More on the Pro Policies

I’ll be a talking about the service academies' pro policies, and specifically Army's Alternative Service Option, on TV tonight. I'll be a guest on College Sports Tonight, a program on CBS College Sports (formerly CSTV). The show will air at 5 (MT) and again at 9.

Tune in and watch why I write for a living instead of working for a TV network.

DeBerry Foundation 5K Run & Walk Saturday

Don’t forget about a great event for a great cause this weekend.

On Saturday afternoon at 3, the Fisher DeBerry 5K Run and Walk will be held – rain or shine – at America the Beautiful Park. Coach DeBerry will be there along with special guest Rudy Ruettiger – the famous Notre Dame walk-on who inspired the movie Rudy. Coach DeBerry and Rudy will present medals to the top three finishers in each race and age category.

The registration fee for adults is $20 before 6 p.m. Friday and $25 the day of the race. The fee for children and students is $15 before 6 p.m. Friday and $20 the day of the race. Each participant will receive a t-shirt, and all registrants will be eligible to win raffle prizes and get free tickets to a Colorado Springs Sky Sox game. Food from Chick-fil-A will be provided.

The event benefits the Colorado Springs FCA, Santa’s Workshop and Young Lives.

Rabold Update/Pro Policy Update

According to Air Force coach Troy Calhoun, outside linebacker John Rabold will try out with the Denver Broncos on Thursday.

Rabold won’t be participating in a mini-camp, like inside linebacker Drew Fowler did with the Detroit Lions and running back/receiver/returner Chad Hall did with the Atlanta Falcons. But it’s at least a chance to show what he can do. Calhoun said if Rabold impresses the Broncos, he could get invited to a camp.

Here’s a big problem for all Air Force players trying to catch on with NFL teams: With NFL Europe folding, the NFL now allows teams to have only 80 players on their rosters at the start of training camp. There are no additional exemptions. That cut out about eight players on each of the 30 teams and undoubtedly has made teams less likely to invite kids who will have to serve on active duty in the military for two years before getting a chance to play.

Speaking of that two-year policy …

David Chu, the undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness, has sent a letter to the secretaries of the Army, Navy and Air Force to clarify the Department of Defense policy regarding officers playing professional sports, Air Force Academy sports information director Troy Garnhart said.

The policy, issued last August and implemented on Jan. 1, 2008, states officers must serve two years of active duty before applying for excess leave or early release from active duty to pursue a professional sports career.

But while Air Force and Navy both are following that policy closely, Army players are able to go straight to the NFL as long as they earn a roster spot. Why? In 2005 the Army instituted what it calls its Alternative Service Option Program. It allows graduates who remain on rosters to play professionally and serve as part-time Army recruiters.

Army basically is saying that program overrules the DoD policy.

While I don’t know this for sure, I’m guessing Chu’s letter was sent to try to rein in Army – to encourage strongly that Army follow the DoD policy to the letter like Air Force and Navy.

Army’s policy came under scrutiny after Caleb Campbell, an Army defensive back, was selected in the seventh round of the recent NFL Draft by the Detroit Lions. The selection brought tons of publicity to Campbell and Army. And not all of it was positive.

Folks at both Air Force and Navy think the rules should be the same for all three service academies. They think Army’s policy gives it a recruiting advantage over its service academy rivals. And many question how Army could justify it. The DoD policy, after all, is extremely clear: You must serve two years of active duty before you play pro ball. As Navy athletic director Chet Gladchuk told The Annapolis Capital, “Army has redefined active duty to include playing professional sports.”

Whether Chu’s letter will cause the Army to alter its policy is uncertain. When I inquired about Army’s policy shortly after the draft, Lt. Col. Jonathan Withington, a press officer for the department of defense, wrote me an e-mail that stated, in part, “it is up to the Military Departments to interpret and apply that policy.”

I guess Army could stick by its interpretation and contend playing professional sports while serving as a part-time recruiter constitutes active duty service.

But even if it does, I don’t think we’ve heard the last of the discussion on this policy.

AJC Hall Article

Nice story on Chad Hall’s tryout with the Atlanta Falcons in the Atlanta Journal Constitution today.

Here’s the link.

First Look: New Mexico

With spring football in the rearview mirror and the preseason still a few months away, I’m going to throw out some initial observations about Air Force’s 2008 opponents from time to time.

I’m going to go in no particular order and there won’t be a set schedule. I’ll just pass on some thoughts from talking to colleagues and reading stories from other media outlets.

I was a guest on The Mtn.’s Around The Mountain show this week, and one of the teams we discussed was New Mexico. So I’m starting with the Lobos.

NEW MEXICO
2007 Record: 9-4
Off/Def Starters Back: 6/6
Last Year vs. AF: New Mexico 34, Air Force 31
This Year vs. AF: Oct. 23 (Thursday) at Air Force

Roster Report: The Lobos lost a pair of first-team All-Mountain West Conference receivers to graduation – Marcus Smith and Travis Brown. They combined to catch 167 passes for 2,156 yards and 10 touchdowns. But the Lobos, while inexperienced overall, have starters back at key positions. Junior-to-be Donavan Porterie returns at quarterback after passing for 3,006 yards and 15 touchdowns last year; Senior-to-be Rodney Ferguson, coming off back-to-back first-team all-league and 1,000-yard campaigns, returns as running back; And the Lobos have both starting corners back from their 2007 squad.

Fast Fact: New Mexico has won at least six games in each of the last seven seasons and gone to five bowl games in that stretch. But it hasn’t finished better than second in conference play during that time, and last season’s nine victories were its most in one season since Rocky Long took over as head coach before the 1998 campaign.

What Caught My Eye: The Lobos’ schedule. Yikes. New Mexico has arguably the toughest slate of any Mountain West Conference team this season, especially early.

The Lobos are the only team in the conference without a bye week (Air Force had that distinction last season) and the only team other than UNLV that will not play a Division I-AA squad.

(Note: in this blog, I heretofore am refusing to use the term “Football Championship Subdivision” – the new moniker for Division I-AA. Every time I write “Football Championship Subdivision” in the paper I have to write “Football Championship Subdivision – formerly Division I-AA,” because most people don’t know what the heck the “Football Championship Subdivision” is. So consider this my protest to this stupid name change. Back to the Lobos’ schedule.)

The Lobos open with conference heavyweight TCU on Aug. 30, then check out their September: Home games against Texas A&M and Arizona, followed by road games at Tulsa (which went 10-4 and beat BYU last season) and at in-state rival New Mexico State.

Greg Archuleta, the Albuquerque Journal’s excellent New Mexico football beat writer called the Lobos’ nonconference slate “one of the toughest” in Long’s 11 seasons.

Final Thought: New Mexico probably can extend its streak of seasons with at least six wins, but it will be tough, considering the schedule.

Jake's Way Early Line vs. AF: New Mexico -2.5.

Broekhuis Picks AFA Prep

Colorado Springs Christian School senior center Taylor Broekhuis, The Gazette’s 2007-08 Small Schools Boys Basketball Player of the Year, has committed to play at Air Force Academy’s prep school.

The 6-foot-9 Broekhuis averaged 17.3 points, 11.5 rebounds and 4.9 blocks per game in leading the Lions to the 2008 3A state championship game. He chose the academy prep school over Colorado State, Denver and Northern Colorado.

“For me it was pretty much the fact that they had recruited me for a long time, almost a year and a half, and I felt really comfortable with the coaching staff,” said Broekhuis, who added that assistant Rob Pryor played a major role in his recruitment. “The facilities there are phenomenal, and it was kind of a gut feeling that I wanted to go there.”

Broekhuis said coaches projected him as a forward or post in the Air Force offense. He fits well in the offense because he is mobile and can handle the ball.

Broekhuis said the only reason he did not commit earlier was because he was wary of the military commitment at the academy.

“That’s what held up the decision for so long,” he said. “But I think I can handle it.”

Broekhuis said his grandfather was in the Air Force and “he was kind of pushing for Air Force the whole time.”

Fowler, Hall Invited to Camps

Senior inside linebacker Drew Fowler and senior running back/receiver/returner Chad Hall have been invited to try out with NFL teams, Air Force coach Troy Calhoun said Friday.

Fowler is in Detroit for a tryout with the Lions this weekend, while Hall will participate in a tryout with his hometown Atlanta Falcons next weekend. Neither player has signed a free agent contract. Both simply are trying out with those teams.

Fowler will take part in the Lions’ rookie camp. According to a story that appeared in The Grand Rapids Press earlier this week, the camp will include Detroit’s nine drafted rookies – including Army defensive back Caleb Campbell – along with “about 10 undrafted free agents and about 15 or 20 tryout players.”

The article went on to say that the the Lions' draft picks and their undrafted free agents “likely” would be back for training camp, but that the tryout players, like Fowler, “will have to show enough to earn an invitation back.”