Army

West Point cracks top 25, barely, in U.S. News annual college rankings

By Kevin Lilley on September 9, 2014 Army, West Point

Despite continuing, stellar support from America’s high school guidance counselors, the U.S. Military Academy slipped seven spots on this year’s U.S. News Best Colleges rankings for national liberal arts colleges, falling out of a three-way tie for 17th last year and into a three-way tie for 24th with Macalester College of St. Paul, Minnesota, and Scripps College of Claremont, California. West Point finished second in the service-academy race, with the Naval Academy ranking 13th (down from 12th last year). The schools also finished 1-2 in selectivity: Annapolis accepted just 7.4 percent of its 2013 applicant pool, according to U.S. News, while…

VIDEO: Army football's 2014 hype roll has historic, and powerful, voice sample

By Kevin Lilley on September 5, 2014 Army, West Point

At first look (and listen), Army football’s slick 2014 introductory video has all the standard fare of preseason hype, including in no particular order: Explosions. Players in a dimly lit studio modeling new uniforms and trying to look imposing. A head coach twirling a football on his finger and giving the camera a look that all but screams, “Are you sure I have to twirl this football? Can’t I just look imposing?” Assorted highlights, quick cuts and logos, all set to a powerful soundtrack. More explosions. An introduction from a famous alumnus. And that’s where the similarities between Army’s video…

Your quick, incomplete military viewing guide to 'The Simpsons' marathon

By Kevin Lilley on August 21, 2014 Army, Entertainment, Outside the wire

Service members who joined up when the first full-length episode of “The Simpsons” hit the air have been eligible to retire for about five years. And while the long-running animated series rarely dabbles in military-themed humor, it’s tough for any scripted television to go a quarter-century without somebody stealing a tank, somebody else entering into a blood pact over World War II plunder, and somebody else becoming a red-team leader in an Army war game through a series of inexplicable circumstances. It’s simple math. FXX recently secured the rights to the show’s massive back catalog, and it’s celebrating by airing…

TRAILER: 'Twilight' star Kristen Stewart heads to Guantanamo for 'Camp X-Ray'

By Kevin Lilley on August 12, 2014 Army, Movies

First the video, then some backstory. Key quote: “It’s not as black-and-white as they said it was going to be.” [HTML1] “Camp X-Ray” will hit theaters Oct. 17, and despite multiple stories in the entertainment media praising star Kristen Stewart for this departure from the vampire-vs.-werewolf genre, the buzz hasn’t been particularly kind. The film is batting just above .500 with critics on Rotten Tomatoes, with one asking whether stellar efforts from Stewart and co-star Peyman Maadi “outweigh a scenario that feels written by a politically outraged 12-year-old.” The above trailer, however, has drawn some interest — more than 3.5 million…

Miami Dolphins' new team credo looks familiar, no word yet on 'Dolphin Strong'

By Kevin Lilley on August 4, 2014 Army

To say that the Miami Dolphins’ new team credo borrows slightly from a familiar Army ethos would be like saying the team had a bit of a locker room communication issue last year. But as part of the organization’s recovery from bullying accusations, suspensions and an 8-8 season, players have penned what The Associated Press called “a credo of togetherness,” which was emblazoned on some of the T-shirts being worn by Dolphins after a recent practice. As other websites have already pointed out, the credo clearly patterns itself after the Soldier’s Creed, including some passages lifted either directly (“I will never…

Tearful pfc. stays in hunt for $1 million 'America's Got Talent' prize

By Kevin Lilley on July 23, 2014 Army, Entertainment

Earlier this year, while visiting family in Florida and pretty much killing time, Pfc. Paul Ieti won $150 at a Florida fair’s karaoke contest by belting out “Bless the Broken Road” by Rascal Flatts. His latest rendition of that hit came with a bit more pressure. And earned him a chance at bit more cash. The 21-year-old petroleum supply specialist from American Samoa was the last of six male singers featured during Wednesday night’s two-hour episode of “America’s Got Talent,” part of the NBC show’s “Judgment Week” festivities that determined which 48 acts will move on to perform live at…

More than 'Maverick': James Garner and the forgotten Purple Heart

By Kevin Lilley on July 21, 2014 Army, Entertainment

A recent USA Today appreciation for James Garner, the iconic actor who died Saturday at age 86, called him “the epitome of the reluctant hero.” The examples cited involve Garner’s on-screen choices and characters as well as his off-screen battles with studios. But before all that — before a career that spanned from Maverick to The Rockford Files to … well, to Maverick, and plenty of stops in between — Garner was in Korea, quite literally trying to avoid getting his ass shot to pieces. Then-Pvt. James Bumgarner received his second wound during his time in Korea (multiple obituaries say he…

VIDEO: Army head coach's Afghanistan diary

By Kevin Lilley on July 15, 2014 Afghanistan, Army, Outside the wire, West Point

The superintendent of the U.S. Military Academy wanted the school’s new head football coach to get a first-person understanding of the jobs his players — current Black Knights and future recruits — will be doing after they hang up the pads. So Lt. Gen. Robert Caslen, himself a starting offensive lineman while at West Point in the 1970s, brought Jeff Monken along on a fact-finding trip to Afghanistan last month, with the three-star speaking with recent academy grads as well as more senior leaders to find out how to improve the school in ways that will help future students succeed…

VIDEO: National Guard's top general plays it straight in Letterman guest spot

By Kevin Lilley on June 24, 2014 Army

There were no head-shavings, no laughing about early career missteps, not even any celebrity sing-offs with 80s-era rockers: Gen. Frank Grass, chief of the National Guard Bureau, was light on laughs during his Monday appearance on “The Late Show,” but he did field some tough questions … and make one heroic airman’s night. Grass, who is in charge of 760,000 Army and Air National Guard members, met host David Letterman at the Indianapolis 500 in May — the guard sponsors the race team co-owned by the talk-show legend. Grass thanked Letterman for speaking to recruiters and potential enlistees at the…

Army brat scores game-winner for Team USA in World Cup opener

By Kevin Lilley on June 17, 2014 Army, Europe

John Brooks grew up in Germany. His father served in the U.S. Army and now reportedly lives in Switzerland. And Monday, in Brazil, his goal beat Ghana. They don’t call it the World Cup for nothing. Brooks became the first U.S. player to come off the bench and score a goal in World Cup play, using his head in the 86th minute to give the Americans a 2-1 victory. Or, as his German club team’s website put it, thanks to Google translate: ” Four minutes after the equalizer, the 21-year-old screwed after a corner highest to head the highly acclaimed winner of…

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