Category: Sports

Lions upend Alouettes to win Grey Cup
WINNIPEG (CP) – Paul McCallum kicked a record six field goals as the British Columbia Lions defeated the Montreal Alouettes 25-14 to claim the Grey Cup in a defensive battle Sunday.
Ian Smart had a touchdown for the Lions, the CFL’s best team in the regular season, who won their fifth Grey Cup and their first since they beat Montreal in the 2000 championship game.
”I can’t even describe it, it’s just feels so good,” Lions receiver Geroy Simon, the CFL’s most outstanding player who made four catches for 41 yards, told CBC. ”They did as great job of covering me, but we knew our big guys were going to step up and make some plays, they did a great job.”
Robert Edwards ran in a TD for the Alouettes, but fumbled on the one-yard line to kill a late comeback attempt with 4:06 left in the game. Otis Floyd recovered for B.C.
Damon Duval booted a field goal and the defence forced two safeties for Montreal, which was in its fifth Grey Cup in seven years and remains with only a win in 2002 to show for it.
McCallum, named the game’s outstanding Canadian, tied a record for Grey Cup games shared by three other kickers, including his kicking coach Don Sweet, who booted six in 1977, Hamilton’s Paul Osbaldiston in 1986 and Edmonton’s Edmonton’s Sean Fleming in 1993.
”The guys did really well, they got me in position I just did my job,” McCallum told CBC. ”I don’t know what to say it hasn’t really sunk in yet.”
In a losing cause Montreal’s Anthony Calvillo was 20-of-41 for 234 yards, pushing his career yardage total in the championship game to 1,468 yards. That broke Doug Flutie’s record of 1,421.
And slotback Ben Cahoon made 11 receptions to break Als great Hal Patterson’s record of 29 career Grey Cup catches, upping it to 31.
A full house of 44,786 turned out in clear, -3 C cold to see a game that unfolded as predicted – a clear B.C. win.
The Lions entered the game as seven-point favourites and showed it in a dominant first half in which Montreal only twice moved the ball into B.C. territory.
But the Alouettes defence limited first-half damage to a 19-3 Lions lead on Smart’s TD and four McCallum field goals. Paris Jackson caught five passes for 65 yards and Ryan Thelwell had four for 39 yards in the opening 30 minutes alone.
Lions quarterback Dave Dickenson – named the game’s outstanding player after going 18-for-129 yards for 184 yards and ran for 53 more – led a long opening drive that resulted in a 34-yard McCallum field goal and then took his team from his own 18 into range for a 35-yard McCallum boot.
”I was going to do what it takes,” Dickenson told CBC. ”We deserved this.”
CFL outstanding rookie Aaron Hunt forced a Calvillo fumble at the Montreal 23, setting up yet another McCallum field goal.
Smart scored the game’s first TD on a 25-yard run untouched around the left side 4:12 into the second quarter.
”This is a very emotional night and an emotional game for me,” Smart told CBC. ”Yhis is a team that let me go early in the season, they told me I wasn’t good enough so I felt like I had something to prove.”
Montreal finally got into the B.C. end midway through the quarter, Duval’s 46-yard attempt was wide left. On Montreal’s next possession, Duval was good from 43 yards to put Montreal on the board.
Dickenson led a final drive for a 30-yard field goal as time expired in the half.
The Montreal defence returned with renewed resolve in the second half and momentum shifted as it forced a Dickenson fumble at the Als’ 46 that stood up after a challenge and video review.
The offence was stopped, but Duval angled a punt out at the B.C. one and two plays later, McCallum conceded a safety at 8:47.
Getting the ball back, Calvillo led his best drive to that point and Edwards scored on a two-yard run to cut B.C.’s lead to seven points.
The Lions are 5-4 in Grey Cup games while the Alouettes are 5-10. B.C coach Wally Buono, going against Grey Cup rookie Jim Popp, improved his record in championship games to 4-4.
It was a fifth trip in seven years to the Grey Cup game for the Alouettes, but their only win was in 2002 in Edmonton. The Lions lost a Grey Cup to Toronto in 2004.
As they have done often this season, the Lions used all three quarterbacks, with backups Buck Pierce and Jarious Jackson going in for short running plays.
There was some nastiness before the game as Montreal’s Avon Cobourne and B.C.’s Floyd got into a jawing match and others joined in as the teams passed each other for player introductions.
Next year’s Grey Cup is to be played indoors at the Rogers Centre in Toronto.

Barrett unsure of his future
REGINA (CP) – Saskatchewan Roughriders head coach Danny Barrett waxed philosophically when asked Monday about his future.
“I feel good about my future,” Barrett told reporters, a wide, toothy smile shooting across his face. “I’m alive, I’m breathing, I’ve got a beautiful family. Future looks good.” Asked whether his future includes the CFL team he has led for the last seven years and he’s a little less sunny.
“I would say 50-50,” Barrett said. “I’m an open-minded individual, always have been.
“I know a lot of things have been said out there about different things, but right now it is 50-50 and I look forward to sitting down sometime in the next couple of days and seeing what is going to happen.”
Barrett’s future was the question on everyone’s mind as the Roughriders gathered to clean out their lockers Monday. The team was dispatched from the playoffs in humiliating fashion by the B.C. Lions 48-18 in Sunday’s Western final.
It was a less-than-storybook ending to a tumultuous season for a team that has lost three times in the Grey Cup precursor since 2003.
While the players lined up to support their coach, there was a subtle sense of resignation in the locker-room that things could be different next year.
“I don’t know if there should be changes, but I anticipate changes,” said linebacker Reggie Hunt, a five-year veteran with the club. “Who knows what’s going to happen? We got a new general manager in the middle of the season so anything’s possible.”
Speculation about how long Barrett would remain with the Roughriders has been rampant since the middle of the season when the team fired his friend and mentor Roy Shivers as general manager.
Shivers and Barrett joined the Roughriders following a disastrous 3-15 season in 1999, forming the first African-American management team in pro football history.
While the two have been credited with restoring respectability to the community-owned franchise they have also been criticized for never being able to rise above the level of mediocre.
Barrett’s regular season record as a head coach is 57-68-1 including 9-9 finishes in each of the last three seasons. The team has never finished higher than third, meaning Barrett never achieved the oft-stated goal of hosting a home playoff game.
The Roughriders’ new general manager Eric Tillman, who has said his priorities are quarterbacks, Canadians and the kicking game, has been diplomatic about the Barrett situation saying the two enjoy a good relationship.
After Sunday’s loss, Tillman said he would sit down with his coach over the next three days and decide what direction the team will head.
Barrett is quick to point out that it’s a two-way street.
His contract expired at the end of the season and he will have to decide if he even wants to come back.
“I am a free agent,” he said. “I’m open for anything and everything. I’m not going to pigeon hole myself. Obviously you want to stay at the highest level that you can. I’m not going to even rule out being a general manager.”
The players – Barrett’s biggest allies over the last few months – want him back.
“He’s a father figure,” said defensive back Omarr Morgan, a free agent who has spent seven years with the club.
“Anytime any of the players get into something in the community they come back and tell Danny. He’s like a father figure and to deal with what he has been dealing with the last seven years, most coaches can’t do that. I’d love to see the next coach they bring in and how he handles it, because it’s hard.”
Whatever happens in the off-season, wide receiver Matt Dominguez said he hopes the changes are not catastrophic.
“I’d like to see Danny back. I think some things need to be tweaked, but I don’t think our team needs to be overhauled,” Dominguez said.
“You don’t need to renovate the house. You just need to fix the basement and that is the kind of team that we’ve got.”

Lions win West final in a rout
A healthy and hungry Dave Dickenson will have a third chance to complete what he started but couldn’t finish against the Montreal Alouettes earlier this season.
The B.C. Lions quarterback shredded Saskatchewan’s defence for 273 yards through the air and tossed a pair of touchdown passes to Paris Jackson on the way to a 45-18 victory over the visiting Roughriders in Sunday’s CFL West final.
“We feel like it’s our year. We feel we are the best team,” Dickenson said. “You have to finish it. It doesn’t mean anything if you don’t win [the Grey Cup].”
Dickenson will lead the Lions into the 94th Canadian Football League championship on Nov. 19 in Winnipeg against Montreal, 33-24 winners over the Toronto Argonauts in the East final earlier on Sunday.
It will mark B.C.’s second Grey Cup appearance in the last three years and second versus the Alouettes in league history.
The Lions upset Montreal 28-26 in the 2000 championship at McMahon Stadium in Calgary.
This season, B.C. dominated the East champions, posting a 2-0 record and outscoring the Alouettes 84-33. However, Dickenson was forced to leave both contests early due to injury.
But he made an impression, connecting on 28 of 37 passes for 468 yards and three touchdowns in a combined five quarters of work.
On Sunday, Dickenson completed 27 of 37 pass attempts, including 19 in a 29-point first half.
The veteran CFLer was masterful at avoiding a Roughriders front four that caused havoc for Calgary quarterback Henry Burris in the West semifinal a week ago.
A scrambling Dickenson amassed 211 yards and three touchdown passes in the first half alone and let running back Joe Smith and a swarming Lions defence do the rest.
“They’ve got a lot of weapons,” Saskatchewan coach Danny Barrett said. “I thought Jackson and [Lions slotback Jason] Clermont, they stepped up their play well today. I thought Dave threw the ball outstanding.”
Smith added a pair of majors on a five-yard reception and six-yard run, while former Roughriders kicker Paul McCallum booted five field goals to tie Lui Passaglia for the club playoff record.
A Lions defence that led the league with 59 sacks this season brought quarterback Kerry Joseph down five times and made him hurry throws.
The ear-piercing noise of 50,084 fans at B.C. Place Stadium also resulted in Saskatchewan taking several time-count and procedure penalties.
Down and seemingly out, the Riders awoke late in the third quarterback and cut into a 32-4 B.C. advantage with two touchdowns.
After the visitors converted a third-and-five near midfield, running back Kenton Keith hooked up with Joseph on a 39-yard pass-and-run to make it 32-11.
Shortly thereafter, Saskatchewan defensive back Davin Bush forced a fumble by Geroy Simon ó the CFL’s top receiver in 2006 ó that was recovered by linebacker Jackie Mitchell.
A few plays and a Dante Marsh pass interference call later and Keith made it a two-touchdown game with a four-yard plunge.
Controlled the clock
Undaunted, Dickenson controlled the clock and put McCallum in position to increase the margin with field goals of 18 and 41 yards in the fourth quarter.
McCallum, who signed with the Lions as a free agent last winter, was the goat of the 2004 West final at B.C. Place Stadium when he missed two field goals, including an 18-yarder in overtime, in a 27-25 B.C. triumph over the Roughriders.
The Lions broke Sunday’s game open in the first 30 minutes, scoring 26 unanswered points after Saskatchewan rookie kicker Luca Congi connected on a 40-yard field goal to answer McCallum’s 21-yarder early in the first quarter.
With the Riders smothering Simon, Dickenson spread the wealth or kept the ball himself.
He exposed Saskatchewan rookie James Johnson on numerous occasions and made the defensive back pay at both ends of the second quarter.
With the game tied 3-3, Dickenson eluded pressure and found the outstretched hands of Jackson, who outran Johnson and hauled in a 14-yard pass deep in the end zone to cap an 11-play, 75-yard drive.
“We have different receivers that can do different things,” said Jackson, who finished the game with five catches for 66 yards. “I just try and do what I can do.”
With 21 seconds left in the half, Jackson shrugged off double coverage from Bush and Johnson to haul in a 35-yard pass to give B.C. a 29-3 lead.

Alouettes returning to Grey Cup
The Montreal Alouettes will make a return trip to the Grey Cup following a 33-24 victory over the Toronto Argonauts Sunday at Olympic Stadium.
The Alouettes used a key turnover at the start of the second half to help defeat the Argonauts in the East final for the second straight season.
“Some funny bounces happened,” said Argonauts head coach Mike (Pinball) Clemons. “But we certainly thought that, disproportionately, we didn’t get the breaks.
“Both teams could have played the same game and we could have been on top.”
It was the fifth consecutive year the two teams met in the East final, with Montreal holding a 4-1 advantage.
The Alouettes now head to Winnipeg for the 94th Grey Cup and will play the B.C. Lions, who won Sunday’s West final over Saskatchewan.
The Alouettes are looking to win their first title since 2002 and hope to erase last year’s demoralizing defeat to the Edmonton Eskimos ó 38-35 in overtime.
“We’re excited, but man, I’m tired of losing [to] them,” said quarterback Anthony Calvillo, who will lead Montreal into the Grey Cup game for the fifth time in seven years. “I’m going to stress that.
“I’m going to go out and win because I remember 2002 ó that parade and that feeling. The last two times we lost it wasn’t a good feeling. We’ve been here so many dang times it shouldn’t bother us anymore. That’s how I’m going to approach it.”
Calvillo threw for 252 yards and a touchdown, while running back Robert Edwards balanced Montreal’s attack with 137 yards rushing and a touchdown.
“I’m a little dehydrated now, but it was worth it,” Edwards said in a raucous Montreal dressing room. “I get to rehydrate with a little champagne.”
Estelle’s major touches off shouting match
Montreal broke open the game at the start of the second half, taking advantage of a Toronto turnover to lead 23-3 just 43 seconds into the third quarter.
On the first play from scrimmage, Toronto quarterback Damon Allen was intercepted by cornerback Mark Estelle, who scampered 78 yards for the touchdown.
Estelle’s major touched off a shouting match between frustrated Argos linebacker Mike O’Shea and receiver Arland Bruce at the sideline.
The interception was also enough for Clemons to pull Allen in favour of backup Michael Bishop for the second consecutive post-season game.
Allen, who was also benched last week in the East semifinal for the more athletic Bishop, was sacked twice in the first half and pressured on several other occasions.
The change made little difference initially.
Bishop was sacked by Dario Romero on Toronto’s next drive, forcing the Argos to punt.
Bruce’s TD reduces Als’ lead
However, Montreal’s Avon Cobourne fumbled Noel Prefontaine’s punt that was recovered by Chris Hardy. Bishop hit Bruce three plays later with a 23-yard touchdown at 9:52 of the third, reducing Montreal’s lead to 23-10.
Yet any momentum gained on Bruce’s touchdown ended on the team’s ensuing possession. Running back Ricky Williams was stripped of the ball by defensive back Ricky Bell, setting up Montreal’s next score.
Calvillo hit receiver Thyron Anderson with a 52-yard touchdown strike on the following play to give Montreal a commanding 30-10 lead with less two minutes remaining in the third.
Bishop, who finished the game throwing for 181 yards and a pair of touchdowns, rallied Toronto in the fourth quarter with two touchdowns drives, bringing the Argos to within striking distance.
He first found receiver Michael Palmer alone for a 10-yard score at 3:13. Bishop then led the Argos on an 84-yard scoring march that resulted in a one-yard touchdown plunge by Williams, cutting Montreal’s to 30-24 at 12:27.
The comeback fell short as Damon Duval iced the game for Montreal, nailing a clutch 44-yard field goal with 51 seconds remaining.
The loss signals the end of Williams’s brief CFL career. The 29-year-old veteran, banished for one season for violating the NFL’s substance abuse policy, was on loan by the Miami Dolphins and is expected to return next season.
Meanwhile, the Alouettes snapped a 3-3 tie at 6:29 of the second quarter on a 41-yard field goal by Duval at 6:29. The drive was made possible after Cobourne returned a missed field goal attempt by Prefontaine 77 yards, taking the Alouettes into Toronto territory.
Montreal increased its lead to 13-3 on the next drive with less than three minutes remaining in the first half.
Edwards broke a tackle and pushed across the goal-line for the game’s first touchdown.
Duval put Montreal in front 16-3 following a 29-yard field goal to end the first half.
The Alouettes took control from the opening quarter, but a pair of turnovers killed early drives despite gaining 111 yards through the air.

Captain Sundin out 3-4 weeks
The Maple Leafs will be without their captain and most valuable player for the next 3-4 weeks.
The team announced today that Mats Sundin suffered a ligament tear in his right elbow during a 4-1 win over the Philadelphia Flyers Monday.
The veteran Swede seemed to hurt himself during a second-period collision with the Flyers’ Ben Eager, yet shook off the pain to set up the game winner one period later.
“It could have been worse,” GM John Ferguson said. “At least no surgery is required.
“I’m confident we can get through this.”
Nik Antropov will take Sundinís spot on the top line with Alexei Ponikarovsky and Kyle Wellwood.
“I know there is more pressure to pick up the offensive slack,” Wellwood said. “I welcome the challenge.”
Last season Sundin was hit in the eye by the puck in the opener against Ottawa and missed the next six weeks. The Leafs rallied in his absence and played above .500 hockey until he returned.

Game 4 of World Series postponed by rain
ST. LOUIS – Pitchers dominated the first three games of the World Series and the rain took over.
Game 4 was postponed Wednesday night because of rain and will be made up Thursday at 8:27 p.m. EDT, potentially sending the World Series into scheduling chaos. More showers are expected the next two days, and nobody was certain when the Detroit Tigers and St. Louis Cardinals would play again.
“They’re going to be dicey,” said Jimmie Lee Solomon, executive vice president of baseball operations in the commissioner’s office.
Game 5 at Busch Stadium was pushed back to Friday night, which was supposed to be a day off in the Series. It doesn’t look much better this weekend in Detroit, with a forecast of rain and cold.
The Cardinals lead the best-of-seven Series 2-1 after a 5-0 victory behind ace Chris Carpenter on Tuesday night. A silver tarp covered the infield all evening, players didn’t come out to warm up and Game 4 never got started.
“You want to go out there and play, but you can’t control the weather. It’s not that big of a deal,” St. Louis outfielder Preston Wilson said.
Steady showers all day led to the first World Series rainout since the 1996 opener between the Atlanta Braves and New York Yankees. The rain fell harder as the night progressed, and the game was called after a delay of 1 hour, 51 minutes, the first time a Series game in St. Louis has been rained out.
It also was the fourth washout of a wet postseason. The Cardinals had two games rained out in the NL championship series against the New York Mets, and Game 2 of Detroit’s first-round series at Yankee Stadium also was postponed.
The postponement gives St. Louis manager Tony La Russa a chance to juggle his rotation if he wants. He could bring Jeff Weaver back on regular rest in Game 5 instead of pitching rookie Anthony Reyes again. Reyes, however, tossed eight-plus strong innings for a 7-2 victory in the opener.
Tigers manager Jim Leyland could do the same with Kenny Rogers, who beat Weaver in Game 2 on Sunday night and extended his shutout streak to 23 innings this postseason. But Leyland specifically set up his rotation to give Rogers two starts at home, and the Series doesn’t shift back to Detroit until Game 6.
A sparse crowd at Busch Stadium was informed of the rainout about three minutes after Major League Baseball made the announcement. Fans covered in plastic who had hoped for the rain to stop quickly filed toward the exits.

No Joke: ‘Borat’ Is Make Unglorious Slash
Apparently coming to the conclusion that middle-America will not “get” Borat (official title: Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan), 20th Century Fox has cut in half the number of theaters that had been booked to show it, the studio confirmed Tuesday.
Fox distribution chief Bruce Snyder told today’s (Wednesday) Los Angeles Times that despite enormous pre-release publicity and marketing, the studio’s research had concluded that the movie was “soft in awareness.”
The Times noted that industry analysts could not recall a similar action by a studio taking place just two weeks before a film’s opening.
Fox indicated that it hopes that by opening Borat in 800 theaters, the resulting word of mouth will propel it into a stronger position the following week when it will be expanded to 2,200 screens.

Furtado to headline Grey Cup
Canadian pop diva Nelly Furtado will perform during the halftime show at the Grey Cup in Winnipeg next month, organizers of the Canadian Football League championship announced Friday.
“The Grey Cup is a national treasure and I’m thrilled to be performing,” Furtado said in a statement.
Recent Canadian Idol winner, Eva Avila, a 19-year-old from Gatineau, Que., will sing the national anthem.
CFL commissioner Tom Wright called Furtado, winner of Grammy and Juno Awards, a great Canadian talent.
“The Grey Cup is a Canadian tradition and the largest single-day sporting event in the country,” Wright said.
“As part of the Grey Cup entertainment experience, the CFL is proud to present Nelly Furtado in the Rogers Grey Cup Halftime Show. Weíre thrilled to have one of Canadaís greatest talents entertain CFL fans everywhere on Grey Cup Sunday.”
The 94th annual Grey Cup is at Canad Inns Stadium on Nov. 19 (CBC, 6 p.m.).
Furtado, who rose to fame with 2000’s I’m Like a Bird from her record-breaking debut album Whoa, Nelly!, is back atop the North American music charts with hits like Promiscuous and Maneater from her third album, Loose.
The 27-year-old native of Victoria is the latest big act to perform at the Grey Cup, one of the oldest professional sports championships in North America.
Others include:
2005 in Vancouver: American hip-hop group Black Eyed Peas.
2004 in Ottawa: Tragically Hip.
2003 in Regina: Bryan Adams and Sam Roberts.
2002 in Edmonton: Country star Shania Twain.

Pete Rose admits taking amphetamines
NEW YORK – Pete Rose says he took “greenies” in his playing days, if only to lose a few pounds. Oh, and he doesn’t bet on baseball anymore, but if he did, he’d pick the Twins and the Padres.
In an appearance on the “Late Show” taped Monday, Rose was asked by host David Letterman whether he ever used any performance-enhancing drugs as a player. Rose said he never did, but when prodded about “greenies,” explained that he used them ó though they were nothing more than “diet pills.”
“Well, I don’t think greenies would ever help you do anything,” he said. “You know, I took greenies before in spring training only because I tried to lose some weight, see.”
Letterman then asked whether the pills ever helped him ward off fatigue.
“No, not like steroids,” Rose replied. “If I took steroids, I’d have gotten 5,000 damn hits.”
Neither Letterman nor Rose used the word “amphetamines,” which were commonly nicknamed “greenies” at the height of their supposed popularity in baseball. The sport added amphetamines to its list of banned substances last year.
Rose said he still enjoys watching baseball ó as many as three games a day ó and still holds out hope that he’ll be reinstated. Letterman asked Rose who he likes in this year’s playoffs.
“You sound like you’re betting on baseball,” Rose said, drawing laughter and applause. “You know, baseball’s going to hate me ó the two teams I like are San Diego and Minnesota. And I liked the Yankees until they lost Randy Johnson, I liked the Mets, who’ve had a fantastic year, until they lost (Pedro) Martinez. St. Louis is going into the playoffs playing as bad as you could play. Detroit, I don’t think they have the experience.”
He added that he can’t bet on baseball anymore “because I know too damn much about it.”
“It wouldn’t be fair,” he said.
Rose, the career hits leader banned from baseball for betting on games as a manager, also explained the story behind the balls he signed with the words “I’m sorry I bet on baseball” that hit the market last month.
He said he signed the balls in 2005 for a friend who planned to keep them for 10 or 15 years. But the friend passed them on to a partner, and they wound up in the hands of a collector who put them up for auction ó prompting Rose to sign and market his own apology balls.

Saints march in as Superdome comes alive
NEW ORLEANS – As rock bands blasted and tailgate parties served up barbecue and brew, thousands of people poured into the streets Monday night, hoping to forget about Hurricane Katrina during a Mardi Gras-like celebration of the Saints’ first home game since the storm.
Crowds swamped the area around the Louisiana Superdome in a human sea, creating a huge traffic jam for the team’s emotional return and the reopening of the stadium, which underwent $185 million in repairs to erase damage done during and after Katrina.
“This is exactly what the city needs,” said Saints season ticket holder Clara Donate, 58, who lost her home and all her possessions to Katrina’s floodwaters. “We all need something else to think about.”
The Saints and the Atlanta Falcons were both undefeated at 2-0 early in the NFL season, and the game received Super Bowl buildup. The Goo Goo Dolls played to the crowd outside the dome. Green Day and U2 performed for the crowd of more than 68,000 inside.
Harold Johnson couldn’t get into the Superdome, but he planned to sit with his neighbors outside his government-issue trailer and watch the game on television.
“I don’t want to talk about Katrina. I don’t want to talk about insurance. I don’t want to talk about anything but kicking Falcon butt,” Johnson said as he stocked up on beer at a grocery store for the cookout with his neighbors.
Even with its gleaming new cover, the Superdome remained a symbol of Katrina’s misery. Tens of thousands of storm victims suffered there in withering heat after last summer’s hurricane filled the city with stinking floodwaters.
The Saints have not played a regular-season home game since 2004. They last played in the Superdome in a 2005 preseason game a few days before Katrina.
After the storm, the Saints became the NFL’s traveling show, establishing a base in San Antonio and playing every game on the road amid speculation that owner Tom Benson might not bring them back to New Orleans.
Even now, a high-rise hotel, an office tower and an upscale shopping center stand empty just a few hundred feet from the stadium, with white boards covering blown-out windows. A few miles away, entire neighborhoods are wastelands of decaying houses.
Johnson and his neighbors were holding the party outdoors because none of them had room inside their trailers.
Amid the desolation, some residents could not bring themselves to celebrate the team’s return.
Irma Warner, 71, and her husband, Pascal Warner, 80, live in an apartment in suburban Metairie while working six days a week to restore a home flooded by 7 feet of water in New Orleans’ Lakeview neighborhood.
“We rode around through the Ninth Ward yesterday,” Irma Warner said. “When I saw that, I thought, how can they spend $185 million on the Superdome. What about all these poor people?”
But she appeared to be in the minority. Downtown offices and City Hall shut down early in anticipation of crowds at the Superdome. Teachers promised to assign little Monday night homework so students could watch the game on television.
Tanyha Brown of Metairie said her husband was leaving work early so they could attend the festivities outside the Superdome. With no tickets to the game, they planned to watch from a nearby bar.
“This is the best holiday since Mardi Gras,” Brown said.