List of sportspeople educated at the United States Military Academy

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List of sportspeople educated at the United States Military Academy - Wikipedia

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(Redirected from List of United States Military Academy alumni (athletic figures))

The United States Military Academy (USMA) is an undergraduate college in West Point, New York that educates and commissions officers for the United States Army. The Academy is a member of the Division I Patriot League in most sports,^[1] but its men's ice hockey program competes in the Atlantic Hockey league and its football program competes independent of a league.^[2]^[3] The academy fields 24 club sports teams. In addition, about 65% of the cadets compete in intramural sports, known at the academy as "company athletics".^[4]

This list is drawn from alumni of the Military Academy who are athletes or athletic coaches. Eleven alumni have competed in the Olympic Games as athletes or coaches. The first was George S. Patton (class of 1909) in the modern pentathlon at the 1912 Summer Olympics. The most recent is Mike Krzyzewski (class of 1969), who was head coach of the U.S. men's basketball team at the 2016 Summer Olympics. Three alumni are recipients of college football's Heisman Trophy: Doc Blanchard (class of 1947), Glenn Davis (class of 1947), and Pete Dawkins (class of 1959). Bob Mischak (class of 1954) was named No. 7 on NFL.com's list of Top Ten All Time NFL Players from service academies and was a 3x Super Bowl winner. (Note – There are at least 2 others who were on the US Olympic Team Handball squad ... Craig Gilbert – '78; Pete Lash – '81 (who went on to garner MVP awards at the World Championship); and possibly Jim Thome – '68, as a long-time US team coach. / asst. coach. Gilbert and Lash are both shown on the West Point wall of Olympic athletes at Kimsey Athletic Center, at the south end of Michie Stadium. Gilbert participated in '84, and Lash in '84 and '88.)

Athletic figures

Note: "Class year" refers to the alumni's class year, which usually is the same year they graduated. However, in times of war, classes often graduate early.

Athletes

Name	Class year	Notability	References
Abner Doubleday	1842	Major General during the American Civil War; subject of the myth that he invented baseball	^[5]
Guy Henry	1898	Major General; Spanish–American War, Philippine–American War, World War I, World War II; commander of the 3rd Cavalry Regiment; recipient of two Army Distinguished Service Medals and the Silver Star; son of Brigadier General, Medal of Honor recipient, and Puerto Rico Governor Guy Vernor Henry; Bronze Medalist at the 1912 Summer Olympics in equestrianism
Paul Bunker	1903	Colonel; selected as a member of the College Football All-America Team in 1901 and 1902 and as the retroactive Heisman Trophy winner for 1902 by Sports Illustrated; member of the College Football Hall of Fame	^[6]
George S. Patton	1909	General; 1912 Summer Olympics, modern pentathlon, 5th place; Pancho Villa Expedition; World War II; Battle of Saint-Mihiel, Meuse-Argonne Offensive; commander of the 1st Tank Brigade/304th Tank Brigade; commander of the 3rd Cavalry Regiment; commander of the 2nd Armored Division; commander of the II Corps; commander of the Seventh United States Army, Third United States Army, and Fifteenth United States Army during World War II; descendant of Brigadier General Hugh Mercer; father of Major General George Patton IV; Patton series of tanks were named for him	^[7]^[8]
Elmer Oliphant	1918	World War I; professional football player; considered one of the all-time greatest college football players; established world record in 220-yard (200 m) low hurdles	^[9]
P.C. Hains	1924	Major General; cavalry officer; modern pentathlon at the 1928 Summer Olympics	^[10]
John Roosma	1926	Colonel during World War II; Basketball Hall of Fame; the Academy's basketball Most Valuable Player award is named after him	^[11]
Robin Olds	1943	Brigadier General; World War II, Vietnam War; group commander in the 86th Fighter-Interceptor Wing; commander of the No. 1 Squadron RAF and 434th Fighter Squadron; commander of the 81st Tactical Wing and the 8th Tactical Fighter Wing; recipient of the Air Force Cross, two Air Force Distinguished Service Medals, and four Silver Stars; son of Major General Robert Olds; member of the College Football Hall of Fame	^[12]
Doc Blanchard	1947	United States Air Force fighter pilot; combat veteran of Vietnam War; football player known as "Mr. Inside" who won the Heisman Trophy, Maxwell Award, and James E. Sullivan Award, all in 1945	^[13]
Glenn Woodward Davis	1947	Served three years in the Army before joining the Los Angeles Rams; football player known as "Mr. Outside" who won the Maxwell Award (1944) and Heisman Trophy (1946)	^[14]
James V. Hartinger	1949	United States Air Force General; fighter pilot; combat veteran of Korean War and Vietnam War; National Lacrosse Hall of Fame inductee; Hartinger Medal for significant contributions to the military space mission named after him	^[15]
Dan Foldberg	1951	Colonel; infantry officer and combat veteran of the Korean War and Vietnam War; football and lacrosse All-American at the Academy; Earl Blaik called him the greatest end he coached; drafted by the Detroit Lions football team but chose a career in the Army instead	^[16]
Bill Carpenter	1959	Lieutenant General; Distinguished Service Cross recipient during the Vietnam War; paratrooper; football player known as the "Lonesome End"; College Football Hall of Fame inductee	^[17]
Pete Dawkins	1959	Brigadier General; Heisman Trophy Maxwell Award winner (1958); Rhodes Scholar; PhD from Princeton University; paratrooper; recipient of two Bronze Stars during the Vietnam War; only cadet in history to simultaneously be Brigade Commander, President of his Class, captain of the football team, and a "Star Man" in the top five percent of his class academically	^[18]
Ronald Zinn	1962	Captain; killed in action in 1965 during the Vietnam War; race walker in the 1960 Summer Olympics and 6th place in racewalking in the 1964 Summer Olympics	^[19]
Mike Silliman	1966	Captain; gold medal in men's basketball at the 1968 Summer Olympics	^[20]
Michael Thornberry	1994	First Lieutenant; ninth place in team handball in the 1996 Summer Olympics	^[21]
Dan Browne	1997	First Lieutenant; professional distance runner; 2002 U.S. Marathon champion; 2004 Summer Olympics competitor at 10 km and marathon	^[22]
Ronnie McAda	1997	First Lieutenant; last pick in the 1997 NFL draft, selected by the Green Bay Packers, thus earning the distinction of being a Mr. Irrelevant	^[23]
Anita Allen	2000	Captain; placed eighteenth in the modern pentathlon at the 2004 Summer Olympics	^[24]
Lorenzo Smith III	2000	Captain; placed sixth in bobsledding at the 2006 Winter Olympics	^[25]
Boyd Melson	2003	Captain; boxer, 2004 World Military Boxing Championships, gold medal (69-kg. weight class)	^[26]
Caleb Campbell	2007	First Lieutenant; selected by the Detroit Lions with the 218th pick (7th round) in the 2008 NFL draft	^[27]
Alejandro Villanueva	2010	Captain; Infantry officer, combat veteran of the War in Afghanistan, and recipient of the Bronze Star with "V" Device; offensive tackle for the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens	^[28]
Stewart Glenister	2011	West Point cadet; represented American Samoa in 50 m freestyle swimming at the 2008 Summer Olympics	^[29]^[30]
Stephen Scherer	2011	West Point cadet; made the U.S. 2008 Summer Olympics team in 10 m air rifle team at the age of 19 as a plebe	^[31]^[32]
Josh McNary	2011	First Lieutenant; linebacker for the Indianapolis Colts	^[33]
Collin Mooney	2012	First Lieutenant; fullback who played for the Tennessee Titans and the Atlanta Falcons	^[34]^[35]
Chris Rowley	2013	American baseball pitcher for the Toronto Blue Jays of Major League Baseball (MLB).	^[36]
Brett Toth	2018	American football offensive tackle for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL).	^[37]^[38]
Jon Rosoff	2018	American baseball Minor League catcher for the Detroit Tigers of Major League Baseball (MLB).	^[39]
Cam Opp	2019	American baseball Minor League pitcher for the New York Mets of Major League Baseball (MLB) and Great Britain in the World Baseball Classic (WBC).	^[40]
Cole Christiansen	2019	American football linebacker for the Los Angeles Chargers and Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). Super Bowl champion with Kansas City in 2022 and 2023 (LVII) and (LVIII).	^[41]
Elijah Riley	2020	American football defensive back for the New York Giants, Philadelphia Eagles, New York Jets and Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL).	^[42]
Jacob Hurtubise	2020	American baseball outfielder for the Cincinnati Reds of Major League Baseball (MLB).	^[43]
Jon Rhattigan	2021	American football linebacker for the Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League (NFL).	^[44]
Andre Carter II	2023	American football linebacker for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL).	^[45]
Ross Friedrick	2023	American baseball Minor League first baseman for the St. Louis Cardinals of Major League Baseball (MLB).	^[46]
Jimmy Ciarlo	2024	American football linebacker for the New York Jets of the National Football League (NFL). Ciarlo signed as an undrafted free agent ahead of the 2024 season.	^[47]
Derek Berg	2024	American baseball catcher for the Pittsburgh Pirates of Major League Baseball (MLB). Berg was selected in the 10th round of the 2024 MLB Draft and debuted with Bradenton in Aug. 2024.	^[48]

Coaches

Name	Class year	Notability	References
Charles S. Farnsworth	1883	Major General; Spanish–American War; University of North Dakota head football coach (1895–1896)	^[49]
Joseph Stilwell	1904	General; organized and was head coach of the first basketball team at West Point	^[50]
Charles Dudley Daly	1905	Lieutenant Colonel; World War I; "Godfather of West Point Football"; early promoter of American football	^[51]
Robert Neyland	1916	Brigadier General; World War I; University of Tennessee head football coach (1926–1939) and (1946–1952); member of College Football Hall of Fame (as a coach); four-time national champion and five-time SEC champion at Tennessee	^[52]
Earl Blaik	1920	Cavalry officer for two years; head football coach at Dartmouth College (1934–1940) and United States Military Academy (1941–1958); member of College Football Hall of Fame; two-time national champion at Army (as a coach)	^[53]
Robert V. Whitlow	1943	United States Army Air Forces and Air Force fighter and bomber pilot, World War II; head football coach (1955) and athletic director (1954–1957) of the Air Force Academy; "athletic director" of the Chicago Cubs baseball club (1963–1965)	^[54]
Bill Yeoman	1948	Head coach at the University of Houston; Member of the College Football Hall of Fame; Inventor of the Veer Offense; Played prominent role in racial integration of college athletics in the South; Captain of undefeated 1948 Army Football team and second team All-American center; Played for Earl Blaik; Only underclassman to captain an Army football team
Mike Krzyzewski	1969	Captain; recipient of West Point Association of Graduates Distinguished Graduate award in 2005; head basketball coach, West Point (1975–1981) and Duke University (1981–present); men's basketball gold medal-winning team head coach at 2008, 2012, and 2016 Summer Olympics; five-time NCAA national champion; 2001 inductee of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame	^[55]

References

General

^ a: Special Collections: Biographical Register of the Officers and Graduates of the U. S. Military Academy. West Point, NY: United States Military Academy Library. 1950.

Inline citations

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^ "George S. Patton". Virginia Military Institute. Retrieved 22 March 2010.
^ D'Este, Carlo (1995). Patton: A Genius for War. New York: Harper Perennial. pp. 58, 131. ISBN 0-06-092762-3.
^ Schmidt, Ray. "Elmer Oliphant". College Football Historical Society Newsletter. November 1996.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: location (link)
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^ "Chris Rowley Stats, Age, Position, Height, Weight, Fantasy & News". MLB.com.
^ "2 West Point football players to face off in the Super Bowl". 12 February 2023.
^ https://www.westpoint.edu/news/press-releases/west-point-graduate-play-nfl ^{[bare URL]}
^ "Field general: Rosoff goes from Army to Erie".
^ "Cam Opp Stats, Age, Position, Height, Weight, Fantasy & News".
^ "2 West Point football players to face off in the Super Bowl". 12 February 2023.
^ "Catching up with Elijah Riley".
^ "Hurtubise becomes second West Point alum to play in MLB". MLB.com.
^ "Jon Rhattigan Stats, News and Video - LB". NFL.com.
^ "Andre Carter II embracing civilian life with military focus". 4 August 2023.
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^ "Derek Berg Stats, Age, Position, Height, Weight, Fantasy & News".
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v t e United States Military Academy alumni
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