.
Her critics rolled their eyes at her intentions.
And rightfully so. Dario Franchitti couldn't cut it, and Sam Hornish Jr. is still struggling three years after his move. With five IndyCar titles and two Indianapolis 500 wins between them, Franchitti and Hornish have far more accomplished resumes than Patrick.
So what would make anyone think Patrick would do any better?
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The Associated Press
The NCAA stripped the school of wins in which 61 athletes implicated in the scandal contributed. The college sports governing body upheld the decision last month after Florida State appealed the sanctions as "excessive."
The men's basketball team lost all 22 wins from 2006-07, and women's basketball lost 16 victories that year, including two in the NCAA tournament.
Bobby Bowden, who retired after this season as the second all-time winningest coach in major college football behind Penn State's Joe Paterno, has now won a few less.
Bowden finished with 389 before subtracting the five wins from the 2006-07 season, including the Emerald Bowl, and seven regular-season victories in 2007-08.
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