Players' associations release Haiti relief PSA
Players from the four major sports leagues went in front of the camera for Haiti earthquake relief.
The players' associations for the NFL, NBA, NHL and Major League Baseball released a public service announcement Monday promoting an aid campaign for earthquake-ravaged Haiti.
Shaun Alexander and Kevin Mawae appear in the 30-second spot ``One Team 4 Haiti.'' Samuel Dalembert and Derek Fisher represent NBA players in the announcement, which also features baseball's Albert Pujols and Tim Lincecum, and hockey's Alex Ovechkin and Georges Laraque.
Haiti was devastated by a magnitude-7.0 earthquake on Jan. 12.
The players' associations partnered with the Clinton-Bush Haiti Fund for the campaign.
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NOT QUITE A HOMECOMING: New Orleans linebacker Jonathan Vilma was a star at the University of Miami and is considered by many to be one of the Hurricanes' all-time linebacking greats.
Obviously, he's excited to be back in Miami. But he's trying to not let it overly affect him.
``It means something, but I'm not letting myself think about it,'' Vilma said. ``It's a business trip, you know.''
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BANNED ITEMS: Football fans take note - umbrellas are out for the big game on Sunday.
For that matter, so are fireworks, beach balls and flying discs.
Other items prohibited in Sun Life Stadium on Super Bowl Sunday included backpacks, strollers, laser pointers and coolers, according to information released Monday. Bottles and cans were on the banned list, as were camcorders, pepper spray, horns, poles and sticks.
``The message is, for the fans, please be patient with us,'' Broward County Sheriff Al Lamberti said. ``We're just looking out for your safety. Because as we've heard before, we have to be successful 100 percent of the time, the bad guys only have to get lucky once.''
Camera and binocular cases also won't be allowed in the stadium.
``We don't allow those in for the reason that they're hard to screen,'' NFL vice president of security Milt Ahlerich said. ``We need to be sure there's nothing being brought in in these things. So they will be prohibited at the gates.''
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TOURISM: Party on, South Florida.
Though the economy played a ``huge role'' in planning the Super Bowl, local organizers said entertaining is back in style, much more than it was during last year's game in Tampa, when events were canceled and guest lists reduced.
``The parties are back on, there's no question. ... Some of the corporations and organizations that had canceled in Tampa, for a variety of reasons, they're back on,'' Nicki Grossman, president of the Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention and Visitors Bureau said. ``Their events are all scheduled. Parties are not a problem this time around. We're very enthusiastic that the economy may take a vacation for this next week.''
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NAPOLITANO ON SECURITY: U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, in town to tour the Super Bowl stadium, downplayed the impact of the failed bombing of a Detroit-bound airliner on the game's security plans.
``I don't think the Christmas Day attempted bombing has had affect,'' Napolitano said. ``These plans have been in place for several years. And they keep getting worked and refined the closer you get to the game. But the event in Detroit had no direct impact.''
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BAD JOKE OF THE DAY: The Saints' Reggie Bush on whether the rain affected his team in any way: ``Well, it put a damper on things.''
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Associated Press Sports Writer Tim Reynolds in Miami contributed to this report.