Broncos coach Sean Payton to headline 22nd Dogs’ Breakfast in Saskatoon

A Super Bowl champion and NFL coach-of-the-year winner is set to speak at the 22nd annual Huskie Football Foundation Dogs’ Breakfast.

On Wednesday, the foundation announced that Denver Broncos head coach and former New Orleans Saints coach Sean Payton will be the guest speaker at this year’s breakfast on May 2.

“We expect to sell a lot of tickets to the Dogs’ Breakfast,” said Mike Gartner, past chairman of the Huskies Football Foundation.

“We expect to have a sold-out venue at Prairieland Park, and I’m sure he’ll sit down with the players of the Huskies football team (and) with coach Scott Flory and provide whatever insight he can into the game of football.”

Gartner said the foundation was able to land a big-name guest like Payton after the success the event saw with NFL running back Marshall Faulk last year.

“Our focus last year was on getting Marshall Faulk up here to be the guest speaker at the Dogs’ Breakfast, and we wanted to continue on with an NFL player, celebrity or coach,” Gartner explained.

“We were lucky – we go out there and check with different people that we know, and I think Faulk actually helped us because he was here. It helps the other people down in the NFL understand where Saskatoon is and want to attend our breakfast.”

Flory was amped up to hear the news that an established NFL head coach will get the chance to speak to his team and the crowd at Prairieland.

“In the coaching realm, this is as big of name as it gets,” Flory said. “He’s a current NFL head coach, and it’s remarkable for us and the program, and it further cements credibility of the foundation.”

Flory said Payton accepting the invitation speaks volumes about both him and the foundation.

“He’s a busy man with a tight time schedule. To be able to carve out time to come here for us is very important,” he added. “I think it shows you the character of him and the character of our program.”

Payton will be speaking at the breakfast a week after the NFL draft concludes.

Gartner added that the event is important for the university’s football program, as it helps funds expenses and the scholarships which let the program recruit some of the best football talent in the country.

“We fund a significant portion of the annual scholarships for the Huskies football team, and we’ve been doing that since the year 2000,” Gartner said.

“We’re hoping that getting a high-profile name like Sean Payton here to Saskatoon is going to help elevate the brand of the Dogs’ Breakfast and raise more money for the team.”

When the announcement was made, Payton spoke in a video saying how he was excited to get to Saskatoon and help get some good exposure for the football program.

Outside of football, Payton is the author of the best-selling book ‘Home Team: Coaching the Saints and New Orleans Back to Life’ and established Payton’s Play it Forward Foundation, which focuses on improving the lives of children and families in health, education and social welfare.

Tickets for the breakfast are available for purchase now. Tables start at $1,300, while individual tickets cost $170.