Editor’s note: The 125th Army-Navy Game is sponsored by USAA.
A soldier and a sailor, who previously had to rely on friends for rides and borrowing others’ cars, are now car owners after receiving vehicles from the United Services Automobile Association on the eve of Saturday’s 125th annual Army-Navy Game.
The financial company presented a Chevy Malibu and Chevy Equinox to Army Spc. Caleb Dooley and Navy Seaman Matthew Walker, respectively, on Friday at the National Mall as part of the National Auto Body Council (NABC) Recycled Rides program.
Special guests and Washington Commander’s royalty Joe Theismann and Robert Griffin III joined the festivities, with the Capitol’s Statue of Freedom in the background, delivering speeches about their support of USAA and commitment to honoring the U.S. military.
Dooley, a single father to a 1-year-old, had been borrowing a car for the past year. He was excited for the new wheels.
“It means the world,” Dooley said. “It’s going to take me from daily maintenance costs to taking that cost and putting it aside for my son.”
He said the first thing he planned to do with the car was drive home for Christmas dinner on Sunday with his unit, Eleven Bravo.
And as far as the outcome of Saturday’s game?
“Army’s gonna win, hands down,” Dooley said. “Army’s on a different level this year.”
Walker, on the other hand, was pulling for Navy.
Walker, a cyber warfare technician who’s only been serving for a year, was equally thrilled to learn he’d won the car sweepstakes. He found out when he was in his room and could hardly believe it.
The first order of business, he said, was to give his friend, who’s been supplying Walker with rides over the last year, a ride to the airport.
Griffin III, a Heisman Trophy winner and Super Bowl champion, and Theismann, also a Super Bowl champ and Heisman runner-up, attended the car unveiling as ambassadors of football and the services.
The military is close to Griffin III’s heart, he said, having grown up the son of Army parents who combined for 34 years of service. The experience taught him about sacrifice, he told Military Times.
He recalled watching his father leave for a deployment on his 12th birthday, forcing Griffin III to be the man of the house and take care of his sisters and mother, not knowing whether his father would come home alive.
“I lived that, I experienced that, I know what that feels like,” Griffin III said. “I know what these military kids are going through, I know what the families are going through.”
He said he cherished the opportunity to team up with USAA and viewed the Army-Navy game as a moment for the country to collectively thank the men and women who serve.
“It’s not just another game,” Griffin III said. “Our military members don’t get enough love, they don’t get enough compassion, they don’t get enough thank-you’s.”
He spoke of service members’ sacrifice of choosing American families over their own.
Theismann echoed the same sentiment.
Despite Americans worshipping at the altar of football, he said, the real heroes are the men and women who serve.
“These two teams are America’s team,” Theismann said. “I think it just represents young leaders in this country who are willing to make a sacrifice of their lives.”
Riley Ceder is a reporter at Military Times, where he covers breaking news, criminal justice, investigations, and cyber. He previously worked as an investigative practicum student at The Washington Post, where he contributed to the Abused by the Badge investigation.
