The smiles might soon disappear.

Pro football is headed into the great unknown. Barring a quick — and totally unexpected — agreement with the players’ union on a new contract, 2010 will have no salary cap. After that, perhaps a work stoppage, something NFL Players Association executive director DeMaurice Smith puts at “14” on a scale of 1 to 10.

Commissioner Roger Goodell doesn’t agree, believing negotiations will lead to a new deal before March 2011, when the collective bargaining agreement expires. But an accord before the New Orleans Saints — who dat? — begin defense of their Super Bowl championship in September is unlikely.

The 32 team owners clearly are prepared for a go at the first uncapped season since 1993. Enough restrictions are in place, including extending the minimum years of service for unrestricted free agency from four years to six, that baseball-like bidding wars are improbable.

With the owners claiming they are losing millions and the players arguing that teams are making money by the fistful, a common ground will be difficult to find.

“The labor agreement is a very important agreement,” Goodell said during his annual Super Bowl week news conference. “It’s something that is important to our players. It’s certainly important to our clubs, and it’s important to our fans.

“We have to sit at the table and we have to get an agreement that works for everybody. And that’s what people expect. They want solutions, and that’s what we should deliver.”

Free agency begins March 5. The more critical date might be March 5 of next year, when, if no new deal has been struck, the most popular and prosperous sport in America could see the owners locking out the players.

That’s the last thing fans want to hear after a special season featuring the Saints capping a football renaissance for their team and their city with their first Super Bowl title. The NFL’s best teams, led by New Orleans, generally have become the most potent on offense: each division winner except Cincinnati regularly visited the end zone, and three of the four playoff semifinalists scored at least 416 points.

And as some stars begin to fade (LaDainian Tomlinson, Champ Bailey), others emerge (Chris Johnson, Darrelle Revis). A league driven by quarterbacks has a splendid blend of veterans in top form (four-time MVP Peyton Manning, Super Bowl most valuable player Drew Brees, even 40-year-old Brett Favre), passers only now in their primes (Philip Rivers, Ben Roethlisberger, Aaron Rodgers), and youngsters with great promise (Matt Ryan, Joe Flacco and Chad Henne).

Even as such headliners as Kurt Warner and perhaps Favre leave the game, the colleges are providing NFL-ready performers to eventually take their place.

Not that defense has disappeared, particularly in New York with the Jets, Baltimore, Cincinnati and Dallas. All of them made the playoffs in ’09 and the Jets came within 30 minutes of the Super Bowl.

Keeping those established and rising stars healthy will be a key issue after the league, the teams and the NFLPA ramped up prevention and treatment of concussions. Even Congress has gotten involved.

“I think concussions have been a major focus in the league for several years, and we need to make sure we continue to do what we can to make the game safer,” Goodell said. “And that deals with how we modify the rules and take certain techniques out of the game; how we use the better equipment to make sure that our players are safer; and what we can do to make sure that our coaches and our players understand the serious nature of these injuries, and that they get medical help as soon as an injury occurs.

“And that goes for all injuries, but particularly concussion injuries. We have more work to do, but we think that we’re making progress on the awareness and we’re changing the culture, and that’s what we really want to do. We want to make sure people understand that they are serious injuries, and make sure that we deal with them in a conservative and medical fashion.”

Labor and health issues aside, such events as the NFL combine later this month, free-agent signings, and April’s draft — a three-day affair this year — will keep fans stoked for football. Already, they’re trying to figure out who the Saints will host to open defense of their title in September.

BARON CUP I

Mike Haszto, Elyria Catholic’s assistant coach, promises Thursday night’s game between his No. 7 seed Panthers and second-seeded University School will be competitive.

“We aren’t afraid of the Red North,” Haszto said after EC tied North Olmsted on Saturday. “We outplayed Padua.”

That might have been the highlight of Elyria Catholic’s season — a 5-3 win over Padua, one of the six teams in the premier Red North, in the Titan Classic last month in Sylvania. The Panthers are 1-1 against Red North teams, having lost 4-2 to Lake Catholic in the North Coast League tourney.

EC (19-9-3) and US (15-10-2) present contrasts. The Panthers have scored 153 goals and allowed 86 this season (52 goals to 19 allowed in 10 league games). The Preppers have a 91-54 goal ratio (28-17 in league games).

US, which is on a five-game winning streak, likes to score quickly, then settle into a defensive game. That was what they did to North Olmsted in last year’s Baron Cup, winning 3-0 in the first round and going on to take the championship.

North Olmsted (19-7-1) hasn’t played any Red North teams this year. The Eagles get their first shot at a North rival when they face Padua (16-9-8) at 5:30 Thursday night. The EC-US game follows.

BARON CUP II

Amherst (20-10-1) played one team from the White East this season and lost, falling to Kenston 5-0 on Dec. 27. Should the Comets beat Chagrin Falls (16-11-1) they’ll play White West champ Rocky River —  which beat Amherst twice in the regular season — on Friday at 8 p.m.

Chagrin Falls scored 49 goals and yielded 35 in White East play. Amherst was 29 for and 31 against in White West games, but the Comets are 7-1-1 in their last nine games (3-0-1 in White games) with wins over two Baron Cup teams from the Red Division.

The puck drops for the Amherst-Chagrin Falls game tonight at 8:30.

BARON CUP III

Bay (17-10-1) plays Kent Roosevelt (9-15-1) this afternoon at 4:30. The Rockets are 1-1 against the Roughriders, having split a pair of games in the MLK Tournament. Bay has scored 102 goals while giving up 74. Kent scored 85 goals and allowed 100 in the regular season.

All tournament games will be played at the John Coyne Recreation Center on Memphis Avenue in Brooklyn.

Potent Panthers

Elyria Catholic had four of the top nine scorers in the Red Division this year. Justin Saunders was second with 23 points (six goals, 17 assists), Brad Oravets was third with 21 points (11-10), Kevin Andrews was fourth with 20 points (11-9) and Pat DeSouza was tied for sixth with 15 points (7-8).

Player of the week

McBride

• YEAR: Senior
• POSITION: Goaltender
• LAST WEEK: Had a 94.6 percent save rate in two games. Credited with 42 saves on 45 shots in a 3-3 tie against Elyria Catholic on Saturday. Stopped 10 shots in a 1-0 win over Chagrin Falls on Sunday.
• OTHER SPORTS: Golf, baseball
• OFF THE ICE: Relaxes by watching movies, with action/war dramas being his favorites.
• FAVORITE NHL PLAYER: Steve Mason, Columbus Blue Jackets
• FUTURE PLANS: Dan will attend Bowling Green State University next year, double-major in history and physical therapy and try to make the Falcons’ club hockey team.
• PARENTS: John and Kathleen

Contact Steve Byrne at 329-7135 or ctsports@chroniclet.com.

Stallworth

The NFL reinstated Stallworth on Monday following the Super Bowl, and the Browns terminated his contract Monday afternoon. The team issued a one-sentence press release and didn’t provide a statement.

The Browns are thin at receiver, especially ones with experience, but decided bringing back Stallworth wasn’t worth it. He was due a $1 million roster bonus March 20 and $1.5 million in salary in 2010.

Stallworth was suspended for the 2009 season after pleading guilty to DUI manslaughter and serving 24 days in jail following the death of pedestrian Mario Reyes in Miami. Stallworth was suspended Aug. 13 by commissioner Roger Goodell for causing “irreparable harm to the victim and his family, your club, your fellow players and the NFL.”

Goodell met with Stallworth last month and declared him ready for reinstatement Friday at his pre-Super Bowl news conference.

“I think he recognizes what he did and the horrific nature and the unfortunate outcome and I think he’s prepared himself to get back in and play,” Goodell said.

The contract termination is the first significant roster move by the new Browns regime of president Mike Holmgren and general manager Tom Heckert, who said last week owner Randy Lerner would be involved in the Stallworth decision. Heckert was in Philadelphia when Stallworth played there in 2006.

“I LOVE TOM HECKERT!!!!! He was my guy in Philly & he’s my guy now … always … nothing but love from me to him… #truestory,” Stallworth wrote on his Twitter.com account, D_Stallworth18, Monday afternoon.

Stallworth, a first-round pick of the Saints in 2002, was signed to a seven-year, $35 million contract by former Browns GM Phil Savage in 2008. He was hampered by injuries throughout the season and finished with 17 catches for 170 yards. He received a $4.5 million bonus the night before the wreck that killed Reyes.

“thanks everybody for their support & who sent positive messages to me regarding my reinstatement, much appreciated… thank you & God bless,” Stallworth posted Saturday on Twitter.

Contact Scott Petrak at 329-7253 or spetrak@chroniclet.com.

Monday was one of those days for Lutheran West, which demolished Oberlin 72-27 in a Patriot Athletic Conference Stripes Division game.

The Longhorns (7-9, 6-4 PAC) connected on 13 of 23 3-pointers, shot 8-for-10 from the floor in the second quarter, held Oberlin scoreless in the third quarter and outrebounded the Phoenix 39-25, while committing only 10 turnovers.

The game was a makeup of a postponed game from Jan. 8 — hence, the rare Monday boys basketball game. The Phoenix, however, played like it left its game back in January.

Oberlin coach Kurt Russell left the gym quickly after the game without meeting with the media. Assistant coach David Watson spoke on the team’s behalf.

“(Lutheran West) shot the ball and we didn’t,” he said. “They shot the ball extremely well. We tried to make some changes defensively, but (the Longhorns) were feeling the groove and their shots were falling.

“They shot particularly well from the 3-point area, too. Hats off to them. They had a great shooting night, and we tried to switch up our defenses, but we just couldn’t find the answer for what they had tonight.”

Lutheran West’s Cal Thomay, a 6-foot-3 senior, set the tone when he buried his first four 3-point attempts — all from the left corner. He finished with six of his team’s threes and a career-high 20 points.

“It was a good shooting day for me,” said Thomay, who was 6-of-8 from the floor, all from 3-point range. “They were leaving me open, and I like to seize the opportunity whenever I have open shots. My teammates were passing well and we were moving the ball around.

“I usually like (to shoot) from anywhere around the perimeter, but our offense sets it up where we have two guys in the corners and we can drive and dish. That’s where I was setting up today, and I was just feeling it.”

The Longhorns were only getting started.

In the second quarter, it seemed that virtually every shot they took was destined to go through the net. As a result, a 17-6 lead blew up to a 40-15 halftime advantage.

Lutheran West shot an astounding 80 percent from the floor (8-for-10) and 100 percent from the free throw line (4-for-4), en route to a 23-point second quarter. And that was mostly with the Longhorns’ second unit on the floor.

It was that kind of night for the Longhorns.

“Before the game, I questioned how ready we’d be,” Lutheran West coach Ray Durban said. “My pregame talk was, ‘Are you ready?’ I guess they were.

“We came out great Friday night and let one get away from us by a Brooklyn team that’s really come a long way. Tonight, they played a great game in almost every facet you could think of.”

The Longhorns showed they could play a little defense, too, especially in the third quarter.

The Phoenix (3-13, 1-9) went 0-for-11 from the floor and 0-for-2 from the line in being shut out in the third quarter. Meanwhile, the Longhorns only made five of 12 shots in the third, but that was enough for 12 unanswered points and an insurmountable 52-15 lead.

“What was more impressive than the way we shot was how we defended,” Durban said. “To shut a team out for a whole quarter is a significant feat. I thought we made good decisions (and) I thought we played unselfish.”

Senior Dorian Pretlow snapped a nine-and-a-half minute scoring drought for the Phoenix with a layup off a steal 35 seconds into the fourth quarter, which led to a 12-point quarter. But the Longhorns weren’t finished giving the nets a workout by any stretch.

Leading 58-21 midway through the fourth, the Longhorns ended the game with a 14-6 run, pushing the final margin to 45 points.

Marcus Spelich added 13 points, including three 3-pointers, and a game-high nine rebounds for the ’Horns.
“Cal Thomay’s a great shooter,” Durban said. “He’s battled some health things a little bit this year, but tonight, he was all that.

“We got our whole team a chance to play, at least those that were healthy. It was a good win for us. When we shoot it like that, it’s easy. But I think we’re capable of shooting it like that, and it gets us in a good frame of mind because we have Clearview on Friday night (at home).”

For Oberlin, senior Anthony Barnhill led the way with seven points and nine boards.

Contact Dan Gilles at 329-7135 or dangilles73@gmail.com.

West, who has missed the last eight games with a fractured ring finger on his left hand, went through a full-contact practice Monday at Cleveland Clinic Courts.

Coach Mike Brown wouldn’t confirm West would play against the Nets, but point guard Mo Williams, who has missed nine games with a sprained left shoulder, did.

“One thing about Red,” said Williams, using West’s nickname, “it doesn’t take him long (to get ready). He can be out forever and it just seems like he never misses a beat.”

The Cavaliers certainly haven’t, as they’ve tied an NBA season high by winning 11 straight games, the vast majority of that coming without their two best point guards, to improve their record to a league-best 41-11.

Making that an NBA season-high 12 in a row by beating the Nets, whose 4-46 record is far and away the worst in the league, shouldn’t be too difficult, but the Cavaliers sometimes play down to the opponent’s level.

Playing against the Nets will give West an opportunity to get his feet wet before a showdown against the Orlando Magic on Thursday, Cleveland’s last game before the All-Star break.

“He looks good,” Brown said of West. “It’s good to get anybody back. He was just himself, which is really good. We’d love to have him back.”

Brown wouldn’t confirm the guard’s return, let alone say whether he would start or come off the bench.
Odds are West will play in relief of Daniel “Boobie” Gibson tonight. That trend could continue beyond the New Jersey game as well so the Cavaliers don’t have to make a second adjustment when Williams comes back and moves into the starting lineup.

Williams hurt his shoulder Jan. 19 against Toronto. The next night, the Cavaliers said he would be out four to six weeks. Tonight marks three weeks since the injury, meaning Williams could possibly be back for Cleveland’s first game after the All-Star break, a Feb. 18 home game against Denver.

“I’m taking it day-by-day,” Williams said. “Obviously, the four to six weeks was accurate. We’re making progress. Everything I do now is progressing well. Hopefully, four weeks is the good part for me.

“I want to play (against the Nets),” he added. “At the end of the day, I’m no fool. I’m anxious. I want to play, but I know the big goal.”

Williams’ frustrations over not playing have been eased by the Cavaliers’ success, which has been fueled by the tremendous play of LeBron James, who Monday was named Eastern Conference Player of the Week for the fifth time this season.

“It’s fun watching,” Williams said. “It’s tough not playing, but we’re doing a great job on the floor in a lot of different areas.”

Tip-ins

• James earned Player of the Week honors for the 25th time in his seven-year career after averaging a league-best 35.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 10.3 assists as the Cavaliers went 3-0. James had 47 points Saturday against New York, including 23 in the first quarter for the second time in four games and a franchise-record 35 in the first half. Oklahoma City’s Russell Westbrook was honored in the West.
• New Jersey lists two starters as questionable for tonight. Guard Devin Harris has a mild left shoulder sprain and power forward Yi Jianlian has a sore right shoulder. Small forward Jarvis Hayes is probable with a bruised left shin.

Tonight

• Who: Cleveland vs. New Jersey
• Time: 7 o’clock
• Where: The Q
• TV/radio: FS Ohio; WEOL 930-AM, WTAM 1100-AM

Contact Rick Noland at (330) 721-4061 or rickn@ohio.net.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Here’s something to consider: Maybe Danica Patrick is a pretty good race car driver.

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?

Well, she did.

Patrick bumped and banged her way through the crash-filled ARCA race at Daytona International Speedway, where she successfully dodged one of the sloppiest events in recent memory. She pulled off a masterful save on a slide through the infield grass, fell to the back of the field, and still managed to drive her way to a sixth-place finish.

So it came as no surprise that after taking a day to catch her breath, Patrick decided she should indeed make her NASCAR debut this weekend in the second-tier Nationwide Series race at Daytona.

She’d been previously praised for declaring Daytona not the right place to make her NASCAR debut, but after holding her own in the ARCA race, everyone anticipated the about-face that came Monday.

“Racing in the Nationwide Series race was my goal during this entire two-month preparation process, but we wanted to make sure it was the right thing to do,” she said. “The ARCA race was a blast, and I’m not ready for my first Daytona Speedweeks to end just yet. I want more racing.”

She’ll get it, too. Saturday’s race is a big boy race, with 14 full-time Sprint Cup Series drivers among the 53 entries. Among them are Tony Stewart, Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch, and Patrick’s boss, Dale Earnhardt Jr.
The Cup drivers have won nine of the last 10 Nationwide races at Daytona, dating back to 2005 when Martin Truex Jr. won it in a JR Motorsports car.

Kelley Earnhardt, general manager and part owner of JRM, doesn’t think Patrick will take the team back to Victory Lane on Saturday.

But she doesn’t think Patrick, who joins Chrissy Wallace as the only women entered, will stink up the show, either.

“My dream scenario is she would be up there in the top five competing for the win,” Earnhardt said Monday. “My reasonable expectation is that she just finishes, and brings the car home and maybe gets a top 15. From a car owner standpoint, she showed Saturday that she can make good decisions and not put other cars in jeopardy.

“Now, going forward, if something catastrophic happens this Saturday, you’ve still got last week to look back on and say ‘We came out of that OK.’ I think that takes some of the pressure off and allows her to go into her first NASCAR race not worried about her debut.”

Regardless of how she performs, Patrick is guaranteed to have an immense spotlight on her the rest of the week.

She’s been the central figure of Speedweeks since her arrival Thursday, and has been constantly swarmed by media and fans every time she steps into the garage. Her participation brought a whole new level of interest to the typically overlooked ARCA Series, and will undoubtedly do the same for NASCAR at a time when the auto racing series is looking at anyway possible to ignite fan interest.

Earnhardt has seen circus-like celebrity before, first with her father, the late Dale Earnhardt, and again with brother Dale Earnhardt Jr.

And even though Dale Jr. is annually named NASCAR’s most popular driver, it’s been quite some time since his big sister has seen such intense interest at the track.

“I’ve been in situations with both of them that have seemed very chaotic, but with Danica, it seemed like there were always at least 200 people swamping her,” Earnhardt said. “I was really in awe, because I haven’t seen something like that in our sport for awhile. You see a crowd moving through the garage, and you know that Dale (Jr.) is coming, but with Danica, this was definitely different.”

It’s only going to get bigger from here, Earnhardt anticipated. Saturday’s race is the first of 13 she’s scheduled to run this season in a slate she will intertwine with the IndyCar Series and another run at an Indianapolis 500 victory.

“She’s done really well with the attention, and I think she’s had a level of this already,” Earnhardt said. “But if she’s successful here, it’s going to be double or triple the attention on our side because our fan base is so much larger and so loyal.”

Jenna Fryer covers NASCAR for The Associated Press.

West, who has missed the last eight games with a fractured ring finger on his left hand, went through a full practice at Cleveland Clinic Courts.

Williams has missed the last nine games with a strained left shoulder. He’s expected to be out at least another week.

Despite the injuries, the Cavaliers have won 11 straight games, which ties the NBA season high for this season.

MIAMI, Fla. — The ultimate underdogs, they ain’t. Not anymore. The Saints are Super Bowl champions now.
Who Dat? Try Drew Brees, Sean Payton and a team that has reversed its embarrassing past, carrying an entire city to the top with it.

Put away those paper bags forever.

Brees and the Saints rallied to upset Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts 31-17 Sunday night in one of pro football’s most thrilling title games.

“We just believed in ourselves and we knew that we had an entire city and maybe an entire country behind us,” said Brees, the game’s MVP. “What can I say? I tried to imagine what this moment would be like for a long time, and it’s better than expected.”

But not something many expected from these descendants of the hapless Aints, who were 5-point underdogs.

More photos below.

“Four years ago who ever thought this would be happening when 85 percent of the city was under water from (Hurricane) Katrina,” Brees said. “Most people not knowing if New Orleans would ever come back or if the organization and the team would come back. … This is the culmination of that belief and that faith.”

Brees tied a Super Bowl record with 32 completions, the last a 2-yard slant to Jeremy Shockey for the winning points with 5:42 remaining. He was 32-for-39 for 288 yards.

A surprise onside kick sparked the Saints’ second-half comeback. Their 25th-ranked defense made several key stops, and Tracy Porter’s 74-yard interception return on a pass from Manning clinched it.

Manning tried to give chase, but was blocked by a New Orleans defender and fell awkwardly as the cornerback raced by. The four-time NFL MVP forlornly walked to the sideline as the Big Easy celebrations began.

“It’s time for the Saints to celebrate,” he said. “It’s their field and it’s their championship.”

An NFL also-ran for much of their 43 years, the Saints’ football renaissance, led by Brees and Payton, climaxed with Shockey’s touchdown and Lance Moore’s 2-point conversion catch, originally ruled incomplete but overturned on Payton’s challenge.

Porter’s pick, just as dramatic as his interception of Brett Favre’s pass to force overtime in the NFC title game, was the game’s only turnover. It’s one Manning will forever regret.

The Saints (16-3) won three postseason games this winter after winning only two in the previous 42 years. They beat Arizona, Minnesota and Indianapolis (16-3) — all division winners — for their first title, scoring 107 points and allowing only 59.

“We weren’t the Aints,” Porter said. “We were a team of destiny, a team that can make big plays.”

The championship came 4½ years after Katrina ravaged New Orleans, making the Saints nomads for the 2005 season. There even was some doubt they would return, but the NFL refused to abandon the city. The Superdome was repaired and the Saints won the NFC South in ’06, their first season with Brees and Payton.

That was the season Manning won his only Super Bowl. He got the Colts off to a quick start and had them in front for much of this one, but New Orleans’ league-leading offense, which scored 510 points this season, outscored Indy 31-7 after falling behind 10-0. That matched the biggest comeback in a Super Bowl.

Payton held the Vince Lombardi Trophy high over his head and ran into the end zone toward several hundred fans chanting the Saints’ rally cry: “Who dat, who dat, who dat say gonna beat dem Saints?”

Nobody can say it now.

“Everybody back in New Orleans gets a piece of this trophy,” he said.

“I think I could kiss him,” owner Tom Benson said.

Before many of the 74,059 fans got settled following the Who’s halftime show, the Saints worked a little football voodoo. Garrett Hartley’s onside kick was touched by the Colts’ Hank Baskett, then recovered by Chris Reis at the New Orleans 42.

“I just told our guys you’ve got to make me look good on this,” Payton said. “That really becomes like a turnover.”

Looking like the NFL’s most potent offense, the Saints seized the opportunity to take their first lead. It came on Pierre Thomas’ brilliant 16-yard run with a screen pass, capped by a dive into the end zone.

Manning simply shrugged, found Dallas Clark for 45 yards on a 76-yard drive, and Joseph Addai used a spin move a figure skater would envy to score from the 4.

But that was it for Indy.

“I certainly know how it was three years ago when we won,” Manning said. “I know the people of New Orleans and the Saints have that same feeling right now.”

Hartley, the hero of the NFC title game with his 40-yard field goal in OT, made a 47-yarder later in the third period. After Matt Stover was wide left on a 51-yarder early in the final quarter, Brees led the biggest drive in Saints history.

“We really felt as underdogs we had the better team,” Payton said. “To be in that position where maybe a lot of people were picking against us, we liked the spot we were in.”

Manning looked sharp on the Colts’ first two series, taking them 53 yards to a 38-yard field goal by Stover, at 42 the oldest player in Super Bowl history.

Then Manning led a 96-yard, 11-play drive that appeared almost routine, even though it tied the longest march in a Super Bowl. Addai rushed for 53 yards on the series, and Manning found Pierre Garcon behind backup cornerback Osama Young for the 19-yard score on third down.

New Orleans couldn’t match that, but did get a 46-yard field goal by Hartley to make it 10-3. Brees was sacked on third down by All-Pro defensive end Dwight Freeney, who sure looked frisky despite ligament damage in his right ankle that made his availability uncertain for two weeks.

Then Indy’s defense, ranked 18th during the season but staunch in the playoffs, really showed some power. After the Saints marched 71 yards, including 40 yards on two receptions by Marques Colston, New Orleans had third-and-goal at the 1. Mike Bell slipped trying to run right behind All-Pro guard Jahri Evans, and Thomas was stacked up at the line by Gary Brackett and Clint Sessions on fourth down.

But the Colts went against type and ran three times, leaving 35 seconds for the league’s most prolific offense to get in position for Hartley’s 44-yard field goal and a more manageable 10-6 halftime deficit.

Shootout? More like a slowdown. Indy had two three-and-outs and New Orleans had one.

But the points came quickly after halftime — mostly for the Saints.

“Look around the stadium,” linebacker Scott Fujita said. “It was like 6- or 7-to-1 (Saints fans). The black and gold just poured into Miami.

“The whole world was behind us. This was bigger than just a game for the Saints. We are the world’s team.”

The Keystone girls won for the third straight time and the North Ridgeville boys for the second time in three years as both teams dominated the three regular games, forcing all challengers into playing catchup.

Keystone’s girls topped Vermilion 3,562-3,490, beating the Sailors by 57 pins in the three regular games and padding their margin by another 15 pins in the Baker round. Amherst (3,358) took third ahead of league dual-meet champ North Ridgeville (3,345), which struggled much of the day.

The North Ridgeville boys amassed 4,354 pins and were never seriously threatened. The Rangers led by 266 pins after three regular games and ended up winning by 319. Keystone rallied from sixth place in the last two Baker games to finish second with 4,030. Only 56 pins separated second and seventh place on the boys side.

Junior Amanda Keathley led the ’Cats with a 543 series, the fifth-best mark of the tournament. Seniors Alli Branham and Rachel Salyer tied for the No. 6 spot overall, each with a 522 series.

“We just kept cheering each other on,” Keathley said. “If anyone was having a bad game, we were all right there to help pick that person right back up.”

Keathley, Branham and Salyer also all bowled well at last year’s NSBC classic.

“We were determined,” Branham said. “We all wanted to win. It took awhile to get the team chemistry going this season. When we got it, we all took off.”

Coming up big for Keystone were senior Brittany Norris (461), junior Alexis Sanislow, sophomore Shelby Cyrus and sophomore Jessica Koleszar.

“The most important thing is that we all stayed very positive throughout,” Salyer said. “Our biggest downfall, when we don’t do so well, is when someone gets upset for not doing well. It sometimes pulls the entire team down. Today, everyone stayed positive. That was the most important part.”

The North Ridgeville boys set the tone early, dominating just as they did during the dual-meet portion of the schedule.

Seniors Collin Oliva and Joe Sas led the way, finishing 1-2 overall in top series with marks of 736 and 709. Oliva, who had a high game of 277, bowled 70 pins above average and Sas, whose best game was a 265, was 121 pins above average.

“We went undefeated in the conference, so why not win here?” asked Oliva, who took second last year to Keystone’s Tyler Minnich (707) with a 703.

Last year, North Ridgeville finished second behind Vermilion in the dual-meet standings. The Rangers were third at the 2009 NSBC Tournament as Keystone and Amherst ran away with it.

“It was all about staying positive,” Sas said. “I had to keep myself up instead of getting mad over mistakes.”

North Ridgeville boys coach Frank Kotas liked what he saw.

“We started off strong,” he said. “A couple guys fell off a little in the third game, so we moved some guys around. They’re still well-focused. They’re looking forward on trying to go to state again this year. No complaints about the team. These guys are just fantastic this year.”

Junior Brandon Becka (631), senior Adam Kotas (573), senior Ricky Cayet (412) and junior Mike O’Sullivan (155) also contributed for the Rangers.

The Amherst girls made a big improvement, taking third with 3,358 pins, up 566 pins from last year when they finished seventh.

Senior Allison Flock finished with a 571 series, 82 pins above average. It was the second-best girls score of the day.

“I was actually a little surprised we did so well,” Flock said. “I’m very excited. We really came together as a team for Bakers. … We were more focused and we made better shots.”

Contact Paul Heyse at 329-7135 or phheyse@aol.com.

MIAMI — Drew Brees grew up in Texas and started playing for pay in faraway San Diego. But he made New Orleans his home and its cause uniquely his own.

After 43 years of futility and one of the finest quarterbacking performances ever delivered in a Super Bowl, he made sure there’s no need to ask “Who dat?” anymore.

Thanks to Brees, the answer to “Who dat say they gonna beat them Saints?” is: nobody.

“We just believed in ourselves and we knew that we had an entire city and maybe an entire country behind us,” he said after being voted MVP in New Orleans’ 31-17 win over the Indianapolis Colts. “What can I say? I tried to imagine what this moment would be like for a long time, and it’s better than expected.”

“I’m just feeling like it was all meant to be. What can I say? The birth of my son, and in the first year of his life we won a Super Bowl championship.”

The people of New Orleans will embrace him now tighter than some of their kinfolk. It didn’t hurt, of course, that when Brees arrived in 2006, both he and the city were at a crossroad.

A torn labrum in his throwing shoulder in the final game of the 2005 season, coupled with the Chargers’ acquisition of promising young passer Philip Rivers, made Brees expendable and left him wondering whether his career was already on the downside. When Saints coach Sean Payton drove Brees around New Orleans hoping to sell him on joining the Saints, Brees realized, seeing residents struggling to cope with the devastation wrought by Hurricane Katrina, that he’d found the perfect place to begin his own comeback.

“Four years ago, who ever thought this would happen?” he said, still fighting back tears.

Earlier, as confetti swirled just above the playing surface at Sun Life Stadium, Brees’ eyes were already watering, trying not to cry as he held his son, Baylen, who was wearing a Saints jersey with his father’s name on the back and a headset so the loud celebration wouldn’t scare him. Brees struggled yet one more time to keep his emotions in check as he lifted the silver Lombardi trophy over his head.

But a few minutes into his postgame interview, Brees simply quit trying.

“Eighty-five percent of the city was under water, all the residents evacuated all over the country, people never knowing if they were coming back or if New Orleans would come back,” he said. “But not only the city came back, and the team came back … when the players got there, we all looked at one another and said, ‘We’re going to rebuild together.’

“We leaned on each other,” Brees said, pausing as he choked up. “This is the culmination of that.”

Yet in the same way that New Orleans’ progress has come in fits and starts, so it was with the Saints on this night. After a rocky first quarter, Brees found his rhythm midway through the second quarter and finished with a record-tying 32 completions in 39 attempts for 288 yards and two touchdowns. He was never finer than during what turned out to be the go-ahead scoring drive, stringing together 10 straight completions.

“Phenomenal,” wide receiver Marques Colston said. “You really can’t put that kind of performance in words. To have 32 completions and two drops, he deserves the MVP.

“Hopefully,” he added, “you guys can start putting Drew in that elite quarterback conversation.”
Consider it a done deal.

Jim Litke is a national sports columnist for The Associated Press.