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Wednesday, September 05, 2007 – 3:00 PM

COLTS & SAINTS KICK OFF SEASON THURSDAY NIGHT ON NBC

No more waiting. The NFL roars back Thursday night.

NFL Kickoff 2007 starts in Indianapolis that night when the Super Bowl XLI champion Colts host the New Orleans Saints in the season’s first game (NBC, 7:30 PM CT; Saints Radio Network) that will be the culmination of kickoff festivities at Monument Circle in downtown Indianapolis and at the RCA Dome, site of the game.

The Saints – who reached the NFC Championship Game last year – are the hometown team of Colts quarterback PEYTON MANNING, the Super Bowl XLI MVP. Manning will square off against his fellow starting quarterback in the 2007 Pro Bowl, DREW BREES. Indianapolis has won its last 10 primetime regular-season games, including four last year.

The Thursday night kickoff will be accompanied by musical performances to celebrate the beginning of the season and honor the Colts and the city of Indianapolis.

The pregame special show, “NFL OPENING KICKOFF 2007 PRESENTED BY SPRINT” on NBC, NFL Network and SIRIUS Satellite Radio at 8:00 PM ET will feature performances by Indiana-native JOHN MELLENCAMP, FAITH HILL and KELLY CLARKSON. KEYSHIA COLE will be joined by Fort Wayne, Indiana’s Voices of Unity Youth Choir in singing the national anthem. Mellencamp will perform at the RCA Dome and Hill, Clarkson and HINDER will sing at a free concert at Monument Circle.

LET’S KICK IT OFF!

The players are ready…America’s ready.

After seven months of offseason, here comes five months of pressure-packed unpredictability. The National Football League – with its 17 weeks of surprises — is back. The excitement quotient in America just took a jump – big time!

“This is when it gets serious,” says Miami Dolphins defensive tackle VONNIE HOLLIDAY. “This is why you go through the whole offseason. This is what it’s all about.”

What it will be all about when the season ends on December 30 is anybody’s guess. Unpredictability? Last season, seven teams that qualified for the playoffs in 2005 did not make them in 2006. Since 2000 – that’s seven seasons – 12 different teams have played in the Super Bowl.

“I think the biggest mistake is to try to pick up where you left off,” says head coach SEAN PAYTON of the New Orleans Saints. “In our business, you start again from Day One.”

“Day One” is this Thursday, when Payton’s Saints visit the Super Bowl XLI champion Indianapolis Colts in the kickoff to the season. Then comes 13 games on Sunday, with Kickoff 2007 Weekend concluding on Monday night with a primetime doubleheader on ESPN.

The weekend will mark the beginning of one more raucous NFL season — played under the theme of “Who Wants It More?” — that arrives already packed with intrigue and change.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, September 5th, 2007 at 6:10 pm and is filed under Saints News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.