BALTIMORE – Baltimore Ravens center Mike Flynn was going through his mail in the clubhouse before a morning workout not long ago when he opened a package and, to his surprise and delight, discovered that the magazine “Irish America” had judged him among the top 100 Irish Americans last year.

Flynn, a former University of Maine standout, read that the honorees included “people in all walks of life … stories of human courage, devotion to children’s causes and finding peace in Northern Ireland.”

Flattered, Flynn removed the Waterford crystal that came with the citation. He smiled and said: “It’s amazing what winning the Super Bowl does. Now I’m a world ambassador.”

Amazing might be slightly understating what victory in Super Bowl XXXV has meant to the Ravens’ organization, its players and staff as they prepare for the opening of training camp Sunday.

“Coach [Brian] Billick told us before the game even started that our lives would never be the same,” said middle linebacker Ray Lewis. “He didn’t lie.”

For owner Art Modell, it’s been vindication for causing so much turmoil by hauling his franchise out of Cleveland five years ago.

“If I knew it was going to be this much fun,” he said, “I’d have done it 35 years ago.”

Modell was referring to the age of the Super Bowl. His Cleveland Browns won pro football’s ultimate game in 1964 by beating the Baltimore Colts, but all it was called at the time was the NFL championship. Still, after winning what he calls “The Big Enchilada,” Modell has not hogged the trophy named in honor of his dear friend, Vince Lombardi.

What the Ravens have done with the trophy helps explain their attitude toward rising from one of the worst teams in the NFL to the best in five seasons. Every player and team official either has had or will have it for at least a day, said team president David Modell, who initiated this populist view.

Thousands of Ravens fans have had their pictures taken with the trophy and it will tour area communities in the early fall.

David Modell even has a pet name for the trophy: “Big Silver Betty.”

“There is a definite aura and magic about that trophy,” he said, “so I don’t know why that came out of my mouth. But (making the trophy so available) is consistent with how we operate this franchise.”

As a practical matter, Big Silver Betty helps the Ravens make money. Since the Super Bowl, they have sold nearly 3,000 personal seat licenses, which give the persons who buy them the right to purchase an equal number of season tickets. They also sold about 700 more club-level seats, and four suites are being added to the 108 already at PSINet Stadium.

Few Ravens were fully prepared for the Super Bowl afterglow.

Wide receiver Brandon Stokley was startled to end up in the featured float during two Mardi Gras affairs in his Louisiana hometown.