There's no doubt that were Prof. Fleming @ a secular institution, he'd be just one more "anti" professor assuming positions at odds with the powers-that-be, and particularly administration. Only because of 2 issues is he notable and quotable:
1. He is an oddity/anomaly at an institution like USNA where a modicum of loyalty, spit, polish, and convention is valued and rewarded. Even among the civilian, tenured professoriate. He is a wild voice in the rather tame wilderness of the Yard.
2. While many allege his points stem from an angry messenger, are not accurate or true, are designed to prop up book sales and thus self-serve Fleming ...none dispute the facts he builds his compelling arguments on. It's different opinion, shoot the messenger, cry un-patriotic and disloyalty. But none are willing or able to provide differing facts.
So painful as his points may be, and/or as much of a "pain" as he may be, he serves a vital, productive purpose for USNA and USN. Whether it is courage, anger, pursuit of truth, disloyalty, loyalty, or whatever ...he makes too much sense to be ignored or deemed delusional. I may not like his message or the messenger, but that does not make it any less truth. Only new additional information that is chronically not exposed would do so, addressing many of his contentions.
On disparate but supportive anecdotes, I know several outstanding Mids who've come from the Fleet, and were counseled ..."NOT NAPS. That would only mess you up. No need to risk that."
Furthermore, it is well known among the Brigade that the NAPS qualifier has been lowered from the traditonal 2.0 and guaranteed "in" to 1.8 gpa. The drastically altered mix attending and transitioning to USNA from NAPS has been recognized by careful observers, and never ever highlighted beyond one Fowler foul-up, in which he mistakenly assumed all would celebrate his regime's so-called "success" in subtley sp? transitioning NAPS and consequently USNA slots from stronger traditional candidates to candidates deemed "priority" and scoring substantially "lower" on academic measures.
So this is not a popular topic and reality for this site or USNA PR but it is real and sadly true.
Now, should this diminish a proud parent whose son or daughter has a shot at USNA because he/she has been given the opportunity of a lifetime for a NAPS do-over? Not at all. But, as is always the case, even a NAPS shot is "no free lunch." Sadly, those who are simply in need of a 2nd chance ...for whatever reason ...will be forever and a day known as NAPSters at the Yard and beyond. And that connotation and label have far different meaning than just a few football seasons back. And truth be accepted? It does.
Fleming is right. When it comes to NAPS, while there are some who are legitimate in terms of Motodoc's mythological, perhaps one-time reality, way too many are merely slipping in the back door under the banner of ..."great candidate, just a victim of poor preparation tho." And in any case, there are undoubtedly dozens, perhaps hundreds of far superior candidates who never get that NAPS 2nd shot because they are "too good" or more likely "too slow" and who they aren't.