Jacob Mayer

As New Orleans prepares to host its tenth Super Bowl, Jacob Mayer is taking a look back at the city's rich Super Bowl history. Stay tuned to Morning Edition and All Things Considered all this week for stories from the Big Game.

On an overcast January day in New Orleans in 1970, the Kansas City Chiefs defeated the Minnesota Vikings 23-7 in the fourth annual AFL-NFL World Championship Game, better known as Super Bowl IV.

The Louisiana State University Fighting Tigers face off against the Clemson Tigers tonight at 6:30 p.m. in a stand-alone primetime matchup in the Chick-fil-A Bowl in Atlanta’s Georgia Dome.

LSU (10-2) is ranked 8th in the BCS poll and finished second in the Southeastern Conference Western Division, while Clemson (10-2), ranked 14th, shared first place in the Atlantic Coast Conference Atlantic Division with Florida State.

The Carolina Panthers defeated the New Orleans Saints 44-38 Sunday, in a wild game at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome to close out the season.

The Saints will finish the 2012 regular season tied with the Panthers and Buccaneers for second (and last) place in the NFC South Division with a 7-9 record.

Panthers running back DeAngelo Williams rushed for a staggering 210 yards, including a 65-yard burst in the first half and a 54-yard touchdown gash in the second half.

The New Orleans Saints will face the Carolina Panthers in the 2012 season finale Sunday at noon in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.

Neither team can clinch a playoff berth with a victory, but both teams are riding winning streaks and looking to build momentum going into next season.

With a victory, the Saints can even the all-time series history between the two teams at 18 wins apiece.

The Saints have won four of their last five meetings with the Panthers, but Carolina defeated the Saints earlier this season, 35-27 at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte.

The New Orleans Saints defeated the Dallas Cowboys 34-31 in overtime Sunday at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, TX.

Despite the win, the Saints’ NFC playoff hopes ended when the Minnesota Vikings defeated the Houston Texans.

The Saints seem comfortable in their spoiler role, however, as they dealt a gigantic blow to their neighboring state rivals, dropping the Cowboys’ record to 8-7, a game behind division leader Washington.

The Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin’ Cajuns defeated the East Carolina Pirates 43-34 on Saturday in a wildly-entertaining 12th edition of the R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in front of a record crowd.

Ragin’ Cajuns fans packed the Superdome for ULL’s second consecutive New Orleans Bowl championship. The official attendance for Saturday’s game was 48,828, beating last year’s record-setting crowd by more than 6,000 fans.

The Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin’ Cajuns will face the East Carolina Pirates Saturday at 11 a.m. in the 12th annual R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.

ECU is playing in its first New Orleans Bowl, while ULL is making its second consecutive appearance.

Both teams are familiar with the venue, as ULL defeated San Diego State in a 32-30 thriller in last season’s New Orleans Bowl, and ECU defeated Tulane 28-23 at the Superdome just last month.

The Saints dismantled the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 41-0 in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome Sunday afternoon.

Both teams entered Sunday’s matchup hoping to build on fading playoff hopes, but the Saints crushed the Bucs in dominating fashion to claim their first shutout since a 12-0 victory over the New York Jets on Christmas Eve in 1995.

Drew Brees broke out of his recent slump, throwing for 307 yards and four touchdowns and zero interceptions.

The New Orleans Saints return home this week for a Sunday afternoon matchup in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome against division rivals Tampa Bay.

It’s been a rollercoaster season for the Buccaneers and the Saints as both two clubs come into this weekend’s matchup clinging to very slim playoff hopes.

The two teams met earlier this season in Tampa, where the Saints escaped with a wild 35-28 victory in a game that featured a dramatic goal-line stand by the Saints’ defense and a game-tying touchdown by the Bucs waved off due to a penalty on the last play of the game.

The Saints dropped their third straight game to the New York Giants, 52-27 at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.

The Saints’ turnover woes continued, and the Giants capitalized on early fumbles by Marques Colston and Jed Collins, and two second-half interceptions by Drew Brees. But the Saints defense struck first when defensive back Elbert Mack intercepted Eli Manning for a 73-yard touchdown return early in the first quarter.