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- Please no inappropriate usernames (remember that there may be youngsters in the room)
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- 3/17/19 UPDATE -- We've updated the permissions for our "Football" and "Commit to the G" recruiting message boards. We aim to be the best free board out there and that has not changed. We do now ask that all of you good people register as a member of our forum in order to see the sugar that is falling from our skies, so to speak.
Comments
If a young man or woman joins the military then that is where their duty belongs and I for one am very thankful and proud of all the soldiers that protect our country.
the pro athlete exception would 1) apply to only a handful of people per year 2) create positive publicity
Soldiers on active duty who are offered a life altering job or inherit an exorbitant amount of money can ask from release from their contract and or be chaptered from their service under honorable conditions.
Soldiers in the national guard can not show up to drill weekends and then get processed out of the guard with an honorable discharge as long as they did not have punitive pending action prior to them not reporting to drill.
With the aforementioned comments on how Soldiers can leave their service due to extraordinary circumstances, then I feel that if the military college athlete goes to a pro sport, that they need to pay back the education that they received when released from their obligation since they haven't served a day.
As a service academy grad...no. you know what you signed up for do what you owe then give it a shot... Or! I agree with @Wintonk which equates to about 250K...
Trump is considering allowing service academy athletes to serve their military requirements after their athletic careers are over. at least he said he is.
Not trying to get overly political but considering he got multiple deferments himself to avoid service in Vietnam it would be sort of hypocritical of him to take the opposite stance.
Bone spurs in his feet I think it was.
from what i've seen its a great recruiting tool to have the service academy guys playing in the pros. Its recruiting for both the military in general and for the individual academy itself. When the players sign with a team they get moved to the reserves and serve their military obligation during the off season. Also good points above about the money situation. One of the easiest disciplinary measures is to withhold pay. So once someone is financially secure, aka millionaire, from outside resources the military usually separates them with or even without consent as they lose their ace in hole on keeping people in check. I knew a person whose mom won the lottery and he wouldn't take a single dime because he wanted to stay in.
For me, whatever is best for the service academies. If letting them go pro and serve after the fact allows the most highly qualified to attend without affecting the outcome of the greater good than let them go pro.
Meh... mole hill, I won't make it a mountain.
I say leave it up to the military branch. They could keep them "enrolled" being an ambassador as they play for whatever professional sports team. If they want to.
I posted earlier that I think a pro sports career will produce a better officer candidate than coming straight out of an academy. Life experiences will be invaluable for such athlete/officers. I'm fine if they fulfill their commitment later than earlier.
You’re talking about so few people that this would be applicable to, so why not let them go pro?
I’m a service academy grad, who’s still serving on active duty. As a teenager/young adult, athletics more than anything lead me to a service academy since the head coach’s of my sport recruited me there. So maybe that’s others motivations to sign up as well...
Obviously, I grew somewhat fond of the military aspects since I’m still choosing to serve.
Yes. But they pay back tuition costs.
No. The purpose of each Service Academy is to train Officers for our military. In return they provide an excellent education at no cost to the entrants in return for taking on the obligation to serve our country once the future Officer's undergraduate education is completed. Being an exceptional athlete is not a reason to delay fulfilling the obligation. If a standout athlete wants to be a professional, they should go to a program that is designed to prepare them for that undertaking and not take a place from a young person whose goal is to serve our country.