When The Pope Played the Dome

There will never be another day like Sept. 12, 1987, at what was then called the Louisiana Superdome. The recent Vatican conclave brings the date to mind.

That evening, the Tulane Green Wave were scheduled against Iowa State. On the next day, the Saints were also at home facing the Cleveland Browns.

Two football games; one college level- the other NFL- on the same weekend would be an exhaustive challenge for any squad of ground keepers or floor sweepers. Plus, there had already been a near capacity crowd in the building earlier in the day.

That afternoon, a person who was already a high draft choice to be a saint entered the dome’s playing field not marchin’ in, as the song suggests, but rolling in as his schedule demanded.

Not even a home team’s touchdown could have caused as much euphoria as the moment when the only person in the world to ride in a vehicle dubbed as. the “Pope Mobile” arrived on the floor. The man inside dressed in papal white spread his blessings.

As a shepherd of good will Pope John Paul II was a flock star. At 67 he was relatively young for a Pope, handsome and most intriguing was that he was from Poland, a country that had been under the thumb of the Soviet Union. But in his exalted position, he among other world leaders, was advancing the decline of communism. At the Superdome, he talked to kids; encouraged black community leaders and spoke about the power of love. He might have stayed all day, but he still had to go to the lakefront to preside over a mass where the flock was in the thousands,

Meanwhile at the dome, the conversion of the field for football has begun. Both Tulane and the Saints had suffered through tough past seasons but were hoping to rebound. What would happen that day would long be remembered by Louisiana football fans. Both home teams won! Tulane stopped Iowa State 26-12, and the Saints stomped the Browns 28-21. To sweeten the outcome. Louisiana native Bobby Hebert, born in Baton Rouge, prepped at South Lafourche High and having played college ball at Northwestern in Natchitoches was the Saints quarterback.

For that weekend, the Superdome seemed blessed. Beginning with John Paul II taking the field, there were three big wins in one day. Holy smokes!