When you have 20 years of service and obtain the lofty rank of Chief Warrant Officer 4, and oh, by the way, you’re an experienced attack helicopter pilot, it’s safe to say that you may not be at the top of the list for volunteer duty two days after Christmas.
But seniority didn’t compare to sheer fandom for 3rd Squadron, 6th Cavalry Regiment Army Chief Warrant Officer 4 Michael Bontekoe, a Michigan City, Ind., native, when he heard three words: Notre Dame football.
Soldiers and civilian trainers welcomed University of Notre Dame and Oregon State University football players and staff who visited Fort Bliss, Texas, Dec. 27, 2023.
The annual tour stop was a part of schools’ bowl week, thanks to the Sun Bowl Association, leading up to the 90th annual Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl, Dec. 29, played in El Paso and one of the longest-running bowls in college football.
The Irish and the Oregon State Beavers tackled the Iron Warrior Training Complex, a multi-million-dollar array of facilities on east Bliss.
There they had the chance to train with the same technology Soldiers use to sharpen their skills before they head out to the expansive Fort Bliss Training Complex, which at almost one million acres, expands into neighboring New Mexico.
If they weren’t knocking down virtual targets, or networking with their teammates on virtual battlefields where they could bring a battalion or a brigade's worth of firepower onto a digital enemy, the players were checking out the real-world hardware; heavy vehicles and aircraft representative of Fort Bliss’ many missions.
Perched atop his AH-64 Apache as he helped football players and other guests into his aircraft and to try on his helmet, Bontekoe said the chance to share his vocation with his beloved Irish was surreal, and he appreciated the energy both schools’ student-athletes had for Army Aviation.
“I liked the enthusiasm,” Bontekoe said. “It's always fun to share what your job is – you know – makes you feel special again. I appreciated their interest in what we do. They were full of questions, ‘What does this do? What does that do?’”
Soldiers from the 93rd Military Police Battalion, several 1st Armored Division units, and air defenders from the 11th Air Defense Artillery Brigade teamed up with civilian training specialists inside the facilities to demonstrate basic soldiering techniques and share a bit about themselves and their Army experiences.
Outside, Soldiers helped players get up close to Army hardware like the Abrams Main Battle Tank, a Mine Resistant Ambush Protected Vehicle, or MRAP, and the majestic Terminal High Altitude Area Defense missile system.
The Soldiers were also available for questions, and as they do every year, the student-athletes and Soldiers easily found common ground, maybe away from the military or college football, but maybe just as young people as they bantered into the afternoon.
Command Sgt. Maj. Dave Sweeney, the Bliss Garrison command sergeant major, said he feels there probably isn’t too far of a cultural gap between service members and major college football players.
“A lot of them are away from home for the first time, living in dorms, eating at a dining facility, and figuring out life for the first time on their own,” said Sweeney. “Both belong to a team that counts on those around them. If one person is off their game, then the team suffers. College athletes and Soldiers have to be physically and mentally fit; they have to show up every day and be their best. If they don’t, the team suffers.
“They both have senior leaders pushing them hard every day to be better than they were yesterday and prepare for the next fight that comes,” said Sweeney. “The other great thing about college and the Army is it is usually a melting pot of different communities from across the country. [They are] learning from each other and developing relationships they’ll remember for the rest of their lives.”
Sweeney said he was pleased by how the Sun Bowl Association and El Paso welcomed Fort Bliss and the Army into long-standing local traditions like the Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl and all of the special events leading up to the game, but he also got the feeling that getting a chance to meet today’s Soldiers probably wasn’t lost on the teams as they enjoyed their bowl week.
“I think the community truly appreciates our presence here,” said Sweeney. “They also appreciate the commitment that comes with being a Soldier and want to thank us and ensure the colleges also understand the importance of the military.
"I think as a coach of the team it helps to ground them and keep them focused on the game," he said. "I believe bringing college athletes onto a military installation helps humble a young athlete and helps them understand that at the end of the day what they are doing is a game but there are other Americans, their same age, putting their lives on the line for the country and they should be thankful and appreciative of that.”
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