Saints’ Rizzi says everyone on team is safe after attack – Blogging Sole

METAIRIE, Louisiana — New Orleans Saints Interim coach Darren Rizzi said everyone in the organization was safe after an attack in the French Quarter that killed 15 people and injured dozens more early Wednesday morning.

A man drove a rental van down Bourbon Street into a crowd of people, hitting dozens before getting into a shootout with police officers that killed him.

The attack led to the postponement of the College Football Playoff quarterfinal at the Allstate Sugar Bowl between Georgia and Notre Dame. Tiger Bech, former Princeton football player was among those killed.

“Today is obviously a very dark day for our community,” Rizzi said. “I want to send my deepest condolences, thoughts and prayers to all the victims of this senseless shooting and attack early this morning in the French Quarter. Needless to say, this makes no sense. It’s hard to understand and it’s really hard to understand why these things continue to happen in our country. »

Rizzi said the Saints spent the start of Wednesday’s team meeting with a prayer and a moment of silence for the victims.

“We talked for about 10 minutes this morning at the start of our team meeting and it had nothing to do with football,” Rizzi said. “It was all down to keeping things in perspective and the luck we all have at the start of a new year. What we do here is obviously important to everyone here, but there are much more important things happening in the world and right here in our community and at home.

Rizzi described the mood in the room as “somber” and said the veterans urged the team to show leadership during this time.

“When something of this magnitude, on this scale, happens, there are literally no words that can bring any comfort to it. Moments like this… humanize us all and show us how quickly life can change,” team captain Demario Davis said. “When you’re part of this game, you always try to keep things in perspective and this game and everything that’s going on is always at the forefront. It’s moments like this that make us think and put things into perspective. Many lives were affected last night, this morning. I think this hit us all with a ton of shock. … It’s really tragic, really horrible.

Rizzi said he learned of the attack around 6 a.m. Wednesday and immediately called his son to make sure he was safe before reporting to all his players.

“When I arrived at the parking lot this morning and got the alert on my phone that this had happened, the first thing I did was check where my children were,” said Rizzi said. “And there are people who woke up this morning and unfortunately lost loved ones to these attacks. Lost sons, lost daughters, lost brothers, lost sisters.

Rizzi said the news felt personal to him after losing two former high school teammates in the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. He said some of his former players also lost loved ones that day.

“At the time, I was the head coach at the University of New Haven. I had a lot of players from the New York area. I’ve had players who have lost family members, firefighters. One of my coach’s friends lost a brother who was a firefighter. I’ve been to a lot of memorials and funerals,” Rizzi said. “You could see the smoke from the World Trade Center at my house, where I lived. When I tell you it hits the mark, it hits the mark. Whenever something like this happens and you hear the phrase “terrorism” or “massacres,” it immediately brings up memories and thoughts. These will always be with you. No matter how long I stay on this earth, these things will stay with you.

The Saints will finish the season Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Safety of the Saints Tyrann Mathieunative of New Orleans, said the team always plays for family and community, but that will likely resonate more this week.

“I know a lot of people look to us to make their day better, make their week a little better. I really think it’s part of our responsibility to go out there this week and really represent New Orleans,” Mathieu said.

That message was echoed by Rizzi, who said he felt the team would play the final game of the season for the community. He said he didn’t know if there was “a more motivating factor” than playing to lift the spirits of those going through tough times.

“The community needs us right now, they need support. And everyone is suffering,” Rizzi said. “We play for the community, for New Orleans, for the state of Louisiana. We play for our fans. In times like these, sometimes you can lift up the people and shed a positive light in any way possible in times of disaster. Because that’s what disaster is.