Dallas apparently has a huge population of hotblooded Who Dats, former New Orleans residents who stayed after the Hurricane Katrina evacuation in 2005, or relocated there for job opportunities.
On Sunday, Sept. 15, the hearts of these loyal, fleur-de-lis-adorned fans swelled like beignets hitting hot oil as the Saints crushed the Cowboys 44 to 19.
Following their natural instincts, hundreds and hundreds of Texas Saints fans flooded into the street near AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, as the game concluded, forming the sort of second-line parade you might expect to run into on North Claiborne Avenue.
Umbrellas spun, whistles blew, handkerchiefs fluttered and shoes pattered on pavement in time with the joyous blare of an authentic brass band.
Jermaine Devezin, a 9th Ward native who moved to Dallas after Hurricane Katrina and the subsequent levee breaks 19 years ago, is the co-founder of the Unfaded Brass Band that provided the second-line’s soundtrack.
An indoor second-line breaks out in the Ten10 Events center as the Saints defeat the Cowboys.
Even some of the otherwise dejected Cowboys fans enjoyed the impromptu victory parade Sunday, Devezin said.
Of course, a few had “that look on their face,” indicating their better nature had temporarily fled them.
“We didn’t get too disrespectful,” Devesin said. “They were mad enough.”
Unfaded bass drum player Justina Sylvester said she moved from New Orleans to Dallas for job opportunities in 2011. Among the tunes played during the brief parade were “Tornado” and "A.P. Touro" by the Rebirth Brass Band and an original number called “Cow Town.”
The people watching were excited, Sylvester said, because the parade was so “unexpected.” Sylvester said she hoped the band's performance did her former hometown justice.
Former New Orleans resident Akiea Macklin traveled from Houston to Dallas to participate in the festivities surrounding the Saints versus Cowboys game.
Akiea Macklin could assure her that they did. Macklin relocated to Houston after Katrina, but she still bleeds black and gold on Sundays. Macklin said she drove to Dallas to be near the game, supporting the Saints “win or lose.” The second-line, she said, “felt like home.”
“You couldn’t tell we were in Dallas,” she said.
Talk about your New Orleans connections. The second-line included a few Hoplites, the female bodyguards of Metairie’s Krewe of Athena Carnival parade. Hoplite Jasmine Procter said that she and her Athena cohorts had traveled to Dallas just to participate in the big watch party that takes place across the street from the stadium.
Former New Orleanians Kevin “big daddie THE DJ” Netters and business partner Derrick “My DJ Derrick D” Hudson do their best to keep Crescent City culture 'intact' in Texas.
Kevin “big daddie THE DJ” Netters is a former New Orleanian who does his best to keep Crescent City customs intact in Texas. He and business partner Derrick “My DJ Derrick D” Hudson established a black and gold watch party series for all the expat Saints fans in the region and beyond who don’t attend the games in person but want to be near the action.
A thousand Who Dats, more or less, packed the Ten10 Events center on Sunday for the game, music and camaraderie. Needless to say, as Derek Carr, Alvin Kamara and the gang rolled over Dallas like a Mardi Gras float rolls over a Moon Pie, the crowd became ebullient.
At the two-minute warning, Unfaded kicked off the celebratory music, sending the crowd parading around the hall.
Then, the rambling rabble burst out onto the street and down the block, just like they do in New Orleans, 500 miles to the southeast.
Sizing up the success of the event, bandleader Devezin said that the Who Dats in exile are "slowly injecting New Orleans culture into this Dallas-Fort Worth area."
Who Dats pack the Ten10 Events center for a Saints game watch party, across the street from the Cowboy's At&T Stadium.
