The final days of the All American Bowl were quite exciting.  We had some down time before the Awards Dinner with the Rotary Club to get all dressed up in our Class A's and Blues.  We took quite a few pictures, mostly us ladies.  The longer you're in the military, the more you come to appreciate having friends that are women!  

After the mini photo shoot, we headed to the banquet hall where the tables were spread out so far that it looked like the room was the size of a football field.  The decorations were amazing, to include the stage, table centers and the backdrop of all 50 state flags. 

We sat in the second row of tables, rather close to the stage, with a group of coaches and wives from the West Team.  The conversation was friendly, light and quite comical.  It was apparent that these coaches had formed a bond over just a few short days, sort of like us soldiers.  

Two tables a way from us, sat the actor from the movie The Blind Side.  The rumor that Michael Oher was actually at the event, spread like wildfire but it was Quinton Aaron.  Quinton was quiet and shy, much like he appears in the movie.  He was very humble and as he was trying to eat, many people were asking him for autographs and photos so we opted not to.

The game...

That was awesome.  I had a few friends join us at the football game.  My buddy, MMA fighter and 19th Special Forces Group Staff Sergeant, Tim Kennedy, brought his wife and buddy along.  That's one of the great things about the military, no matter where you go, you know someone that lives within a couple of hours drive.  : )

At the beginning of the game, all of us, the Soldier Heroes, marched out onto the field during the intro and met up with our player in the 50-yard line.  Then we sat with our friends and families up in the stands during the game.  I had the honor of meeting my senior leadership in the US Army Reserve to include my former commander of the Military Intelligence Readiness Command, now Deputy Chief of the Army Reserve, Brigadier General Leslie Purser.  

The best part was after the game.  I'd volunteered to go down to the field to sit with the players as they signed autographs.  The players sat two to a table with a soldier in between them and at my table, I was telling all of the kids that came through, what pages their player was on.  A little girl asked me to sign her book so I opened it to the page that I was on (there was a page about me in the program) and signed it.  

After that, the players kept handing me the programs to sign, too.  I even had a couple of the kids want to take a picture with me and thank me for my service.  It was a great feeling because there is nothing like the appreciation you get from a child.  Most of the kids were there to see the football players but some of them were just as excited to see us.  I sincerely hope that by the time the next generations is old enough to join, we'll be a peacetime military.

In the future, maybe we'll see the same opportunity to attend an event like this for young women.  I just felt that they should be included in this awesome experience and it's important for them to know that the military is a great place for women as well.   There were cheerleaders and band students there, but we didn't get a chance to interact with them.  

Overall, I had a great time at the All American Bowl.  I was extremely grateful to have been a part of it. Meeting the ball players was a great experience and to this day, Ego Ferguson and I still keep in touch through Facebook and every now and again, text message.  He texted me to let me know he'd picked a school (congratulations LSU!) and I have no doubt that with his character and strength in both mind and body, he will go far in life.  I know LSU just earned itself another fan as long as he's playing ball there!