Who Dat fanatics taking fanhood to next level

Houma doctor A.J. de la Houssaye spends most of his time each day correcting patients’ troubled vision.

But last Tuesday, de la Houssaye had everyone thinking their vision was blurred as he showed up to HTV 10’s Saints on the Bayou show in clothing he said he never thought he’d wear – a dress.

The dress was in honor of the Saints making the Super Bowl. Late Saints announcer Buddy Diliberto said throughout his career he’d sport the female attire if the team advanced to the Super Bowl.

“I always said that is something that I would never do,” de la Houssaye said. “But as I was watching the game and I found out they were going to be in the Super Bowl, this wave of craziness came over me and I just said to myself, ‘I’ve got to get a dress.'”

De la Houssaye, known to his patients as Dr. D, said he and a coworker shopped through stores for dresses and encountered some awkward moments along the way.

“We went to Ross Dress for Less and we found some great dresses for cheap,” he said. “But we went into the sitting area with our dresses and they didn’t know whether to send us to the girl’s side or the guy’s side … So they told us to go to the guy’s side and when we came out, there were 10 people out there clapping for us because we were dressed like girls.”

De la Houssaye, who allegedly wears a size-16 dress, said once at Copeland’s, he was greeted by a storm of members of the Who-Dat Nation.

“We were getting high-fives, some people were pinching our butts, it was crazy,” he said.

Another Tri-parish resident enjoying the Super Bowl push is C.M.B. Kustomz employee Teronn Stokes.

Stokes said he has been waking up every morning looking forward to going to work, because he is a life-long Saints fan and he’s been busy putting Fleur de Lis symbols and other Saints-related items on cars for clients throughout the Tri-parish area – a trend that has been booming recently.

“I’ve been waiting on this a long time. And we’re finally here,” Stokes said. “I feel good about it. And a lot of people feel good about it. It’s a great thing and it’s a lot of fun to do.”

Stokes said the number of people looking for Saints detailing has increased throughout the season and has “boomed” since the playoffs have begun.

He said the most popular thing people have been wanting on their cars is the team logo. But he also said fans have been asking for any and everything possible.

“That’s what’s hot right now – the Saints,” he said. “Some people want their full cars black and gold with the symbols on the doors. There are no limitations. Just everything you can think of Saints – that’s what they want. That’s what we give them.”

Saints fan Patrick Whetsell is one of many that is buying into Saints-mania.

Whetsell, who owns Imagine Design Group in Houma, said he had an idea during the season to put his creative skills to the test.

“I was thinking to myself, ‘I already have this black truck, why not do something cool with it?'” he said. “So I got the idea together and I’d been seeing all of these people putting out their Saints stuff. I figured I’d join in.”

The result? He used his sign-making capabilities to place a Drew Brees decal on the back of his truck that reads “Drew Dat.” He also placed a Saints’ Fleur de Lis symbol next to the decal.

Many in the Houma area have seen his truck as it is frequently parked outside of his shop on West Park Avenue, across the street from Cannata’s.

“I’m just a killer Drew Brees fan,” he said. “I just thought it’d look cool with my black truck. I was just trying to do my best to show some Saints pride.”

Whetsell said Imagine Design Group does not offer the Saints-related truck designs to clients, but said he has been overwhelmed with the support he has seen for the team this season.

“Everyone is getting into it this year,” he said. “Even if some of them are bandwagon people, it’s still cool. It’s cool all-around. Everywhere you look, you see the flags flapping from windows or the banners flying off of trucks. It’s been pretty special.”

Another area booming with the team’s success is the tattoo industry as members of the “Who Dat Nation” are rushing out in droves to get their Saints ink.

Gina Ashley with New Era Tattoos in Houma, said demand for Saints tattoos has boomed since the team’s NFC Championship victory last Sunday.

“We’ve been doing 5-10 a day at least,” she said. “It’s been pretty crazy.”

Ashley, whose husband Scott Ashley is a tattoo artist for New Era Tattoos, said most people are getting Saints tattoos with their fellow Saints fans.

“We’ve had a lot of groups,” she said. “One day I had a group of three. One day, I had a group of five. People are coming with their friends.”

Ashley said like with cars, the most popular item they are tattooing is the team logo.

But fans have also been personalizing their designs with the Super Bowl.

“The most basic is the logo, but some have their own styles,” she said. “We have plenty of them they can choose from … and a lot of people are wanting things like ‘Who Dat Nation,’ ‘I bleed Black and Gold,’ and ‘Super Bowl XLIV’. Whatever you can think of, they’re putting it on there.”

The hoopla all comes during the on-going controversy between the NFL and Saints fans regarding the use of the Fleur de Lis and the phrase “Who Dat.”

The NFL sent letters to businesses last week saying they owned the two Saints stalwarts and saying a retailers’ use of those items without the NFL’s permission is a violation of federal or state trademarks.

After drawing heat from Saints fans and even local politicians, the NFL waved the white flag on Monday and said they are going to back off their ownership claims to the two items.

Dr. A.J. dela Houssaye (right) and his coworker Michael Kliebert (left) pose in drag with Saints radio personality Bobby Hebert outside of Copeland’s last Tuesday. The attire was in honor of the team advancing to its first-ever Super Bowl. * Photo courtesy of A.J. de la HOUSSEYE