The Citadel Brings the Heat: Alabama

I hope you enjoyed the weekend Lonnie

It's always fun to see these smaller teams come in swinging like The Citadel did.

It was the toughest game for Bama thus far.

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I hope you enjoyed the weekend Lonnie

It's always fun to see these smaller teams come in swinging like The Citadel did

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Thanks man. I know I've been a P.I.T.A. the past few weeks. However, it was big for our school in a couple of ways.

I heard us talked about on MULTIPLE national radio and TV broadcasts this week. Other than N. Dakota State which is the Alabama of FCS football, what other FCS team has gotten more press this year?

For obvious reasons, we're a hard school to recruit to. You not only have to recruit against other programs, you have to get the special type of athlete that is willing to accept the rigors of "military life" on top of being a student athlete. The Vin diagram on a football player that ticks all of those boxes is pretty small....

Truth be told, when I was there we (the rest of the corps) gave those guys (student athletes) hell outside of their seasons (where many of the rules with regards to the military aspect of the college were relaxed for them (as well they should be)). Sure, they may not have the sharpest uniform or personal appearance, they may not march or have the sharpest manual of arms, but many times they were the best examples of "the whole man" concept the school preached when I was there. With the wisdom of nearly 30 years of life beyond college behind me, if I had to do it over, I would have done exactly the opposite and been much more of a shepard to those cadets. They bust their butts for the school almost every day and deserve more of a pat on the back than they get.

I'm rambling but the point I'm trying to make is that expose from a game like this, especially keeping it close for a 1/2, can be a program changer for a small school like us. Our student body is about 2,300 cadets, not including graduate programs and the evening college. That's TINY. In fact, the $500k Alabama paid us is almost as much as the school makes in ANNUAL ticket sales (roughly $900k).

And while I have you all on the line, I'd like to tell you about one of the sharpest Citadel Graduates I knew while I was there.

His name was Milton Plamer. One of the most physically fit human specimens I have ever know. He was a star football in High school, but suffered a head injury and had to give up the game. Not to be deterred, and still wanting to support his team(s), he took up cheerleading.

While at the Citadel he was a member of the prestigious 14 man "Junior Sword Drill", the toughest physical thing you could do at the time. I remember watching him on the sidelines at football games. He would take another male cadet on his shoulders, who would lift two female cheerleaders (we "borrowed" them from the college of Charleston (See aggie even all male schools can have girl cheerleaders...) Milton would them proceed to turn 360 deg while supporting the weight of all of three of them.

Milton rose to the rank of Battalion Commander his Sr year. He took an army Contract after he graduated rose to the rank of Captain. Sadly he passed away while in ranger school. Milton and 3 others died of hypothermia in the swamps of Florida. Their deaths made the army re-evaluate their procedures for that phase of the training.

He's buried in Arlington National Cemetery.

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Lonnie Utah

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Everything you said, strikes home.

Again, I'm glad it was a good weekend for you guys.

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But, an 11 am kickoff against a small school with a losing record, a lack of familiarity or any apparent effort in seriously preparing for a niche offense, and how effective the adjustments at the half were (mostly mental) are more indicative of a level of effort by Bama going into the game

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So you're saying Bama's mentally soft?

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Sadly he passed away while in ranger school. Milton and 3 others died of hypothermia in the swamps of Florida.

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Wow. That is not something that I expected to read. R.I.P. solider.