Hurricane Gustav forces Saints to Indianapolis
Teams heads north for week of practice before opener at Superdome
 | ProFootballTalk’s Picks |
 | Bears will claw 49ers San Francisco’s talking a big game, but Jay Cutler and Chicago will find a way to win Thursday. ProFootballTalk.com |
 | Video: Football from NBC Sports |
 Sunday night showdown Nov. 11: Rodney Harrison believes containing Indy's Peyton Manning and Dallas Clark are two of the keys for New England on Sunday night. |
Special feature |
 |
NFL team pages |
 | Slideshow |
 | more photos |
 | Slide show |
 | Week in Sports Pictures Flying on the hardwood, racing on the rink, getting physical on the gridiron, and much more. more photos |
 | Video: Weather |
 Storm makes mess of Southeast coast Nov. 11: A massive storm wreaked havoc on the coast of North Carolina Wednesday. Weather Channel meteorologist Mike Seidel reports. |
NEW ORLEANS - A hurricane has driven the Saints out of New Orleans again. They don’t plan on being gone nearly as long this time.
With Hurricane Gustav bearing down on the Gulf Coast three years after Katrina swamped New Orleans, the Saints left Saturday for Indianapolis, where they will spend the week preparing for the Sept. 7 opener against Tampa Bay.
The Saints will practice at the Colts’ new Lucas Oil Stadium. Their schedule wasn’t immediately known, although meetings were set for Sunday at their hotel.
The Tampa Bay game is scheduled for the Louisiana Superdome, and the Saints plan to be there for it unless damage from Gustav dictates otherwise. The storm could hit the mainland as early as Monday, and Saturday it was on the verge of the strongest classification of Category 5, with winds above 155 mph.
New Orleans officials aren’t using the Superdome as an evacuation shelter with Gustav. Three years ago, it became a symbol of pain and suffering when thousands of residents were stranded by Katrina floodwaters that poured through broken levees.
The Saints spent the entire 2005 season on the road, practicing in San Antonio and playing three games there, going to the Meadowlands to play the New York Giants in their “home opener” and using LSU’s home stadium in Baton Rouge for their other four home games.
The Superdome, trashed inside and out, needed a $185 million makeover that was barely finished in time for the 2006 season. Every Saints home game the past two seasons has been a sellout, making the team a key part of the city’s ongoing recovery.
- Discuss Story On Newsvine
-
Rate Story:
LowHigh - Instant Message
MORE FROM NFL |
 NFL Section Front |
| Add NFL headlines to your news reader: |
Sponsored links