Published: July 02, 2008 10:33 am         

Saints return to Jackson for camp

JACKSON— The New Orleans Saints are set to return to the Millsaps College campus for training camp on Wednesday, July 23 for almost three weeks of two-a-day practices in preparation for the upcoming 2008 season.

This is the Saints’ third consecutive year to come to Millsaps College’s Jackson campus for an away training camp. Following the team’s first visit to Millsaps for training camp in 2006, the Saints’ made their first-ever appearance in the NFC Championship Game and became the South Division Champions for that year.

“We look forward to the excitement that always comes with having the New Orleans Saints on campus,” said Millsaps College President Frances Lucas. “This is a great opportunity for fans to come see a professional football team and see the Millsaps campus.”

The two-a-day practices, which begin at 8:50 a.m. most mornings and 3:40 or 4:20 p.m. most afternoons, are free and open to the public. The team will conduct 29 practices on the campus starting at 8:50 a.m. on Thursday, July 24.

“I have always been a proponent of holding training camp away, and Millsaps has done a wonderful job in hosting us,” said Coach Sean Payton. “It is close enough for our fans in New Orleans to drive to Jackson and see us practice, and the people of Jackson have been tremendously supportive. We look forward to starting up again soon.”

During their stay, the Saints players will lift weights in the Maurice H. Hall Activities Center, practice on the NCAA Division III fields, eat in the cafeteria and stay in three of the college’s residence halls.

A special practice for the team’s Family Day will be held at the Jackson Memorial Stadium on Saturday, August 2, and the team will take a day off on August 3. The team will leave campus on Wednesday, August 6 for a preseason game against the Arizona Cardinals on Thursday, August 7 at the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Ariz.

The team will break camp on Tuesday, August 12 and return to New Orleans for three practices with the Houston Texans before their preseason game on Saturday, August 16 at the Louisiana Superdome.

For additional information and scheduling updates on the Saints’ training camp at Millsaps College, check out the Saints’ website at www.neworleanssaints.com, or Millsaps’ website at www.millsaps.edu

Media alerts, updates and schedule changes will be made daily once the training camp begins.

The 15,000 tickets made available in the second general admission sale for the NFL’s overseas regular-season game on October 26 at Wembley Stadium in London, England sold in 30 minutes. Last month, the first 40,000 tickets for the game between the San Diego Chargers and New Orleans Saints sold out in 90 minutes.

“Once again this demonstrates the huge interest in the sport in the UK,” said Alistari Kirkwood, managing director of the NFL’s UK office. “Fans here are excited to be able to see two teams of this caliber playing in the UK, and with a full Wembley Stadium, we expect the atmosphere to be electric when the Saints and Chargers take the field.”



The NFL has committed to playing at least one game in the UK for each of the next three seasons, beginning with this year’s matchup of teams who have each come within one game of reaching the Super Bowl in the past two seasons.



The New York Giants and Miami Dolphins played the NFL's first regular-season game outside North America last year, when a sellout crowd of 81,176 packed Wembley Stadium on Sunday, October 28. The Giants earned a 13-10 win en route to capturing a Super Bowl title.