Arizona Cardinals safety Aaron Francisco will fly home today with peace of mind and a smile on his face.

Despite a heartbreaking 27-23 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers in Sunday's Super Bowl, Francisco said he "will be coming home a happy man. We did all we could do. We left it all out there. We're still going to get an NFC ring."

Francisco was one of three Hawai'i players who competed in the Super Bowl, joining teammate Travis LaBoy and Pittsburgh guard Chris Kemoeatu. But the former Kahuku High star was the most visible and will always be part of one of the greatest games and greatest plays in Super Bowl history — Santonio Holmes' 6-yard touchdown catch in which Francisco almost gets to the Steeler receiver in time to prevent a score.

Francisco also knocked down a long pass at the two-minute mark, slipped in coverage on Holmes' 40-yard catch and run to the 6, and was on the receiving end of a blatant personal foul by Steeler All-Pro outside linebacker James Harrison.

But it's the touchdown catch with 35 seconds left that will keep him in everyone's consciousness. The picture of Holmes tiptoeing the sidelines as Francisco is pushing him out was circulated worldwide.

Francisco said it was a play Pittsburgh had run before and describes the play.

"We were in quarters coverage. The two cornerbacks have the outside quarter (of the field) and two inside safeties have the two middle quarters of the field," Francisco said.

He said the Steelers ran a "flat 7 or flat sail," where one receiver runs a flat and the other runs a deeper route behind the receiver who runs the flat.

Francisco said on a play like that, the safety won't get to the play "if the receiver is that far in the corner. (The safety) is never going to get there to make a play on the ball."

Francisco said, "I see the sail coming. I look ... I don't see our corner there, so I'm hauling my butt over there, hopefully, just to disrupt the play. It was a throw only his receiver could make. He (quarterback Ben Roethlisberger) made a perfect throw. I did as much as I could do."

Francisco said Roethlisberger continually got the Cardinals defense out of position with his pump fakes.

Some quarterbacks, Francisco said, give a shoulder pump that "you don't buy into. His are more realistic.

"He's one of the better quarterbacks in the league that does that. It was frustrating for our defense. "

But the play that drew a lot of postgame chatter was the play in which Harrison — the league's defensive MVP — hit Francisco late during a punt late in the game.

When the hit was replayed, FOX announcer John Madden said that Harrison should have been thrown out of the game. Later on a national radio talk show, host Jason Smith devoted a segment to the play, ripping Harrison and calling it the classless play of the season.

During the play, Francisco blocked Harrison at the thighs and stayed on the ground on all fours. Harrison hit him in the back, held Francisco down in the same position. After the whistle, Francisco got up and Harrison threw a right at Francisco, knocking him down. Harrison was called for unnecessary roughness. But since the punt was downed at around the 1, Pittsburgh was penalized only half the distance to the goal. Statistically, it was recorded as a 1-yard penalty.

"James Harrison is a great player, just not a classy guy, as he showed the world on that cheap shot he took on me," Francisco said. "It was nothing I said or did to provoke him to do something like that, he did it all on his own. The whistle had already blown; as I started to get up, he knocked me down intentionally. I don't know why he wasn't ejected. I don't make the calls. Even though I had the urge to retaliate, I didn't want to do anything to hurt my team during a crucial time in the game. Being a captain of this football team it's my job to be smart in situations like that."

The 6-foot-2, 208-pound Francisco, however, has put that incident and the game behind him.

"What's done is done already. I'm not gonna sit here and dwell on it any more. There's nothing we do that can change it," he said. "We shouldn't let that loss overshadow all the accomplishments we made during the season."

Francisco will return to Hawai'i to help with the Pro Bowl activities then spend some time at home in La'ie.

Francisco, who lives in Arizona with his wife and son, played on Kahuku's 2000 state championship team with Kemoeatu and University of Hawai'i quarterback Inoke Funaki.

"I spoke with him (Kemoeatu) before the game, wished him luck and wished him well," Francisco said. "After the game I didn't bother him. I sent him a text message congratulating him and his team and what a great game they played."

Francisco said Funaki "sent me a text, too, earlier in the week, congratulating me."

What Francisco is most looking forward to is kicking back.

"I'm gonna come home, enjoy my time off," he said. "(This was) the 33rd week since training camp. We played 24 games, including preseason. Just happy to come home and enjoy being a regular person."