NFL royalty takes in annual Dogs’ Breakfast fundraiser

A key player in “The Greatest Show on Turf” made a stop in Saskatoon on Thursday.

Pro Football Hall of Famer and NFL legend Marshall Faulk was the guest speaker at the 21st annual Dogs’ Breakfast, and thousands were at Prairieland Park to support the University of Saskatchewan Huskies football program.

Faulk played 12 seasons in the NFL, amassing more than 12,000 rushing yards and 6,000 receiving yards during a career that featured stops with the Indianapolis Colts and St. Louis Rams.

The running back was a seven-time Pro Bowl selection, the 2000 NFL MVP and part of the Super Bowl-champion Rams team that was dubbed “The Greatest Show on Turf.”

“We got a lot of the recognition (on offence), but when you look at that team, we were so good on special teams. People never really paid attention to that. It’s the greatest team sport there is,” Faulk said.

With all of his success on the field, Faulk said it was important to show his support because the players get so much out of the experience off the field as well.

“All the athletes might not make it to play professional football, but they’ll all definitely go out and do something professional in life,” Faulk said.

“Although football is a game, it teaches you as a game (and) basically how to play the game of life and how the similarities are. I use the game of football to basically live my life with the discipline, the commitment and all the things you need in order to be successful,” he added.

The Dogs’ Breakfast is aimed at helping support the program and making scholarships available to the student-athletes.

The timing of the breakfast is also important, as the Huskies will welcome 21 new recruits for spring camp when it opens Thursday.

“These are going to be leaders in the community for years to come. These are outstanding young men of high character and we’re very proud of them and we just want to be able to reciprocate the support we get,” Huskies head coach Scott Flory said.

Flory said it was a great opportunity for his players to listen to Faulk and his experience in the NFL.

“(The thing) I’ll be reiterating to them (Thursday night) is be a good teammate. It’s not about you,” Flory said.

“(Faulk) had to learn that when he went from (Indianapolis) to St. Louis. It wasn’t about him, it’s about the team. And when athletes figure that out, it is so empowering.”

The Huskies will be working to get back to the Vanier Cup in 2023 after earning back-to-back berths the previous two seasons.

Linebacker Nick Wiebe said the Huskies have been itching to get back on the field since their loss in the 2022 Vanier Cup.

“We’ve been waiting to get back on the field since Nov. 26 at 6 o’clock at night. There were a lot of tears shed in the locker room obviously, so I think everybody’s been ready to go for a long time,” Wiebe said.

While the losses loom large, the players have to stay true to their identity in order to get back to the U Sports final.

“It’s easy to dwell on those losses, but I think it’s important to note we were 10-and-2 last year, (and) back-to-back Hardy Cup champions as well. So, as much as we need to come into this year with a chip on our shoulder, I think we need to remember who we are,” Wiebe said.

That success on the field has opened some doors for Flory to recruit and attract out-of-province players to Saskatchewan.

“There’s no doubt they know who we are. I get way more emails, that’s for sure,” Flory said.

But that’s a good problem to have.

“Choice is good. I’d rather pick from a basket of apples than just one apple,” added Flory, who noted that 70 per cent of the roster is still from Saskatchewan.

The Huskies will hold their spring camp this weekend before opening the regular season Sept. 1 against the University of Manitoba Bisons. Saskatchewan is to play its first home game on Sept. 8 against the University of Regina Rams.