BATON ROUGE, La. — Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal is getting into the “Who Dat” fray with the NFL, asking the state attorney general to look into a possible lawsuit over the ownership rights to the popular New Orleans Saints phrase.
Jindal spokesman Kyle Plotkin says the governor’s executive counsel contacted Attorney General Buddy Caldwell’s office Saturday.
The call came within hours of the state Democratic Party’s governing body calling on Jindal to defend the rights of Louisiana citizens to use the term “Who Dat.”
Some T-shirt makers have been getting cease-and-desist letters from the NFL demanding they stop selling shirts with the traditional cheer of Saints fans. The NFL claims the shirts infringe on a trademark it owns.
New Orleans Saints linebacker Scott Fujita said his wife, Jaclyn, would probably be embarrassed if he shared her pregame motivational text publicly. But he was so proud of her words that he couldn’t help himself.
“I almost read it on the podium (after the Saints’ NFC championship game victory) because it made me pretty emotional, ” said Fujita, who was the first free agent to sign with New Orleans in 2006 — two days before quarterback Drew Brees.
“Before the game, she sends me a text from her and the girls (daughters Isabelle and Delilah), ” Fujita continued. “She says, ‘We love you babe. You make us proud every single day. Today is no different. I hope you grab this championship and run with it. You deserve it as much as this city does. You are a huge part of something great. Thank you for bringing me somewhere that changed my heart forever. NOLA will always be our city, our home. It’s where our life took off.’
In NFL cities such as St. Louis, where the thrill of victory has become a faint and distant memory, the notion of a week-long football party in February is too difficult to imagine.
A decade ago, it seemed as if trips to the frenzy of Super Bowl week would become a wonderful habit for the Rams. But as time went by, well, things changed. Dynasties were replaced by despair. Consistent success was exchanged for repeated failure, and now a new generation of Rams loyalists (a rapidly dwindling species) are wondering what kind of miracle it will take to get back on top.
Well, then, Super Bowl XLIV ought to do your fatalistic instincts a world of good, because the New Orleans Saints — as star-crossed and woebegone an NFL franchise as there ever was — are descending on Florida this week one game away from an NFL championship.
“People have to pinch themselves because they can’t believe the Saints are going to the Super Bowl,” said Bobby Hebert, the Cajun native son who spent 11 years in the NFL, five as a Saints quarterback. “Some people thought this wouldn’t happen in their lifetime.”
Super Bowl-bound New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees, a star QB at Austin’s Westlake High School, is the first football player to be featured in a Warner Bros. animated fine art lithograph and celluloid.
"Catch Dat Brees" artwork
The limited-edition “Catch Dat Brees” art salutes the second time in NFL history that a quarterback has eclipsed the 5,000-yard passing mark. The Brees Dream Foundation will benefit from sales of the art—a numbered lithograph or a hand-painted celluloid, each signed by Brees.
Black and Gold to the SuperBowl!! The Who Dat Nation is everywhere. Check out this swimwear company’s tribute to the Who Dat Nation. Here is a photo from the blog, read about her experience in the Dome with the NFC championship game.
There are more photos too on the site. Click the photo to go there and see gull size high resolution photos. Background worthy in my opinion!!
Members of the WhoDatNation will be making their way to Miami next week so the question is where will be the “WhoDatNations” bar ? Just like they do on Bourbon Street we need a place to raise the WhoDatNation flag so we can gather and get the party started.
The NFL’s aborted attempt to enforce a trademark over “Who Dat” was absurd and a public relations blunder of Super Bowl proportions. The league did itself a favor by publicly vowing to back down Friday, saying it will not longer try to crack down on local mom-and-pop shops selling Who Dat T-shirts.
The league, however, still has a trademark for the phrase in Louisiana, and it filed a new trademark for “Who Dat” in Florida the day after the Saints beat the Vikings in the NFC Championship.
“Peyton is the best, ” Saints cornerback Randall Gay said. “He is the greatest, but luckily we played against two Hall of Fame quarterbacks. They didn’t set our (playoff) schedule great for us defensive backs, having to face Brett Favre, Kurt Warner and Peyton Manning.
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