Sammy Knight wasn’t the fastest defensive back the New Orleans Saints ever had. He could pack a punch, and had decent size, but he wasn’t the biggest, either.
But the former Southern California standout had a passion for the game, a desire to go beyond perceived limitations and a fierce, competitive side on display for the world to see.
On Tuesday, the 12-year NFL veteran was recognized by the Saints Hall of Fame as its one-man class for the 2011 season, a testament to Knight’s tenacity and production on the field. Knight spent half his pro football career with the Saints, leading the team in interceptions in five of those six seasons before joining the Miami Dolphins.
“I never even entertained the idea that I wouldn’t get drafted,”
Knight said. “It helped drive me when I got to New Orleans, no doubt about it.”
Knight joined the Saints as a rookie free agent and learned his craft during the lean Mike Ditka years, including the 1999 campaign when the team finished a dismal 3-13. Ditka and general manager Bill Kuharich were summarily fired when the season was over, and the Saints started quickly under new coach Jim Haslett.
On Dec. 30, 2000, before a packed house at the Louisiana Superdome, Knight was part of the first Saints team to win a playoff game, a thrilling 31-28 victory over the Rams.
It was the Saints’ first winning season since 1992.
“We had a lot of free agents who came in about the time I did,”
Knight said. “Guys like (veteran NFL quarterback) Jake Delhomme, (former Pro Bowl defensive tackle) La’Roi Glover and (linebacker/special-teams ace) Keith Mitchell. We all sat around the in the locker room and said, ‘We’re not going to be a doormat. We’re not going to stand for this.’
“There were some big-heads in the stands when we first got here, and we probably deserved some of them. But a group of guys came in and really transformed that team. Changed the mentality of the players, and the mentality of the city. We wanted to win.”
Knight finished with 28 interceptions during his tenure with the Saints, and he also played for the Dolphins, Kansas City, Jacksonville and the New York Giants.
Knight, his wife Freida and three of his four children live in the Houston area, while his eldest daughter recently graduated from prestigious Pepperdine University, not far from his hometown of Riverside, Calif.
He gets a chance to travel to New Orleans from time to time, and will be introduced to the fans as a Saints Hall of Famer sometime during the 2011 NFL season.
First, they’ve got to get past this lockout thing ...
“When I came to New Orleans, it was a little tough,”
Knight said. “Mike Ditka would give you that scowl, and he was an intimidating coach. You’d have to explain why we had a blown coverage or something like that.
“The fans, though, they always had your back. Win or lose. There’s no place like New Orleans. The passion for sports here is amazing.”
Knight will be introduced with longtime Saints radio man Bruce Miller, who is the latest Joe Gemelli Fleur De Lis Award recipient.
Miller covered the Saints for 21 seasons as the host of the team’s pre-game and halftime radio shows.
He also was the play-by-play voice of Tulane football from 1959 until 1975.
“When Tulane lost, and they lost a lot, Bruce often took it personally,”
said Jim Henderson, the Saints’ radio play-by-play man for nearly three decades. “He called a game with Wayne Mack once, and the referee was calling a penalty on Tulane. Bruce thought it was for 15 yards. The ref kept walking, and he told the audience, ‘I think it’s for 25. Oh, no, it’s for 35. It might be a 50-yard penalty ...’
“At that point, Wayne said, ‘Bruce, I think it’s halftime.’ ”
