NEWARK, DEL. — NEWARK, DEL. - There's an old bar in town, popular with college students and just about everyone else, called Deer Park Tavern, located on Main Street. Legend suggests that Edgar Allan Poe might have composed parts of "The Raven" here.
While Poe enthusiasts can't confirm that, we do know this about Newark: It need not be the formal birthplace of "The Raven"; it has most certainly served as backdrop for the resurrection of the Ravens.
In fact, in the office of Delaware football coach K.C. Keeler is a letter. It arrived last month, originating from the desk of Eric DeCosta, the Ravens' director of college scouting. At the bottom is a handwritten, playful P.S.:
"Thanks for saving our franchise. Joe is even better than I thought."
Joe Flacco, an unassuming wunderkind whose right arm might someday require a government license, sprouted from the University of Delaware campus, and in turn, not long after, the Ravens were resuscitated - now just one game away from the Super Bowl.
You knew that already. But what about this:
For all the talk about how a rookie quarterback had never before won two playoff games, maybe there's a simple explanation. How many quarterbacks actually enter the postseason of their rookie season and already have playoff experience under their belt? Because he played his college ball at Delaware, Flacco did. Suddenly, coming from a Division I-AA school - or Football Championship Subdivision school - doesn't seem like such a bad thing, does it? Unlike big schools who claw and clamor their way into meaningless bowl games, Flacco and his former Delaware teammates know all about the trials of playoff football.
"Putting yourself in a situation where it's winner takes all, where someone is going to be collecting their equipment the day after the game and you don't want that person to be you - Joe understands that mentality," Keeler says.
To hear Keeler describe it, Flacco seems to be built for the playoffs. His Delaware team entered the postseason a year ago with an attitude similar to the one the Ravens have had these past several weeks. It's an intense focus that refuses to extend past the very next opponent.
A year ago, there were no printed brackets posted around the Blue Hens' locker room. No one talked about the quarterfinals or semis. When they watched the selection show, they turned off the TV after their name was called.
