Monday football roundup: Short Ben Garland update, bad Big East news, Army film in heavy rotation
May 14th, 2012 | Air Force Army Football Navy nfl | Posted by Kevin Lilley
Air Force Academy grad Ben Garland talks to reporters Sunday after minicamp workouts in Denver. (US Presswire photo by Ron Chenoy)
A few service academy-related football notes to start off your week:
1. Praise from high places: We promised you updates on Air Force 2nd Lt. Ben Garland’s quest for an NFL job with the Denver Broncos, so we pass this along from Frank Schwab at The (Colorado Springs, Colo.) Gazette. Denver head coach John Fox offered some short remarks on Garland’s stellar work ethic during a post-rookie workout news conference late last week. Judging from the picture in that first link, the Air Force Academy grad’s strength and conditioning won’t be an issue.
2. Conference calamity: Speaking of early outs, they’re not just for academy grads anymore — the University of Pittsburgh is suing the Big East to escape the league a year earlier than planned. Pitt wants to join the Atlantic Coast Conference in 2013 instead of 2014. According to The Associated Press, Pitt will argue that it shouldn’t have to adhere to the league’s 27-month waiting period before shifting conferences because the Big East recently allowed West Virginia to bolt for the Big 12 without a wait. Syracuse is slated to leave for the ACC with Pitt in 2014; the results of Pitt’s case — a school spokesman told AP the goal still was to settle the matter out of court — could alter the Orange’s plans.
Also, CBSSports.com’s Brett McMurphy, who has been breaking all kinds of news on the changing college conference landscape, reports that Boise State hasn’t pulled the trigger on its departure from the Mountain West Conference — something it must do by the end of next month to join the Big East as a football-only member as planned in 2013. Instead of explaining the move away, a school spokesman simply told McMurphy: “We are actively monitoring the changing landscape in college athletics and remain committed to making the best long-term decisions for Boise State.” Navy will enter the Big East as a football-only member in 2015.
3. Documentary deluge. Did you miss “Army Spring Football Mission: Fort Benning,” a documentary on CBS Sports Network that traces the Black Knights on the road to their historic spring game? Well, get the DVR ready or just find CBSSN on your local cable provider; the documentary is in heavy rotation. When you can catch it this week (all times Eastern, per the CBSSN website): Monday at 4 p.m.; Tuesday at 7 a.m. and 5 p.m.; Wednesday at 9 a.m. and 4 p.m.; and Thursday at 5 p.m. and 8 p.m.
West Point grad signs with Titans
May 2nd, 2012 | Army Football nfl | Posted by Phil Creed
Collin Mooney tries to slip through Navy tacklers during the 2008 Army-Navy game. ( Eric Hartline/US PRESSWIRE)
Here’s more red meat for those that hate seeing service grads leave active duty early to play pro sports. Collin Mooney, a 2009 West Point graduate, has become the latest former service academy star to be picked up by an NFL team, signing with the Tennessee Titans on Tuesday, according to the team’s website.
Mooney has completed three years of his five-year service commitment, which allows him to apply for early release from active-duty per official DoD policy (academy grads must serve 24 months on active duty before being granted their release). According to the Titans website, Mooney has filed the paperwork for his release, but the process is still ongoing.
Mooney, who set an Army single-season rushing record in 2009, becomes the third service academy graduate to join an NFL team this offseason. Lt. j.g. Eric Kettani (Patriots) and Air Force Lt. Ben Garland (Broncos) will also be trying to make rosters when training camp rolls around.
Last summer Mooney was given a tryout by the Lions, but was not signed.
Earlier this week another Army vet, Morkeith Brown, signed a free agent contract with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Brown, a 6-foot 6-inch, 270-pound defensive end, served as an enlisted soldier before playing college football at Temple.
Last season there were only three vets in the NFL — former Tennessee Titans fullback Ahmard Hall (Marine Corps), Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Chad Hall (Air Force), and linebacker Caleb Campbell (Army), who split time with multiple teams and is now with the Kansas City Chiefs.
If you’ve never seen Mooney play, here’s a 15-minute (!) highlight video of his blocking:
Jeff George to QB in game benefiting wounded warriors group
January 26th, 2012 | After Action Football nfl | Posted by Andy Charest
Gunslingin’ quarterback Jeff George is making a comeback — again.
No, not with the Colts, Raiders or Redskins — but instead on a field where his talents can do the most good.
George, an Indianapolis native, is set to play in a Feb. 1 flag football game pitting military amputees against former NFL players. The game will benefit Wounded Warrior Amputees (if you’re in the Indy area and want to check it out, tickets are $20 and can be purchased here).
George has tight military connections, with his brother-in-law and father-in-law both Army officers.
The quarterback played for several NFL teams over his 14-year career, and was always highly touted for his deep-passing skill. Run-ins with coaches — including a famous flare-up with Atlanta Falcons coach June Jones in 1996 — clashed with his genuine talent, though, and George was labeled an enigma during the last half of his time in the league.
Still, you can’t argue with throws like this.
And on Feb. 1, with flag football not exactly a run-first game, fans can expect some aerial fireworks courtesy of George’s golden arm.
Here’s an old ESPN piece with some highlights of George’s stint with his hometown Indianapolis Colts.
Chad Hall chips in for the Eagles’ W
November 21st, 2011 | Air Force nfl | Posted by David Larter
Chad Hall, shown here after catching a touchdown pass in a game against the Cowboys last season, played last night against the Giants. (AP Photo/Michael Perez)
Former Air Force Falcons standout Chad Hall put together 20 of the Philadelphia Eagles 391 yards in last night’s 17-10 win over the New York Giants.
The Eagles activated Hall from the practice squad last Wednesday after star receiver Jeremy Maclin was injured.
Hall told the Eagles’ website that the game helped him get his feet back.
“It felt great. We got the W and there is no better feeling than that. I got back in the groove and it felt good to help,” said Hall. “They gave me pretty much the same package as last year — a little bit of running back, some receiver and a couple of punt returns.
“Anything they want me to do, I’m going to do.”
Hall went on to say he was committed to digging the Eagles out of the hole they find themselves in. Philadelphia will have to run the table over the next 6 games to be reasonably assured of a playoff berth. If the Eagles continue to loose wide receivers to injury, Hall will only become more important.
Barnes back with ship after stint with Patriots
September 21st, 2011 | Football nfl | Posted by Phil Creed
Former Navy wide reciever Tyree Barnes is back at his old job on the destroyer Gonzalez after getting cut by the New England Patriots in August, NESN.com reported today. Barnes can leave the ship if another team wants to sign him, according to the report.
Barnes had left Gonzalez earlier this summer to tryout for the Patriots. He had served the mandatory two years on active duty required by DoD policy before being able to play professional sports, and reported to Patriots camp along with fellow Navy teammate Eric Kettani. Both players had been signed by New England as undrafted free agents in 2009 and then placed on the team’s Reserve/Military list.
Kettani, who battled an injury in camp, was released by New England in the final preaseason cuts and was subsequently signed to the practice squad. He’s the only USNA graduate currently on a NFL roster. There are only two other service academy grads currently in the league: Army’s Caleb Campbell is on the Indianapolis Colts practice squad, while Air Force’s Chad Hall is on the Philadelphia Eagles practice squad.
Catching up on Twitter, NFL lockout edition
July 25th, 2011 | Football nfl | Posted by Mike Hoffman
The NFL lockout is over so ESPN can mercifully retire the same photo of the locked gate holding back the dirty snow we saw over and over and over again. But this also means our favorite former service academy stars can return to the field and NFL teams can invite recent graduates who will try to catch a coach’s eye before returning to active duty.
Sure, this is probably the lazy way to go but let’s see what the players are up to via the Twittersphere now that the NFL’s has announced that football’s back and we can go back to ignoring women’s soccer.
Former Zoomie running back/wide receiver and current Philadelphia Eagle Chad Hall tweeted that he drove up to Philadelphia on July 22 in anticipation that the lockout would end. July 23, he got “Back in Philly!” where he made the accurate observation that it is “So hot!” but still completed a “Good track workout [July 23],” before making “time for some good food.” Maybe a good ole’ Philly cheese steak?
Then Sunday night, Hall saw the movie Horrible Bosses, which he said was “hilarious.” On Monday, he had “good workout with some of the teammates this morning.” On Wednesday he and the rest of the Eagles will report to training camp at Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pa.
Former Army Black Knight and current Detroit Lions linebacker Caleb Campbell was less generous with his schedule and thoughts on the lockout. He’s happy to get back on the field, though. Monday afternoon he wrote, “Time to go to work. Blessed to have another opportunity to play the game that I love.”
Campbell hasn’t made it back to Motown quite yet. He spend Monday visiting a church in Tulsa, Okla., according to his Twitter account.
The players who might have been the most nervously anticipating the end of the lockout were the players who didn’t get drafted and had to wait for the lockout to end before teams could sign them. Many of these players included service academy stars who often receive invites from NFL teams, such as former Air Force Academy defensive lineman Ben Garland. Most players use the entirety of their leave to attend the camps.
This year another Air Force star, Reggie Rembert, is likely to get a few calls from NFL teams. According to his Twitter feed he hasn’t heard from any teams, although he retweeted ESPN reporter Adam Schefter’s tweet that the lockout had ended.
NFL owners using service members as boo cover?
April 28th, 2011 | Football nfl | Posted by Mike Hoffman
NFL ownership isn’t the most popular group right now. It’s tough for most Americans to sympathize with a group of billionaires who want more money even though their league is the nation’s most popular.
Many owners are worried NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell will get booed Thursday night when he steps to the podium at the NFL draft to announce each team’s selections. Goddell is paid by the owners to oversee their league.
Booing Goodell means the raucous crowd that attends the draft at Madison Square Garden supports the players. The owners can’t have that.
Who or what can the owners put on stage with Goodell to keep fans from booing him?
Kittens? Nah, too many dog people out there. Grandmas? No, they go to bed too early and the NFL changed the format to suck every last dollar out of this event so they’re broadcasting the first and second rounds during primetime.
How about service members? You can’t boo the guys who risk their lives to protect this country, can you? Of course not. The owners even thought enough of the troops to allow one to announce a pick in the third round Friday night.
Better idea: Keep Goodell off stage and let the troops who spend years at a time away from their family make all the picks in the first round. Put your thinking caps on NFL.
Troops have been honored in past drafts, but all those cynics out there (and I guess I must be one too) suspect the reason the NFL wants to honor service members Thursday night is to prevent a PR nightmare scenario for the owners. They can’t have one of their crown jewel events turned into a chip for the players to use against the owners at the bargaining table.
The real question, though, might be how Mel Kiper’s hair will react to a draft where his Big Board isn’t the big story.
Past and present veterans in the NFL
December 4th, 2010 | Air Force Army Football Marine Corps Navy nfl | Posted by militaryonline
Army Times staffer John Ryan recently was thinking: Who in the NFL right now has endured overseas duty during wartime, and who else has served in any capacity?
After the jump, he offers up a list of vets who are now on the gridiron.
Giants player compares booing football players to booing troops
December 3rd, 2010 | Afghanistan nfl | Posted by Mike Hoffman
New York Giants safety Antrel Rolle would like to be treated more like a soldier returning from Iraq. (AP photo)
New York Giants safety Antrel Rolle thinks that getting paid millions of dollars to play a kids game is just like deploying to Iraq.
Let me set this quote up for you and then I’ll let Mr. Rolle take it from there. Boos rained down on Giant players at New Meadowlands Stadium after the home team fell behind the Jaguars last Sunday. Rolle told the media he took notice and didn’t like it. Cue Mr. Rolle:
“We risk ourselves out there on the field each and every day also. When soldiers come home from Iraq you don’t boo them. I look at it the same way. I take my job seriously,” Rolle said.
Of course a Giants media relations rep probably pooped himself when he read the comment and a two paragraph “apology” was quickly issued.
“I used a very poor, inappropriate example earlier today to demonstrate how seriously I take my job. Obviously there is no comparison between the men and women of our military putting their life on the line defending our country and what I do.”
“They risk their lives and that gives me the opportunity to play a game for a living. After I made my earlier comments, somebody even said to me: how would your father, who is the chief of police in Homestead (Fla.) and puts himself at risk every day, feel about the comparison you made? Again, it was a very poor, very inappropriate choice of words.”
I’ll make the same point that Yahoo’s Shutdown Corner sports blog made because it bears repeating. The words “I’m sorry” don’t appear once in the apology.
The whole incident is sad. Not just because an overpaid, mediocre safety has no regard for the military members who protect his right to be paid more in one year than a service member will earn over his entire career. But it’s just another example of how John Q Public doesn’t understand the sacrifices military members have made the past decade while the U.S. has been at war.
Report: 2nd Lt. Ben Garland didn’t sign autographs for reporters after first preseason game
August 17th, 2010 | Air Force Football nfl | Posted by Mike Hoffman
Air Force Academy grad Ben Garland impressed in his first preseason game Sunday night against the Bengals. (AP photo)
Air Force Academy grad Ben Garland made a strong impression in his first preseason game with the Denver Broncos Sunday night, logging five tackles while playing on the defensive line.
(Yes, it’s hard to believe, but After Action can confirm that a rookie other than Tim Tebow played in a Broncos uniform Sunday night. And no we were not one of the two reporters to ask for Tebow’s autograph after the game.)
Garland has still not publicly announced if he will accept his pilot slot that is waiting for him at Laughlin Air Force Base, Texas, after he completes training camp. His performance Sunday probably didn’t make the decision any easier. If he accepts the pilot slot, his NFL career is likely over. A five-year academy service commitment likely extends to more than a decade if he enters the pilot training pipeline.
Bronco’s coach Josh McDaniels said Garland has impressed during practice and earned the time he received in Sunday’s game. Denver invited Garland to camp knowing he will not be able to join their active roster for at least a minimum of two years. However, the Broncos have seen enough potential to keep him around. Unless Garland accepts his pilot slot, he will likely follow in the footsteps of fellow Air Force Academy alum Chad Hall and serve two years active duty before applying for early release and serving the rest of his commitment as a reservist allowing him to play in the NFL.
Hall has sat out two years and is now turning a lot of heads at Philadelphia Eagles camp, especially after a stand out performance in their first preseason game against Jacksonville.