l monday, november 11, 2013 l serving texas a&m since 1893 l first paper free – additional copies $1 l © 2013 student media

thebattalion

SEE YOU SOON, KYLE FIELD.

Renovations to Kyle Field began immediately after the 51-41 A&M win against Mississippi State on Saturday, starting with the removal of the grass (pictured right).

The Texas A&M women’s soc-cer team toppled the SEC top-

seeded No. 5 Florida Gators 2-1 in the SEC Tournament Champion-ship game on Sunday, earning the program’s first-ever SEC Tourna-ment crown and clinching a bid to its 19th consecutive NCAA Divi-sion I Tournament.

“It’s a great feeling,” said junior midfielder Shea Groom. “Being co-champions in the regular sea-son when we had a chance to win it outright wasn’t what we wanted. We felt like this would be a tie-

breaker if we won it. We don’t have to share this with anyone.”

The Aggies fell behind in the 28th minute of the match, as Flori-da’s Annie Speese was able to strike first for the Gators, giving them a 1-0 lead going into the intermis-sion. A&M battled back, though, behind Groom’s tying score in the 56th minute.

A&M’s All-SEC Freshman, Liz Keester, was able to clinch the game-winning goal for the Aggies with 6:58 remaining in the match. Keester scorched a shot to the far post from 25 yards out past the Florida keeper to give the Aggies a 2-1 advantage.

Keester’s game-winning goal brought her tournament goal total to three, earning her All-Tour-nament MVP honors and joining three other Aggies — juniors Allie

Bailey, Shea Groom and Meghan Streight — on the SEC All-Tour-nament Team.

“It means a lot — it’s really ex-citing,” Keester said. “I wouldn’t be anywhere without my team-mates. They make the passes. They’re right there carrying me across the line when we’re run-ning. We’re all in it together.”

The Aggies’ next challenge, the 2013 NCAA Tourna-ment, begins Friday.

A&M wins first-ever SEC tournament

Clay KoepkeThe Battalion

soccer

Aggies top Florida 2-1 in Sunday rematch

Todd Van Emst — SEC

Junior forward Annie Kunz (No. 7) and sophomore defender Janae Cousineau attempt a header during A&M’s 2-1 win over Florida on Sunday.

A panel of three, including a four-star gen-eral, the chief Washington correspondent

for The New York Times and an ambassador who has been named an honorary marine, shared insight Friday on the changing American mili-tary.

Boots off the Ground was presented by the MSC Wiley Lecture Series to delve into the topic of the American military’s increasing trend toward light-footprint strategies.

Gen. Stan McChrystal has personally wit-nessed the change in American military tech-nology. McChrystal compared the situation to-day with that of then-Col. Rudder’s in 1944. McChrystal said because of limited intelligence, Rudder’s battalion was sent on a nighttime mission that ultimately was pointless.

“Fifty years later exactly [in 1994], I was leading the same battalion that Col. James Earl Rudder had and when we went on operations, much of what we did was much the same,” McChrystal said. “We operated with fairly lim-ited intelligence, we fired with weapons that worked about the same, we had night vision, but not everybody had them. So in fact not that much had changed.”

Military tactics prompt dialogue

Jennifer ReileyThe Battalion

See Wiley on page 4

wiley lecture series

Notable guests share experiences with light-footprint strategies

With sweat dripping down her back and fatigue setting in, Ashley

Straker ran alongside other freshmen in her unit during the Corps Brass culmina-tion Saturday. Unlike any of her work-outs with the Corps of Cadets thus far, this one was the hardest, and she found herself fighting off the thought — “Will this ever end?” — by remembering the cadets before her who had worked for

their brass in the past.Straker now stands among the hun-

dreds of freshmen cadets who received their Corps Brass insignia this weekend, a feat that requires a rite of passage taking place over a predetermined, but secret, amount of time.

“The freshmen were basically woken up bright and early and we [had] them do formations and several workouts,” said Austen Jacobs, Corps public rela-tions officer. “At the end, they [received] their Corps Brass. They had no idea they would be doing this.”

While the final culmination of what many Corps freshmen have found to be

Fish awarded Corps Brass

Katy StappThe Battalion

See Corps Brass on page 4

corps of cadets

Culmination event signifies ‘what we stand for as cadets’

opinion | 2Pay him or pay him respectMark Doré argues if Johnny Manziel wants an NFL career, the time is now. And it’s up to the 12th Man to support him.

Photos by Tanner Garza, Chase Krumholz and Josh McKenna — THE BATTALION

BAT_11-11-13_A1.indd 1 11/10/13 9:13 PM

But I almost stopped myself, and later I realized why it felt wrong. I would be thrilled if he and Mike Evans returned, but if I was Johnny (and I’m most certainly not — I’m pretty sure I threw my back out playing ping pong this weekend) I’d take a stab at the NFL 100 times out of 100.

Staying in school isn’t equitable. Not in the SEC, not in the current land-scape, not without proper reimburse-ment on the part of the schools and the NCAA. Football is in danger. The game kills people — not, in most cases, during their time on the field, but later. Thirty years later when the ringing in their heads hasn’t quit. Forty years later when they have to scribble notes to remind themselves where they parked their cars.

Chronic traumatic encephalopathy, CTE, is a disease you might have heard about on SportsCenter. It’s the degen-erative brain disorder that stems from repeated trauma and concussions. It’s real. Players might not have previously realized the danger, but they do now. They know they have a shelf life. They know they’re risking life and livelihood with each snap.

It’s a decision. Johnny makes it every time he tucks and runs. He’ll make it again in the coming weeks, if he hasn’t already, when he decides whether or not to forego his remaining years of

eligibility and enter the NFL draft. He’s small and that’s why he came to Texas A&M. Other schools didn’t know what he had.

If you think his size makes him unfit for the next level, you haven’t been watching. But it also means his body has a shorter expiration date than most. He’s playing for free, at the moment, and the average quarterback plays 6.6 years. With his size and tendency to run, it’s hard to imagine that number doesn’t scale down in Johnny’s case. Few NFL players can improvise the way Johnny can, but most are much bigger.

He’s already given us two years of play-for-free football. So when and if you condemn Johnny for choosing to go pro, you’re telling him he should sacrifice almost 20 percent of the dura-tion of his dream and receive nothing in return.

Johnathan Paul Manziel is a junior sport management major. He has some-where between 60-89 credit hours. Each week, he spends that many hours practicing, watching tape, traveling and playing. His time investment is on the field. It’s the career he’s best suited for at this stage in his life.

Degrees are great, but don’t over-simplify. Your situation is not Johnny’s situation. The clock is ticking on his chances to do what he loves for a

living, and that’s powerful. The NFL won’t wait.

So we owe him a graceful exit. For the deck of trump cards he gave us for debates with t-sips, if nothing else.

A failure on the part of this student body to afford him the respect he deserves in his pending decision could end with the College Station air even harder to breathe for Manziel. Pub-licly, he’s been a great sport about it, but people have limits. If you spout off about the terrible decision he’s making by going pro, or about the way he has turned his back on A&M, or anything like that — you might find his limits quicker than you hope.

Divorce is ugly. There are countless examples of athletes so embittered by the way a team or crowd has treated them that they choose never to return. Bill Russell and Boston is a good exam-ple of an absentee town legend. Don’t be part of the voice that makes Manziel want never to spend another night in Aggieland.

I want Johnny to come back, but I want it on his own terms. If he’s taking snaps in Kyle next season, I’ll be loud. If the next time his face crops up on Saturdays is in the “Aggies in the NFL” segment, I’ll be louder.

thebattalion

sports opinionpage 2

monday 11.11.2013

Double Quick Drive ThruDaiquiri Factory

4501 Wellborn Rd., Bryan (979) 846-2237www.doublequickdrinks.com /doublequick.bcs

Come in or Drive Thru Daiquiris To GoDrive Thru Open 1pm Daily & Also

Available Inside Our Store

Half Price Extra Shots

All Day Mon & Wed

DOUBLE QUICK DAIQUIRIS TO GO:Aggie Punch, Banana Colada, Blue Coconut, Blue Colada, Banana Blue Colada, Blue Hawaiian, Cherry Limeade, Coco-Pine-Orange, Fuzzy Navel, Green Apple, Hurricane, Kiwi Strawberry, Mai Tai, Mango Colada, Margarita, Orange Dreamscile, Orange Strawberry Banana, Peachberry, Peach Colada, Peach Mango, Pina Colada, Purple Passion, Screwdriver, Slow Screwdriver, Sex on the Beach, Strawberry Banana, Strawberry Colada, Strawberry & Creme, Strawberry Daiquiri, Strawberry Lemonade, Strawberry Mango, Strawberry Margarita, Strawberry Raspberry, Raspberry, Raspberry Colada, Raspberry Lemonade, Raspberry Margarita, Watermelon. Long Island Ice Teas, Jello Shots (strawberry, tropical fusion, watermelon), Cherry Bombs.

Universit

y Dr.

College Ave.

Wellborn Rd.

Villa Maria

Rd.

ANSWERSto todays puzzles

Right now, PPD is looking for qualified participants for a post-surgical pain relief research study of an investigational medication. Surgery for qualified study participants will be performed by a board certified oral surgeon. Receive up to $1,000 upon study completion and the surgery is performed at no cost.

We have a research study.

Need to have your wisdom teeth removed?

For information, call 1-800-866-0492Text “PPD” to 48121 to receive study information

The BaTTalion is published daily, Monday through Friday during the fall and spring semesters and Tuesday and Thursday during the summer session (except University holidays and exam periods) at Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843. Offices are in Suite L400 of the Memorial Student Center.

News: The Battalion news department is managed by students at Texas A&M University in Student Media, a unit of the Division of Student Affairs. Newsroom phone: 979-845-3315; E-mail: editor@thebatt.com; website: http://www.thebatt.com.

Advertising: Publication of advertising does not imply sponsorship or endorsement by The Battalion. For campus, local, and national display advertising, call 979-845-2687. For classified advertising, call 979-845-0569. Office hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Email: battads@thebatt.com.

Subscriptions: A part of the Student Services Fee entitles each Texas A&M student to pick up a single copy of The Battalion. First copy free, additional copies $1.

thebattalion The IndependenT STudenT VoIce of TexaS a&M SInce 1893

Jake Walker, Editor in Chief

ROTC is demanding and the fi rst time students face the demands of military life. If you’re facing disenrollment I can help.With your future career and scholarship

recoupment at stake you need an experienced attorney to help.

I am a retired JAG Colonel and will fi ght for you.

See www.domeklaw.com

Mark Doré: If the NFL is Johnny’s dream, the time is now — and he deserves our support

PAY HIM OR PAY HIM RESPECT

I chanted Saturday for one more year with Johnny Man-ziel behind center. I yelled and screamed and I did so because no one is more fun to cheer for than Johnny

Football.

Mark Doré is a senior English major and manag-ing editor for The Battalion

Tanner Garza — THE BATTALION

BAT_11-11-13_A2.indd 1 11/10/13 4:55 PM

thebattalion

sports page 3

monday 11.11.2013

AggieNetwork.com

Private Party Want ads

$10 for 20 words running 5 days, if your merchandise is priced $1,000 or less (price must appear in ad). This rate applies only to non-commercial advertisers offering personal possessions for sale. Guaranteed results or you get an additional 5 days at no charge. If item doesn’t sell, advertiser must call before 1 p.m. on the day the ad is scheduled to end to qualify for the 5 additional insertions at no charge. No refunds will be made if your ad is cancelled early.

Place an adPhone 845-0569 Suite L400,Memorial Student CenterTexas A&M University

When to call8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through FridayInsertion deadline: 1 p.m. prior business day

SPEC

IAL

classifiedssee ads at thebatt.com

3 MORE DAYSto have your free pORtRAit made for texas A&M’s 2014 Aggieland yearbook.All ClASSES: Just walk in to have your portrait taken 9:30 a.m – 5 p.m. Monday through Wedneday (Nov. 11–13) in MSC Suite l400, or schedule an appointment by emailing arphototamu@gmail.com or calling 979.846.9690.It’s your yearbook. Be in it.

AUTO

I buy vehicles; working, nonwork-ing, or wrecked. 979-778-1121.

BED AND BREAKFAST

Graduation/Special EventBarndominum features 5/bed-rooms, 2/livingrooms in-groundpool, billiard room, outdoorkitchen, 2/RV hook-ups, 3 milesfrom campus located on 2 acreswith large parking area, andfully furnished. Call/text today(254)-721-6179.

Romantic Getaways & Engage-ments, secluded cabin suites. AllDay, All Night. www.7flodge.com979-690-0073.

FARM/RANCH

Aggieland Alfalfa. 50lbcompressed Alfalfa bales, 50lbcompressed Timothy bales. Callor text orders to 806-683-2916.

FOR RENT

3/2 duplex. 5-minutes fromcampus, fenced yard,allappliances, $850. Call469-233-4653.

3/3,3/2 Houses, Townhouses&Apartments, 1250-1400sqft.Very spacious, ethernet, largekitchen, walk-in pantry &closets,extra storage, W/D, great ameni-ties, marble and granite, on mul-tiple bus routes, now pre-leasing,excellent specials. 979-694-0320.www.luxormanagement.com

3bdrm Deacon Condo, availableJan.1st, W/D included, onbus-route, safe neighborhood, nopets, $1200/mo. 979-451-2819.

4/3, 3/3 &3/2 Houses,Townhouses, Duplexes&Fourplexes, 1250-1700sqft. Veryspacious, ethernet, large kitchen,extra storage, W/D, greatamenities, marble and granite, onmultiple bus routes, now pre-leas-ing, excellent specials.979-694-0320.www.luxormanagement.com

Duplex, CS, nice 2bd, 3-minutesfrom campus, W/D, remodeled,fenced front and backyard,beautiful with many extras,one week free, 832-646-2329.

FOR RENT

Just available! Close to campus,College Main and Eastgate areas.2bd/1ba., some w/dishwasher,1-fenced, some bills paid.$325-$450/mo. 979-219-3217.

Looking for female roommate tosublease 3bed/3bath duplex downHolleman ASAP. No depositrequired, tiled floors, large livingarea, kitchen, and fenced inbackyard. Pet-friendly w/alreadypaid pet deposit, washer/dryer,cable/internet, $400/mo. 1/3utilities. If approved by landlordwilling to reduce rent. Contact(254)-466-0077, (254)-466-2935.

Spring lease, $1200/mo,2bd/1.5ba, built 2011, close tocampus, call 979-255-2488.

Student sublease from January toMay. $650/month plus utilitiesfor 2bd/1ba duplex on DominikDrive. Fenced yard, parking for 2,close to campus, pets allowed.Call/text 281-799-4871 for details.

FOR SALE

Brand new never used Holickssenior corps boots with spurs,size 10 1/2. $1600 located inNorthwest Houston. Call Susan713-939-9931.

HELP WANTED

Athletic men for calendars,books, etc. $100-$200/hr, upto $1000/day. No experience.aggieresponse@gmail.com

Child Care FT & PT shifts available.Some nights & Saturdaysrequired. Apply in person at3609 E. 29th St., Bryan.

Christ United Methodist Church,College Station, TX is seeking 4dynamic Youth Interns to helplead a program of 100+ activeyouth. Candidates should haveprior experience in working withyouth, be a sophomore or greaterin college, possess solid communi-cation skills, be a team player andcomfortable speaking about faithmatters. Responsibilities includehelping lead Sunday night youth,Wednesday night Bible Study,keeping in touch with assignedyouth, and attending trips. Com-pensation will be up to $13,000for each intern per year. Formore information contact KevinRund at 979-690-4673 or to apply,send resumes tokevinrund@christ-umc.org

HELP WANTED

Cleaning commercial buildingsat night, M-F. Call 979-823-5031for interview.

Help wanted at Brazos Bingo,shifts available: 5:00P.M. -10:00P.M. Daily; and 1:00P.M. -4:00P.M. Wed. and Fri. Call(979)774-7266 for an interview.

Help wanted kitchen staff atBrazos City Grill, shifts available:4:00P.M. - 10:00P.M. Daily; and12:00P.M. - 3:00P.M. Wed. and Fri.Call (979)776-8135 for aninterview.

Lords & Ladies! We needmerchants and hawkers to workat our four locations at the TexasRenaissance Festival! We selljewelry, musical instruments,tapestries, wood swords- manyunusual handcrafts. Competent,honest, dependable.Drama/smoke free. Sat & Sun8am-dark, now-Dec. 1.Harry 913-706-5471hcallicotte@yahoo.com

HELP WANTED

Part-time job helping handi-capped. Male student preferred.$360/mo. 8-10hrs/wk.979-846-3376.

Small business opportunity. Intel-ligence, integrity, and depend-ability required, 214-682-3776.

STUDENTPAYOUTS.COMPaid survey takers needed inCollege Station. 100% free tojoin. Click on surveys.

The Dollar Floor Store hiring parttime workers. Fork lift experiencea plus but no experience neces-sary. Must be able to lift and passdrug screening. Please contactDavid Makuta at 979-775-9200.

HELP WANTED

VOLUNTEER COACHES NEEDED!The City of College Station isseeking positive, enthusiastic andmotivational youth basketballcoaches. The season begins earlyDec. and runs through March 6.Learn more at cstx.gov/sports orapply today atcstx.gov/sportsvolunteer

REAL ESTATE

B/CS. Sell/Buy/Invest! MichaelMcGrann TAMU ‘93 CivilEngineering 979-739-2035,mike@aggierealtor.comNadia McGrann 979-777-6211,Town & Country Realty.

ROOMMATES

3bd/3bath townhouse, need 1-2female roommates. The Barracksat Rock Prairie. $545/mo.1/3 of utilities. Raquel Rooney(713)-408-1656.

TUTORS

Private tutoring available, $30/hr,flexible time and location, call214-682-3776.

Tutoring, editing, ESL Specialist,Manuscripts, Thesis, anddissertations. $15/hr,e-mail Cmizc@aol.com

puzzle answers can be found on page 2

the battalion

If You Have Something To Sell, Remember Classifieds Can Do It!

Call 845-0569

We’ve got yournumber2013-2014 A&M Campus DirectoryListings of departments, administrators, faculty, staff, and other information.

Departments: You may charge and pick them up

at the student media office in suite L400 of the msC. Cost is $4 per copy. please bring a student media Work Order. Deliveries on request. Call 845-2646 for information.

stUDents and others may purchase directories for $4

plus tax each in msC L400 (by cash, check or credit card). Hours: 8:30 a.m.–4:30 p.m.

A&M to battle Miss. Valley St.The Texas A&M men’s basketball team will

face off with non-conference opponent Mississippi Valley State in its second game of the season at 7 p.m. Monday in Reed Arena.

Behind the combined 30 points and 13 re-bounds from junior guard Jordan Green and junior forward Kourtney Roberson, the Ag-gies defeated The University at Buffalo 82-58 in the season opener Friday at Reed Arena.

In Friday’s game, six Aggies made their de-buts and combined for 33 points, including freshmen Davonte Fitzgerald, Dylan Johns, Tavario Miller, Shawn Smith and two trans-fers — sophomore Antwan Space and junior Jamal Jones.

Third-year head coach Billy Kennedy im-proved to a 33-33 A&M career record with the win Friday and looks to continue against Mis-sissippi Valley State, who fell to No. 8 Okla-homa State 117-62 in its Friday opener.

James Sullivan, sports editor

men’s basketball

Junior Jordan Green’s team-high 15 points helped A&M beat Buffalo on Friday.

Yomi Adenuga — THE BATTALION

Aggies open with North TexasThe Texas A&M women’s basketball team

opens its 2013-14 campaign with an away matchup against in-state opponent North Tex-as at 7 p.m. Monday in Denton.

For five Aggies — freshman Jada Terry, sophomores Jordan Jones and Chelsea Jen-nings, junior Allison Chu and senior Kristen Grant — the game will mark a homecoming to the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex.

“It’s important to me to be able to play in front of the families of our players and our fans who are from the Dallas-Fort Worth area,” said A&M head coach Gary Blair. “We have so much rich tradition from this area and we want to say thank you and keep the legacy of quality players finding their way to Aggieland.”

A&M has won its past three games in DFW, including victories in the 2011 NCAA Tournament over Georgia and Baylor en route to its national title. Against North Texas, the Aggies hold the series lead 5-2, as well as 3-2 in Denton.

James Sullivan, sports editor

women’s basketball

Sophomore Jordan Jones is one of five Aggies returning to the DFW metroplex Monday against North Texas.

Courtesy of Aggie Athletics

BAT_11-11-13_A3.indd 1 11/10/13 6:31 PM

YOU BE THE JUDGEMaking the decision to attend law school is huge. You can feel confident and comfortable with the right choice.At South Texas College of Law/Houston you will find: x an exceptional faculty

x an advocacy program rated No.1 in the nation by the Blakely Advocacy Institute

x affordable tuition rates, as evidenced by a “Best Value” private law school ranking in The National Jurist magazine

x the Randall O. Sorrells Legal Clinic, which houses more than 10 direct-service clinics, academic externships and a vibrant volunteer pro bono program

x an award-winning legal research and writing faculty

x a broad and flexible curriculum

x a helpful and knowledgeable staff

x more than 30 student organizations that provide a nurturing social environment and opportunities for community service

x a downtown location close to major law firms and corporations for enhanced job opportunities

Deadline for fall, 2014 admission is February 15, 2014

x x

x x

South texaS College of law/Houston

Houston’s Oldest Law School, 713.646.1810 • www.stcl.edu

2013 Aggieland yearbooks are here.If you did not order the 2013 Texas A&M university yearbook (the 2012-2013 school year), a limited number are available at the Student Media office, Suite L400 of the MSC. Hours: 8:30 a.m.–4:30 p.m. Monday–Friday. $85 plus tax. Cash, check, VISA, MasterCard, Discover and American Express, accepted. If you pre-ordered a 2013 Aggieland, it has been mailed to your billing address.

thebattalion

newspage 4

monday 11.11.2013

McChrystal then described a situation in 2004 in which he could sit in one room and oversee 10 to 12 missions happening at the same time, where the military was con-stantly connected to video and audio feeds from on-the-ground special forces.

“Special operating forces at that point, which I command-ed now, had the ability to do things we had only dreamed about in the past,” McChrys-tal said.

David Sanger, chief Wash-ington correspondent for The New York Times, said America is reaching the end of a 12-year war and the end of a time when American diplomacy focused solely on the press.

“Sometimes for good, and often not for good, [the press] ended up bending our diplo-macy, bending our view of the world and bending our perception of how we balance the growth of our military and our intelligence services with other necessities of gover-nance,” Sanger said.

Sanger said when President Barack Obama came into of-fice in 2009, he reassessed plans for the war in Afghanistan.

“[Obama] developed a strategy that was designed to avoid the days when we would send in 100,000 troops for six or seven years,” Sanger said. “He replaced that with a light-footprint strategy, a strategy of trying to combat America’s biggest problems using three weapons that were all at his disposal and were left over from the Bush years.”

Sanger said the three major weapons taking U.S. boots off the ground were drones, cyber technology and the use of spe-cial forces.

McChrystal, with his ex-perience in the special forces, said a stronger reliance on special teams has benefits and dangers associated with it.

“It was almost intoxicating because it felt like we could pound on the enemy over and over with effectiveness new to our force,” McChrystal said. “Our actions were accepted by the White House and by the Pentagon. What the forc-es were doing was gratifying to watch. It was reinforcing but had the danger of being addictive.”

McChrystal said while the new advancements are excit-ing for the United States, they will be tested as other coun-tries begin to develop techno-logically as well.

“In reality, I think what we

are going to find in the future is those things which we have been very comfortable do-ing to our foes, we are going to find they can do to us,” McChrystal said.

Ryan Crocker, former am-bassador to Iraq and Afghani-stan, said the military actions are done to achieve a political goal, a factor that influences decisions.

“War emerges from politics and must eventually return to politics,” Crocker said. “At no time has this been truer than in the 21st century. If war and politics are the two faces of the same coin, it fol-lows that in the 21st century that there must be the closest possible coordination between U.S. military and civilians, be-tween ambassadors and force commanders.”

While Crocker said the use of special forces has benefits for the military, he also said there is a danger to armed forces turning away from the conventional armies of the past.

“I do not believe we can transition away from a core reliance on conventional forc-es — boots on the ground,” Crocker said. “Sometimes you have to go heavy to get the job done. Going too light can be dangerous.”

WileyContinued from page 1

a long and trying process came on Saturday morning, the preparation began with the se-mester.

Jacobs said during the workout freshmen were tasked with running around campus to important locations and reciting “campusolo-gies” that they have learned throughout the semester to not only prove to the upperclass-men, but also to themselves, that they were ready to earn their Corps Brass.

More often than not, sophomores in each unit lead the most difficult parts of the work-out during the Corps Brass culmination and give the freshmen the actual medal.

Mark Griffin, sophomore biomedical sci-ence major and cadet corporal of Squadron 2, defined the 30-year-old tradition as a multi-ple-week process of mental and physical stress in which the freshmen learn campus informa-tion, University traditions and what it means to be a member of the Corps.

“Earning Corps Brass is a fish’s official entry of being a member in the Corps,” Griffin said. “It signifies what we stand for as cadets and the morals we stand by.”

Each year, the Corps staff determines the length of the process according to how long it takes the freshmen to learn all they need to know, Griffin said.

“It’s kind of an opinion-based claim because every year is different,” Griffin said. “The class ahead of me had a process that was only two weeks long but very intense, and we had an eight- or nine-week process which increased with intensity and difficulty with each week.”

The catch is that the freshmen don’t know how long it will be until they earn their Corps Brass.

“Not telling them is supposed to mess with

their heads,” Griffin said. “They don’t know when it ends until the final day when we actu-ally pin their brass on them.”

For this year’s freshmen, the moment oc-curred early Saturday morning. The freshmen in all 42 outfits were suddenly awakened by their upperclassmen for intense workouts and recitations that finally resulted in receiving their Corps Brass.

Straker, freshman mathematics major in Squadron 2, said the surprise was challenging, but one of the most rewarding experiences she’s ever had.

“It was the most intense workout of my life,” Straker said. “But earning our place in the Corps and in our outfits was an experience like no other.”

Straker said the event was challenging but she had her unit’s support.

“To get through the pain, we were told prior to, ‘Think of those in the Corps before us who had it worse,’ and that really motivated me, and I’m sure others, to press on and do our best,” Straker said.

Jacobs said in the end Corps Brass is a com-mon ground that every cadet shares.

“It’s really cool to see how [freshmen have] grown and worked for this moment,” Jacobs sad. “I remember doing this. It’s a rough pro-cess but is so rewarding in the end.”

Corps BrassContinued from page 1

William Guerra — THE BATTALION

BAT_11-11-13_A4.indd 1 11/10/13 9:13 PM