High school football players from Texas and Oregon are the first two Army All-American Bowl players to accept their jerseys for the 2013 game.
The Army annually honors 90 of the best high school players. This year, the first two named this year are Lake Highlands High School (Dallas) offensive lineman Kent Perkins from Dallas, Texas, and Aloha High School running back Thomas Tyner from Portland, Oregon.
The 12th annual game will be played at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas, January 5.
U.S. Paralympic Team members Brad Snyder and Cortney Jordan autograph the back of a gift presented to Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, during a visit by the athletes to the Pentagon, Sept. 13, 2012. DOD photo by U.S. Navy 1st Class Petty Officer Chad J. McNeeley
That’s Defense Secretary Leon Panetta accepting a gift from LT Bradley Snyder and other members of the U.S. Paralympic Team. LT Snyder lost his sight to an IED blast in Afghanistan in 2011. A year to the day later, he won a gold medal in the men’s 400-meter freestyle at the 2012 Paralympics in London. It was one of two gold and three silver medals the swimmer won at the 2012 Games.
The Defense Department website features a slideshow of the Paralympians’ visit with Secretary Panetta and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff GEN Martin Dempsey. They will meet Commander in Chief Barack Obama Friday at the White House.
UPDATE: You can see TPC’s report on Commander in Chief Barack Obama meeting with Olympians and Paralympians at the White House by clicking here. It features sound from LT Snyder, who presented Mr. Obama with a flag the swimmer carried during ceremonies at the London Paralympics.