I'd like to add to that a little. 1st and most importantly, the academy must be what your son wants to do. In other words, if he wasn't being recruited at the academy to play a sport, would he want to go there? If not, then I really encourage you to help him find a different school where he will be happiest. My son said he is glad he turned down other schools. He said he would rather come to air force and never play football again, than to go to certain other schools and play football. His #1 priority at the academy is to get the best education he can and to become commissioned as a military officer. He then has other goals once he is commissioned. Personally, that is the way I believe it should be. The fact that he also gets to play football is just an added benefit.
Fortunately for my son, he was accepted to the air force academy with an appointment in hand the first week of november. So, even though coaches had been talking to him about options, he already got in and was given an appointment prior to even his high school football season being over. Of course that please the coaches. (They didn't have to try and persuade him to accept an appointment; nor did they have to HOPE he could get accepted and receive an appointment. (That is very difficult. Many people don't get accepted and receive nominations). My son knew he made it with his grades, class rank, etc... Being the academy was what he wanted to do for school and later a military career, it was pretty much a no brainer. He turned down a lot of full ride and large scholarships to other schools. Including the ability to play football for them.
Does he sometimes think what it would be like to be playing football at another school? Most definitely. But he says he would never trade this opportunity. So, your concern whether you think your son is missing out on a great opportunity is a double edge sword.
1) The military academy is not for everyone. It doesn't matter if you are the #1 in your class with the 4.0, IB/AP, etc.... I know people who have left the academy and enrolled in Harvard and Yale. The military academy wasn't for them.
2) A military life style, with a minimum commitment of 5 years service to his country, after a 4 year education, MUST be his number 1 priority. Any sport, activity, benefits, etc... must come second. If not, he will probably regret his choice. I have personally seen some of our athletes quit the academy within months because they didn't get to start/play like they thought would happen. Or, outside of sports was too much for them to handle. Again, sports and everything else MUST come second to the desire to serve your country.
3) Most importantly, this has to be his decision. He can't make this type of decision because it will please you. There are actually some that walk in on the first day of basic and admit that they don't really want to be there. That they are doing it only for their parent or such. They will probably become miserable and not do as well.
Remember; there are those that get accepted and go to Harvard, Yale, Princeton, etc... that realize that isn't for them. Same with the military academies. Same with college in general. There are just as many "Opportunities" for your son at State U; Harvard; University of Wherever; Community College; etc... Don't let the prestige of the academy or the name of the school distort your view of what is most important. That your son continue his education; either formally; vocationally; or through experiences; and that he is happy and fulfills whatever his dreams are. If that dream is serving in the military, then excellent. If not, so be it. There's a lot of people who "Want" the military academies. There's also a lot of coaches that "Want" players to be cadets. That doesn't mean that it's the right choice. Hope this doesn't provide even more doubts and confusion. later... mike....
