When New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton picked two random fans from the crowd to be guest captains during practice, he had no idea how special it would be.

One of the fans was Terry Gaddison Jr. from New Iberia, who wasn't sure he would be able to make it to the practice due to flood waters affecting the homes of his family members and even reaching his patio. Everyone was fine, so Gaddison made the trip.

The other fan chosen by Payton was Rachel Masters from Houma. Masters almost didn't make it either after having to be convinced by her daughter Sylvia to take the hour-long drive to attend their first-ever Saints practice.

Masters lost her husband less than two weeks ago to cancer, and before that had taken a leave from her work as an interior designer to care for him. To say the grieving widow's spirits were lifted when she was chosen by Coach Payton would be an understatement.

Payton let the guest captains call a coin toss in the middle of a crowd of players and they even got to cross lines and meet with the players outside the team locker room after practice.

Gaddison brought his black and gold Saints hard hat and by the time the players were done walking past him it was covered in dozens of signatures. The hard hat is the one Gaddison wore daily to work, but according to the 36-year-old salt mine worker, "It won't be any more."

When Masters got back into the stands she told her daughter, 'I wish I could tell dad.'

Her daughter Sylvia replied, "He already knows."

 

 

 

More From Highway 98.9