How a federal policy changes the future of service academy athletes
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Kyle Bonagura, ESPN Staff Writer
ON MARCH 13, scouts from 18 NFL teams traveled to Colorado Springs, Colorado, for the Air Force Academy pro day. The event has never been a high-priority stop for talent evaluators ahead of the draft, but this time, there was an elevated sense of importance.
Part of that was obvious: Over the past three seasons, Air Force has the ninth-best winning percentage in FBS college football (.744) and the second-best mark among Group of 5 teams. And scouts were eager to see the talented players who made up such a winning program.
Another part was almost ceremonial. The academies will likely still hold NFL pro days next year, but they won’t function the same way given none of the graduating seniors will be eligible to play right away. As things sit, this will be the last year the United States government will permit service academy players — those at Army, Navy and Air Force — to jump directly from college to professional sports. Next year, athletes will be required to serve two years in the military — as had been a long-established process until 2019 — before having the option to pursue professional sports, while completing the rest of their service commitment in the reserves.
“Two years being away from the game is a tremendous setback,” said Chet Gladchuk, who has served as Navy’s athletic director since 2001. “We don’t guarantee anyone that they’re going to make the pros or that they’re going to get a tryout. But if you’ve got a young man coming up the ranks here and develops and realizes, ‘I’m good enough,’ why shouldn’t he get to take that shot?”
The ever-changing policy has been the subject of debate over the past several years, especially since December 2022, when a passage in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) stated a “cadet may not obtain employment, including as a professional athlete, until after completing the cadet’s commissioned service obligation.”
It created an uproar because, at the time, Army linebacker Andre Carter II was projected as a possible first-round NFL draft pick, and it gave the impression the rug had been pulled out from under him. The response was impactful. Legislators moved quickly to adjust the language, grandfathering in those who arrived at service academies in 2019 or earlier, thereby paving the way for football players to be eligible for the 2023 and 2024 NFL drafts.
But why have the rule at all? It’s something athletic department officials at all three service academies have struggled to find a good answer for and, uniformly, believe goes against the best interests of the United States military.
“It’s important to keep in mind that none of them would lose or shake their obligation to serve [if they went directly to the NFL]. It’s not like you’re letting them off the hook,” Gladchuk said. “Every one of them would still have to serve at one point or another.”
GROWING UP IN suburban Chicago, Bo Richter never really gave much thought about joining the military. It wasn’t until he was approached by an Air Force assistant at a camp at Northwestern that it even entered his consciousness — and then he was dismissive.
“I said to my mom, ‘It’s pretty cool, the Air Force Academy,'” Richter said. “I would never go there, but that’s awesome.
“Then we got the whole spiel, and we started figuring out what it was all about. Great academics, great football. It ended up being the best option for me.”
Richter wasn’t a recruit who fielded much Power 5 interest. He didn’t start playing football in high school until his junior year and — other than Air Force — was primarily sought after by schools in the Ivy League, MAC and FCS going into his senior year. For a recruit of his profile, the NFL didn’t factor into his decision in the slightest. He was more concerned about where he could go to prepare for a career in business.
His path is a typical one for a service academy player. Rarely do any of the three land a recruit with Power 5 offers; instead, they focus more on somewhat under-the-radar types with strong academic profiles.
“You’re trying to identify somebody that’s an exceptionally strong student that has the maturity and the character and the leadership qualities and someone you think can be a good Division I football player,” Air Force coach Troy Calhoun said. “They’re hard to find. We literally recruit the whole country. We have all five time zones on our team just because we have pretty unique people.
“First thing on the transcript: Is there pre-calculus? Is there chemistry? We’re still [standardized-]test-mandatory. The sheer candor of what’s involved to how you’re going to serve, you’re 22 years old and you’re going to serve on active duty. That’s hard to find.”
This is not Calhoun complaining. This is him laying out the reality of what has been — and will always be — needed to fill a roster at a service academy. For him, players such as Richter and Trey Taylor, the 2023 Jim Thorpe Award winner, will always be the model for continued success: guys who needed to develop before growing into team leaders by the back ends of their careers.
Taylor and Richter are both viewed as possible late-round picks who will surely be signed as free agents if they go undrafted. They were among the six Air Force players who worked out in front of NFL scouts.
At pro day, Richter’s development was on full display. His 40-inch vertical jump and 26 reps on the bench would have ranked No. 1 among all linebackers at the combine; his broad jump of 10 feet, 4 inches would have been tied for third; and he ran a consensus 4.56 in the 40-yard dash despite pulling a hamstring on his first and only attempt. And during the season, he had incredible production, finishing with 19.5 tackles for loss and 10 sacks.
“Playing at the professional level is something that was a dream that I had no idea how realistic it was going to be until I got to this point,” said Richter, who was not a highly recruited high school player. “And now it looks like it’s a realistic one.”
After all, there are only six service academy players on active NFL rosters.
Richter plans on taking football as far as he can, but also spoke proudly of the assignment that awaits him as a commissioner officer working as a financial manager at Eglin Air Force Base whenever that time comes.
For Calhoun, others that come along in that mold — who come in unheralded before developing into potential NFL players — should also be given the opportunity to see how far football can take them.
THE NDAA FOR fiscal year 2024 was approved by both the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate in December and was signed into law by President Joe Biden on Dec. 22.
Tucked deep in that bill was the call for the Secretary of Defense to submit a report to the committees on armed services of the Senate and the House of Representatives by March 1. The report would include a legislative proposal to “update and clarify the legislative framework related to the ability of Service Academy graduates to pursue employment as a professional athlete prior to serving at least five years on active duty; and retain the existing requirement that all Service Academy graduates must serve for two years on active duty before affiliating with the reserves to pursue employment as a professional athlete.”
It also required a report that included every service academy graduate released or deferred from active service to participate in professional sports and a description of their career progress.
Spokespersons for the committees on armed services of the Senate and the House of Representatives did not reply to multiple messages from ESPN seeking copies of the reports and inquiring about the professional sports pathway for service academy graduates. A Department of Defense spokesperson declined to make anyone available for comment.
“It would’ve been nice if the athletic directors were engaged in the thought process a little bit more,” Gladchuk said. “It was pretty much handled at a level that was well above our influence.”
DURING THE SEASON, before the NDAA was finalized, Calhoun held out hope there would be another reversal, paving the way for players to head directly to the NFL.
On the possibility of keeping the two-year service term before attempting to go pro, Calhoun said, “Candidly, I think that would be a mistake for our country.”
Navy coach Brian Newberry is in a similar boat.
“It’s frustrating,” Newberry said. “A lot of players that we recruit, they’re not delusional about their ability to play in the NFL, but there’s certainly a large amount of kids that we recruit that have those ambitions and at least want the opportunity if it presents itself.”
It might be easy to write that off as a football coach looking for a competitive advantage, and while that is certainly part of it, there’s more to it.
“I don’t understand it. I think, for a lot of reasons, it would actually be good for the academies [to send players to the NFL],” Newberry said. “If, by chance, we have a player that can play in the NFL, what a great marketing tool for the academies and for the military. What great ambassadors they would be, and what you get out of that side of it far outweighs the deferment of their service.
“To me, it just doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. I hear the arguments on both sides, but I just think that the argument on the other side is uninformed.”
That argument boils down to this: When someone is admitted to a service academy, their military obligation is all that matters. The academies don’t exist to develop professional athletes.
After the two-year service period was reinstated in 2022, Rep. Mike Gallagher, R-Wis., issued a statement in support of the reversal.
“While I wish all service academy athletes who wish to go pro the best, the fact is U.S. military service academies exist to produce warfighters, not professional athletes,” he said. “By enrolling in one of these institutions, they took a spot from one of the thousands of other highly qualified Americans whose dream was to attend a service academy and serve their country in uniform.”
But to those on the campuses, that stance lacks nuance and implies these athletes are attempting to circumvent their service obligation, something that has never been on the table. They believe giving football players an NFL runway straight out of school actually functions as an extension of their military commitment.
Take Carter, for example. Even though his draft stock slipped and he ended up going undrafted, he still signed with the Minnesota Vikings last year and appeared in 12 games as a rookie. For the duration of his NFL career, he’ll carry significant value as a marketing asset for West Point and the U.S. Army.
Consider this: Last month, the Army released its 2025 fiscal year budget overview that called for a 10% increase to its recruiting and advertising budget, bringing it to $1.1 billion.
“Andre Carter’s best opportunity to help the Army’s recruiting is for him to lead the league in sacks as a Minnesota Viking,” said Mike Buddie, the athletic director at West Point. “If you win a Rhodes Scholarship, we pause your military responsibility and let you pursue the Rhodes Scholarship because that’s the best use of your skills. I view professional athletes very similarly to medical school and to Rhodes Scholarships. Especially with the fact that they’ve all agreed and they all understand that the minute that their professional sports career is over, their five-year clock starts ticking.”
And at that point, they’ve been around a professional setting and are, perhaps, more prepared to serve as a commission officer.
Added Newberry: “The amount of kids that actually have that opportunity [to play in the NFL] is so minuscule that I don’t think it impacts what the academies’ missions are in the long term.
“They’re not trying to get out of their service. I think that’s the most important thing to understand, is these kids come here, they choose to serve, they want to serve. But that window for them is so small, so to require a two-year delay just makes no sense.”
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Kristen Shilton
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Greg Wyshynski
HENDERSON, Nev. — With training camps opening up this week, the NHL is close to being back in action for the 2025-26 season after an eventful summer that included a new Collective Bargaining Agreement between the League and the players.
ESPN’s Kristen Shilton and Greg Wyshynski caught up with dozens of stars at the NHL Player Media Tour near Las Vegas last week and asked all the pertinent questions:
What did they like about the new CBA? Who will take advantage of the new relaxed dress code? Are they happy with the current playoff format? Plus, their favorite “cheat meals,” pregame pump-up tunes and weird equipment quirks.
Here’s what the NHL’s best had to say:
What’s your favorite cheat meal?
“I’ll go with my most recent: I had just a massive plate of chicken wings on Sunday to watch some NFL football. Like every other American. I’m a Giants fan. We scored less than a touchdown in Week 1. I’m not a hot chicken wing guy. I like the flavors. I went honey buffalo and garlic parm. It’s so good.” — Charlie McAvoy, Boston Bruins
A burger from 7th Street in New York — Mathew Barzal, New York Islanders
“Probably a burger and fries.” — Connor Bedard, Chicago Blackhawks
“Pizza. Domino’s. Unbelievable. Everything there.” — Seth Jarvis, Carolina Hurricanes
“Probably like a burger, something like that. There’s some good spots in Denver for burgers. Hard to pinpoint one. But the Cherry Cricket has a solid burger.” — Cale Makar, Colorado Avalanche
“I’ll go with Shake Shack. Burger, fries and a chocolate shake. That’s a legit cheat meal. Some people are probably giving you, like, half answer.” — Travis Sanheim, Philadelphia Flyers
“Pizza. Pineapple and ham.” — Victor Hedman, Tampa Bay Lightning
“Pizza with prosciutto. Not the American one. Like, the fancy pizza. Nice Italian one. Prosciutto with burrata.” — Lukas Dostal, Anaheim Ducks
“Nachos. Tacos. Something Mexican, for sure.” — Brady Skjei, Nashville Predators
“Chick-fil-a. Or a Culver’s burger, fries and chocolate shake.” — Jake Oettinger, Dallas Stars
“A burger. From anywhere. I’m easy.” — Macklin Celebrini, San Jose Sharks
What are you happiest about in the CBA?
“I appreciate that training camp is a little bit shorter. I’m not the biggest fan of camp, so that’ll be good. And I think [adding] the two more games, I mean, anyone can grind out two more games. It’s not like they’re adding 10 right? It’s going to be fine.” — Jarvis
“The relaxed dress code is cool. I think our [Finnish players] are definitely gonna take advantage. They just have cool stuff, and they look cool. I’m not the type of guy that can, like, pull off anything. I literally have sweatpants or golf clothes or suits, so I need to kind of branch out a little bit more. I’m excited to see what Roope Hintz cracks out because it feels like he could be wearing the craziest thing ever. And he makes it look cool.” — Oettinger
“I guess shorter preseason is probably the biggest thing. You’d rather play more [regular-season] games than have a long preseason, I think.” — Jack Hughes, New Jersey Devils
“No more suits. That’s pretty good. A lot of people talk about the 84-game season, but it comes with less training camp and less preseason games, so it kind of evens itself out at the end. But I’d rather play two more meaningful games than two preseason games.” — Pierre-Luc Dubois, Washington Capitals
“I think the cap-compliant thing for the playoffs was neat. I think it was something that everyone loved to complain about, but now that’s sort of taken care of, so the playing field is level again. So I think they did a good job with that. And then 84 games will be a lot, I’ll tell you that. I thought 82 was good. But here comes 84.” — McAvoy
“I think maybe the healthcare that they added. I just think that’s an important thing to have post-career. Obviously, guys that have retired before have stuff about that and said it’s an important part of it, so it’s good to see.” — Clayton Keller, Utah Mammoth
“No dress code. I like guys who express their fashion. You look at football guys, basketball, they get to show off. It’s good that we get that too.” — Hedman
“The dress code. You can express a little bit more yourself. But I still like to keep the suits. I like my suits. You invested in suits, but then you can invest in some nice jackets and stuff, so I feel like you can be more flexible with that.” — Dostal
“No fitness testing was nice. It came a little late. I mean, I’m getting old. I wish they did that 15 years ago. But I’m sure the guys are most happy with that.” — Jordan Eberle, Seattle Kraken
“I like the pension and health care for retirees. There’s so many great things that were able to come from the deal that I think will benefit players now and players and their families after they’re done playing. So there’s a lot of exciting things. The dress code allows guys to show a little bit more personality. But I think there’s going to be lots of guys wearing suits still. It’s a great hockey tradition. You see it right from minor hockey on up, with kids wearing suits to games. And I don’t think that’s going to change too much.” — Robert Thomas, St. Louis Blues
“I like the dress code being a little more lenient. Guys can probably show their flash and show their style a little bit more.” [Are you planning to do that?] “If I had some flash, or some style, I definitely would.” — Connor Hellebuyck, Winnipeg Jets
Which player on your team will most take advantage of the relaxed gameday dress code?
“That’s a good one. I’ll give you two guys. I think Pasta [David Pastrnak] is going to be the most. He’s got the best style, so I think he’ll be pretty eccentric. He’ll have some good outfits. And then I’ll say Morgan Geekie will take it easy. He loves a good hoodie and some sweatpants, just like me.” — McAvoy
“Myself. Timo Meier, Luke Hughes, Jesper Bratt too. But I still think I’ll wear suits a little bit, but for the most part I’ll wear normal clothes and enjoy that.” — Hughes
“Probably Vince Dunn. I think he’ll be pretty stylish, though. I don’t know if he’s taking advantage of it, but he’ll take it to another level.” — Eberle
What’s your go-to pre-game hype song, either as a team or personally?
“I don’t have one. And they keep me away from the Aux cord in the room, anyway.” — Jarvis
“I feel like I’m not really getting hyped up as much anymore. I mean, I still do [to play], but I’m more of like 90s stuff, like Matchbox 20, Dave Matthews, that my kind of music.” — Skjei
“I like old-school Drake. Like, ‘Headlines’ Drake. That’s my vibe.” — Oettinger
“My most hyped song I would go [with] is probably ‘Best of You,’ Foo Fighters.” — Hughes
“Just something like country music. I like Morgan Wallen, so his new album probably right now.” — Sanheim
“There’s a lot of country on. And then there’s hype music before we go on the ice. But it’s different every time.” — Hedman
“I listen to French rap, so it’s just whatever I’m into in that moment. I am the DJ at times, but I can’t play French rap for the team, just for myself.” — Dubois
“I’m kind of whatever they throw on. I listen to anything. I don’t mind. Some little oldies to get it going a little bit. Like Dire Straits’ ‘Money for Nothing.'” — Makar
How would you change or expand the playoff format? Or do you prefer it as is?
“I think it’s nice the way it is. I think you get those [great] matchups every year. The only tough thing is that two contenders might play each other in the first round, but it’s part of it. You’ve got to beat the best to be the best. I got no problems with it.” — Alex DeBrincat, Detroit Red Wings
“I would do 1-through-8 again. We get to play the same teams pretty much every time in the wild card, so I would like to see it a little bit different.” — Hedman
“I would probably change it, because sometimes I feel like it’s unfair when, in the first round, you get one of the best teams right away.” — Dostal
“I think we could [go back] to one through eight, but I can see how there’s so many rivalries that have been created through the format right now. It’s going to be hard no matter what you do. So it’s not like the one through eight set up would be a cakewalk for the No. 1 seed. Every series is still going to be a tough series.” — Skjei
“I like the way it is. I mean, if we start expanding the league a little more and add more teams, then I think you’ve got to probably start adding more teams to playoffs. But I like the way it is. I would probably go 1-through-8 instead.” — Eberle
“I feel like all the players want back to 1-to-8. I think that’s a thing that we’d like, but I get it. I understand the playoff format now. It makes the road harder sometimes. [Some players said the wild card locks in the same matchups every year?] I mean, if you’re from Edmonton or LA, I’d say so, yeah. Sometimes you get a good matchup and sometimes you are playing a top-six team with another top-six team like we did this past year. That’s the way she goes.” — Makar
“I would go 1-through-8. I wouldn’t expand it. The toughest thing to be a part of is the Stanley Cup playoffs. To have half the teams make it … I don’t know if you’d want necessarily want more than that. I understand it’d be exciting and bring a new element to it. I think just as a player, over 82 games to be a part of the top 16, it’s a challenge. If you open it up, you’re going to have teams that maybe don’t necessarily deserve to be there.” — Sanheim
“I wouldn’t expand it. I’m all for trying new things sometimes and if they wanted to do the play-in like the NBA … some people think that the 10th seed can make the playoffs, but the 10th just becomes the eighth. I like the 16 teams, with half the league in half the league out.” — Dubois
“I like how it is now. I’m used to it. Seeded one through eight might create some different matchups, but I’ve got no problems with it now.” — Jarvis
“I think I’m happy with 16 teams right now. I don’t know how I feel about the play-in games in the NBA, but I think right now I think half the [NHL] makes it and I think that’s pretty good numbers. I used to love 1-through-8, but the divisions were a little different too.” — Hughes
What’s your weirdest equipment quirk? Or the weirdest thing you’ve seen a teammate do?
“The weirdest thing is probably moving my helmet around all the time before a faceoff. It’s just my helmet fits so terribly, it’s like a habit at this point to move it around all the time.” — Sam Reinhart, Florida Panthers
“I wear these massive foam-like donuts in the front of my skates to prevent lace bite. And I think I might be the only guy to wear those. They’re about an inch thick. Rick Nash had the same problem, and I played with him in New York. So when I had lace bite, I went to him, and he’s gave me a couple of pads, and I’ve used them ever since then.” — Skjei
“I’m very particular about my gloves. I’ll change my left glove and keep my right glove. I’m sure I drive the trainers crazy, but sometimes I’m just looking for something.” — Eberle
“I get a new stick before every game. That’s just something that I’ve done. I just don’t trust it. I go crosscheck a guy and it’ll snap in half. I don’t want to be standing in the D-zone with a broken stick.” — Sanheim
“I’m always [hitting] my stick in my glove. I do that, like, 1,000 time a game. I don’t know why. I saw Carey Price do it when I was about 14, and I started doing it and now it’s just like a little tick. I don’t even realize I’m doing it.” — Oettinger
“I cut the laces on my skates. The tip of it is plastic. I cut the plastic part off. I just fold it in half. It’s because when I was in Junior, we didn’t have 96 [inch] laces and the laces were too long. So I just started cutting them. Now I can get 96 laces.. But it just doesn’t feel right.” — Dubois
They said it!
Quinn Hughes on new Canucks coach Adam Foote: “He’s been really good. Brought structure, competitive, good guy. So we’ll see how it goes with him as the coach, but I think he’s really excited and looking forward to the opportunity.”
Zach Werenski on belief in Columbus: “We were right there. We were in the playoff [mix] until Game 82. So we know we’re a good hockey team. It’s doing it consistently now, doing it again year after year, right? We had a good year last year. It still wasn’t good enough. So it’s doing it again and doing it even better. So I think [GM Don Waddell’s] belief in us is going to give us some confidence, too.”
Patrick Kane on Olympic Development Camp invite: “I think there was just talking with my agent about how there’s the potential of maybe making the team and that I was under consideration. So when you hear that, it’s not really that big of a surprise that you’re there. Probably a little bit more surprised that Alex [DeBrincat] was left off, but I think both of us have some motivation to get off to good starts this year.”
Robert Thomas on his goals for this season: “I’d like to get 100 [points]. I think I was pretty close to on pace for that last year, minus an injury. So, staying healthy and continuing to improve, I think that 100 points is my next target.”
Connor Hellebuyck on learning from 4 Nations Face-Off ahead of an Olympic year: “The emotional grind of the Four Nations was definitely a learning experience. Not only that, but I learned about the off-ice [stuff] and what to expect from that, and how to manage bringing your family around, managing how much extra media there is and stress there is on that. I definitely learned some good stuff from that.”
Sam Reinhart on Florida re-signing its own free agents: “I think it’s a testament to what we’ve got going on there. Guys might be able to make more in other places you know? But we’ve got something they want to be a part of and they don’t want to leave. It’s obviously pretty exciting just to see it all get done the way that it has and see everyone back on board.”
Patrick Kane, after Sidney Crosby interrupted an interview to say hello: “That’d be a good centerman to play with.”
HONOLULU — Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani and his agent, Nez Balelo, moved to dismiss a lawsuit filed last month accusing them of causing a Hawaii real estate investor and broker to be fired from a $240 million luxury housing development on the Big Island’s Hapuna Coast.
Ohtani and Balelo were sued Aug. 8 in Hawaii Circuit Court for the First Circuit by developer Kevin J. Hayes Sr. and real estate broker Tomoko Matsumoto, West Point Investment Corp. and Hapuna Estates Property Owners, who accused them of “abuse of power” that allegedly resulted in tortious interference and unjust enrichment.
Hayes and Matsumoto had been dropped from the development deal by Kingsbarn Realty Capital, the joint venture’s majority owner.
In papers filed Sunday, lawyers for Ohtani and Balelo said Hayes and Matsumoto in 2023 acquired rights for a joint venture in which they owned a minority percentage to use Ohtani’s name, image and likeness under an endorsement agreement to market the venture’s real estate development at the Mauna Kea Resort. The lawyers said Ohtani was a “victim of NIL violations.”
“Unbeknownst to Ohtani and his agent Nez Balelo, plaintiffs exploited Ohtani’s name and photograph to drum up traffic to a website that marketed plaintiffs’ own side project development,” the lawyers wrote. “They engaged in this self-dealing without authorization, and without paying Ohtani for that use, in a selfish and wrongful effort to take advantage of their proximity to the most famous baseball player in the world.”
The lawyers claimed Hayes and Matsumoto sued after “Balelo did his job and protected his client by expressing justifiable concern about this misuse and threatening to take legal action against this clear misappropriation.” They called Balelo’s actions “clearly protected speech “
In a statement issued after the suit was filed last month, Kingsbarn called the allegations “completely frivolous and without merit.”
Ohtani is a three-time MVP on the defending World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers.
“Nez Balelo has always prioritized Shohei Ohtani’s best interests, including protecting his name, image, and likeness from unauthorized use,” a lawyer for Ohtani and Balelo, said in a statement. “This frivolous lawsuit is a desperate attempt by plaintiffs to distract from their myriad of failures and blatant misappropriation of Mr. Ohtani’s rights.”
Lawyers for Hayes and Matsumoto did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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