USD Football 1993

TOUCHDOWN ILLUSTRATED

"V" for Victory

Pilot candidates at the Pre-Flight schools concentrated on a combina- tion of mental and physical routines, based on trai ning given to Midshipmen at the Naval Academy. Half the day was spent on academics with subjects such as math, algebra, physics, aerology, navigation and naval regulations; the other half at hard physical activity u nder the supervision of the coaches and athletes, with greatest emphasis on football and soccer (for foot dexterity

so necessary to work the pedals that contro ll ed prope l ler- driven planes), along with

He (Radford) believed that athletic competi- tion qttickened the phys- ical reactions so key to surivival in aerial warfare.

boxing, wrestling, track, swimming, basketball and ju jitsu. Candidates also had vigorous body-building rou- ti nes, ran endless obstacle courses and underwent "hard labor" drills such as woodchopping and di tch- digging. "If you've seen the movie, An Officer and a Gentleman, that's Pre-Fl ight school, though not as harsh," said author Kent L. Lee. "There was also plenty of close-order drill , firing range work, inspections...like a boot camp for naval aviation with an accent on conditioning. Every candi- date was graded on academics and athletics." Eve ryone in th e program was required to play football, on a varsity thro ugh platoon level, dependi ng upon their ability and regardless of the time of the year. Th e Navy believed the sport taught mental and physical aggressiveness, coordina- tion, aler tness, di sci plin e and teamwork. Hamilton wrote in the 1942 NCM Football Guide: "The analogy of foot- ball and war is becoming more and more apparent each day. The benefits

Wisctmsiu's Efroy "Crazy Legs" Hinch joined ttp lllith the 1943 Michigan sq11ad that lllrtS ·anl:ed third in the nation.

Station in Washington, D.C. shortly after outlin ing the program at the American Col lege Football Coaches Association convention, and finding Bryant, then an assistant coach at Vanderbilt. "'I heard your talk and I'm ready to go to war,' Bryant told me," Hamilton related. "I said, 'I will see that your name is one of the first to be consid- ered, but the final decision is out of my hands. You go back to Nashvi lle and I'll let you know as soon as some- thing is firm.' "Less than a week later, Bryant showed up again and in that booming voice, he all but yelled at me, ' I haven't heard from you! I have left home and I'm not going back. I can't go back now because I've told all my friends that I've gone off to war.' So we put him to work answering the phone and working as a civilian. He lived in our home for about three weeks until his appointment came through."

so key to survival in aerial warfare. Radford stipulated that the program be staffed with good coaches and for- mer players. The players included a number of former All-Americans, NFL stars and even a future pres ide nt- Gerald Ford, a fine center at the University of Mich iga n dur ing t he late 1930s. Some of the coaches included Bernie Bierman, who had won three national titles at the University of Minnesota, Jock Sutherland from Pitt, Fordham's Jim Crowley, Harold Oliver from Oregon and Ray Morrison of SMU. They were reinforced by such future great coaches as Bud Wilkinson, Bear Bryant, Jim Tatum, Don Farout and Woody Hayes. Hamilton once recalled walking into hi s office at Anacostia Naval Air

Made with FlippingBook - Online Brochure Maker