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.
Patriots release Navy grad Barnes [corrected]
August 30th, 2011 | Football Navy | Posted by Phil Creed
A little late on this (what else is new?), but yesterday the New England Patriots released wide receiver Tyree Barnes and running back Eric Kettani. Both players are 2008 graduates of the Naval Academy who left active duty earlier this summer for the chance to tryout for the Pats.
Neither player accumulated statistics in the Patriots’ first three preseason games.
It’s not clear yet what’s next for each sailor Barnes. Per DoD policy, an officer may serve two years on active duty before being allowed to switch to the reserve and try out for a pro league. Caleb Campbell and Chad Hall, who made the rosters of the Lions and the Eagles last season, respectively, were the most recent players to successfully transition to the NFL through this policy. Both Campbell and Hall survived the first round of cuts this week.
“If other opportunities arise [in the NFL], I’ll be quick to jump on those, or whether it’s me going back and serving my time [in the Navy], I’ll do that as well,” Barnes told NESN on Tuesday. “Right now, I don’t really know where I’ll be heading or what I’ll have to do or be asked to do. I just know whatever comes up, I’ll be ready to jump in it.”
In case you missed it last week, Ron Borges of the Boston Herald wrote a great piece about Barnes’ time in the Navy, which included chasing down Somali pirates aboard the destroyer Gonzalez.
THURSDAY UPDATE: Kettani was not cut by the Patriots, as I had initally blogged here. According to a report from NESN, Kettani has not practiced since July 29 due to a calf injury, but is still on the New England roster as of today. I apologize for relaying inaccurate information.
An explanation of the NFL’s reserve/military list
June 16th, 2010 | Football Marine Corps Navy | Posted by Phil Creed
New England's Bill Belichick has used the military/ reserve list to sign a few former Naval Academy football players. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)
Anyone who follows Navy football knows that New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick loves to give talented Midshipmen a shot at the NFL. Belichick’s father coached and worked as a scout at Navy for many years, and the younger Belichick has signed a handful of Navy grads and kept them on the team using the NFL’s reserve/military.
As far as I can see, the rules for list aren’t spelled out anywhere online, so it never fails to confuse folks. So here’s a very basic description of how it works from Patriots.com by Patriots Football Weekly writer Andy Hart:
Can U explain the Military Reserve and how and when it’s used?
Robert BumgardnerThe list is used for any player who is actively involved with the Armed Forces, and therefore cannot play out his NFL contract. The contract is essentially tolled, as the player is not paid and does not count against a team’s roster limit. The team can then activate the player and, if it chooses, expect him to play out the terms of the contract at whatever time he completes his military commitments. The Patriots currently have three players from the Navy on their Reserve/Military list: WR Tyree Barnes, WR Shun White and RB Eric Kettani.
For another explanation of the military/reserve list, check out this 2009 story on Boston.com.
Shun White, the Navy and the NFL
March 15th, 2010 | Football Marine Corps Navy | Posted by Phil Creed
Shun White, seen playing for Navy during the Meineke Car Care Bowl in Dec. 2006, is under contract with the New England Patriots. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton)
Trivia question: Which NFL team has three members of the Naval Academy class of 2009 on its roster?
Answer: The New England Patriots.
One of those players is former standout slotback Shun White, whose current situation at the Naval Academy is examined in this week’s edition of Navy Times. White, who signed with the Patriots as a free agent in May 2009, was allowed to reschedule an exam in order to practice with New England last spring, according to one of colleague Phil Ewing’s sources. And close to a year after his classmates received their commissions, White remains at the academy.
Ewing talked with sources in the Navy community who are concerned that allowing White and officers in the fleet to be under contract with NFL teams gives football players an incentive to not fulfill their service commitments.
USNA Athletic Director Chet Gladchuk disagrees, telling Navy Times that letting former Navy players have relationships with an NFL team doesn’t mean that they’ll be allowed out of their service commitment:
“It’s very clear to everyone on the Yard … with those that will ask the question, ‘Is there any chance that the secretary of the Navy might release us to play in the NFL?’ The answer is ‘no’ here,” Gladchuk told Navy Times. “Number one, you’ve got an obligation to go serve; number two, the NFL knows very clearly that as a … sailor or Marine, there’s no chance at all for them to participate.”
Because the article is for subscribers only, I can’t give any more details out here, but I’d recommend logging in or picking up a copy of Navy Times to read the full story.
Oh, and the other two sailors on the Patriots roster? Ensign Eric Kettani, who played fullback for the Mids, and Ensign Tyree Barnes, who played wide receiver.