Operation Fort Knox
August 17, 2009 | Football
Aug. 17, 2009
Fort Knox, Ky. - - The University of Louisville football team thought they might enjoy their first day off this summer with a trip to Fort Knox -- they were sadly mistaken.
About 150 people from the football program, including 105 players made the drive to Fort Knox to go through a slimmed down version of "Basic Training".
When the players boarded the buses for the trip down 31W, questions were being raised about what they were actually going to be doing. No one really knew what they were in store for that afternoon.
When the busses pulled into the barracks, the team was greeted by military personnel. They casually gathered into the Waybur Theater on campus where they were shown a couple of promotional videos. Videos they might show to a potential recruit.
However, that is where the fun ended. As soon as the videos concluded, drill sargeants ordered their new privates to run to the bus. You could see on the players' faces that they had no idea what was in store for them on this hot and steamy day.
The team was divided into four platoons, and then into squads where they went through a variety of drills, obstacle courses and team-building exercises.
On one course, they used three 2 x 4 and had to figure out how to build a bridge and had to figure out how to get six people across and supplies without touching certain parts of the apparatus. On another course, the players carried sand bags and water around an obstacle course to see which group could get the fastest time.
The players were given five minutes by the instructors to plan how they were going to attack the excerise, and then 15 minutes to complete the task. Some groups finished and some struggled.
It was fun to see how some guys who you might not think might not be very vocal, step up and take control of the situations. Players like Karldell Dunning and Johnny Patrick, quiet leaders, barking out orders and talking through situations with their teammates.
"One minute we're in a nice auditorium getting a motivational speech and watching a nice film," said senior fullback Joe Tronzo, "the next somebody is screaming, `Platoon 1, on your feet,' and then you're on the bus and running for the next five hours. We really enjoyed ourselves and I thought we had learned quite a bit from this experience. I'm glad we were able to do it."
Added sophomore defensive end Dexter Heyman, "I learned a lot about how smart some of the guys on this team are. Guys stepped into drills and made decisions. I liked how everybody jumped in. Nobody sat back."
The Cardinals had gone through 12 rigourous practices before head coach Steve Kragthorpe decided to give the players their first day off. However, some players didn't see it as a day off, but no one was complaining.
"No, it wasn't a day off," said sophompore defensive end Greg Scruggs. "But to be honest with you, we had fun and really enjoyed all the things Fort Knox offered us that day. The staff was great and we were able to interact with some of the people in the community. It was a great day."
"This gives them an appreciation of what other people go through," Kragthorpe said. "They heard stories about Army Rangers who go 72 days sleeping 45 minutes a night, and those seven or eight hours we get start to sound pretty good. We had General Hammond, a three-star general, speak to our players last week and they heard a lot of stories from him as well."
"More than anything, this lets them get away a little bit and do something as a team, but also to come down here and tell our soldiers how much we appreciate all they do for us. I think it gave our players an appreciation of what they get to do."
At the Perfroamce review after the obstacle course session, Fort Knox personnel selected nine U of L players based on performance and leadership to get to step off a 35-foot platform and slide down a zip line, which was called the "Slide for Life". The nine players selected were Victor Anderson, Tronzo, Heyman, Josh Byrom, Josh Chichester, Justin Burke, Daniel Covington, Will Stein and L.T. Walker.
However, the first to go was Kragthorpe, who was all strapped in and ready to go when the players pulled up. Kragthorpe leaped from the 35-foot structure and raced down the line. He had a huge smile on his face, which was a little different from the look of fear he first had when he walked to the edge of the structure.
After a cool shower, the players were fed chicken, spaghetti and salad by Fort Knox personnel before signing autographs and interacting with the Fort Knox community
"It's a day I will remember for a long time," said Tronzo.
