Army orders Detroit Lions draft pick Caleb Campbell to active duty

This would only happen to the Lions.

Gotta feel bad for the guy though, he was probably very excited to be drafted and now he can't play. He probably knew this would happen anyway, but its still shitty by the Army to flip-flop on this.

http://www.startribune.com/sports/vikings/25824664.html?location_refer=Vikings

 

I love the line about allowing him to entering the draft in good faith.
Why not just say, "we only allowed him to do it cause we thought he sucked."

 

Damn, losing that 7th-round draft pick really hurts.

 

It does when you screw up all of your earlier draft picks.

 

I have mixed feelings about this.

I hate the young man is being denied his dream job. Not everyone gets a chance to play in the NFL, even if it is for the Lions as a seventh-round pick. It would also be a big PR move for Uncle Sugar.

But I can understand why this has happened.

Before their junior year, these guys have to commit to a service obligation. This guy's classmates -- or me, for that matter -- didn't have preferential treatment because they were in the glee club or on the boxing team. It's a very expensive education, and the Army needs leaders, especially in the branches in which these guys serve. Hell, we need athletes, too. Uncle Sugar doesn't like balding, 45-year old, pot-bellied lieutenants.

 

It's Campbell that flip-flopped. He obligated himself to a certain amount of military service by going to West Point. You get a better offer later; sorry.
I'm sure Roger Staubach didn't much want to go to Vietnam either, and he was a hell of a lot better than the seventh round.

 

T. J. Houshmanzdzadeh says, "Well, it can sometimes!"

 

Should have been drafted as Mr. Irrelevant so he could have at least had that experience ... wait, he was drafted by the Lions.

He is not irrelevant, though, as a soldier. To him and everyone else in the armed forces, I thank you for your service.

 

How is Campbell flip-flopping? The Army's policy gave him an option where he could both fulfill his obligation to his country and play professional football. The military's policy since then has changed. That's fine, but tough to blame Campbell for trying.

The link above didn't have anything from Campbell but ESPN.com's story did. He was very gracious about it.

 

Thing is, from what I remember reading back in April, Campbell didn't have a problem with reporting for active duty. Neither did Mike Viti, Campbell's classmate who was recently released by the Bills. The whole play-football-and-recruit thing was the Army's idea in the first place, so it's BS that the guvmint is doing an about-face on it.

Then again, consider the source ...

 

In the 80s, didn't a Navy running back (Napoleon McCallum, I think) play for the Raiders on the side while fulfilling his obligation?
I realize that was during peacetime, so the circumstances are a little different, but how did that work out?
While I understand this is sort of changing the subject, but should the service academies, especially Army, be playing Division 1A football?

 

It's simple: you accept an appointment to a service academy, there is an expectation that you are not only going to be a military officer, you are most likely going to be a career officer. If you don't want that, then don't take the opportunity away from someone else who does.

I kind of reminds me of this guy I was in the Navy with who always used to whine "I don't want to go to sea."

Uhhh, exactly what did you think you were going to do in the Navy? These big gray things aren't buildings.

I refer again to Roger Staubach. He didn't make a career of it, but he fulfilled the obligation he accepted before going to the NFL.