June 12, 2006
Jeremy Stache always knew he wanted to be a part of something special, something that was bigger than him.
As an eager young baseball prospect from Louisville, Tenn.,Stache starred while at Alcoa High School, earning all-state honors in both baseball and basketball.
When considering college, Stache heard from the usual suitors: the SEC schools, the area community colleges, etc. With the help of former Alcoa head coach James Dalton, Stache wanted to test some different waters.
At a Midwest prospects camp at Baylor University in Waco, Texas, Stache met Joe Sottolano, head coach at Army. Not knowing much about the baseball program at West Point, Stache listened to what the coach had to say.
Stache said that he was pretty disciplined growing up. But he never thought of himself as an "Army guy." He wasn't even active in Alcoa's ROTC program.
Despite knowing the West Point experience would change his life, Stache still was hesitant.
"I think fear of the unknown is the worst kind of fear," Stache said. "When I was signing those papers I was like 'what am I getting into.'"
Little did he know that after four years, it would be more than he could have ever expected or asked for.
When Statche graduated in May, he not only left West Point a commissioned 2nd Lieutenant with a civil engineering degree, but also a school record holder. He started 199 consecutive games for the Black Knights, every game since he stepped on campus.
The 6-foot-1 Stache was an All-Patriot league selection as a sophomore and helped lead Army to back-to-back conference titles and NCAA Regional berths in 2004 and 2005. The Black Knights finished this season 30-20-1 and became the first school in Patriot League history to record 30 wins in three consecutive seasons.
The athletic accolades were great, but the more significant accomplishment - to Stache at least - was the new outlook he had on life. Going in, he had athletic ability, but he was a bit naive to life outside of East Tennessee.
"I was a good kid before, it only magnified those characteristics," Stache said. "I think what West Point does is it opened my eyes to the world around me, the limits that are within in me and what kind of threshold I can reach.
"I would've regretted it if I didn't decide to go there."
It may sound good now, but that attitude didn't happen overnight. Stache recalls the first day of basic training. The early mornings, the personal training and of course, the tongue lashings.
"I got yelled at pretty bad," Stache said. "I even called my mom and dad (and said) I don't want to be here.
"Any athlete can go and have a decent time with the physical stuff. The mental aspect was harder."
But after the initial adjustment, Stache blossomed, both on and off the field.
At West Point, it's military first and athletics second. Stache and his teammates received just as much, if not more, coaching about military tactics as they did run-downs.
The 21-year-old said the Army does a good job of bringing in speakers, including top military officials and President Bush himself.
"I think that what West Point wants are leaders who aren't afraid to stand up for what's right," Stache said. "I know what goes on in the Middle East and what role I need to play in the Army."
Currently on leave, Stache will report to Fort Benning (Ga.) for six weeks. Then he will move on to Fort Leonard Wood (Mo.) where he'll work with the Corps of Engineers until his graduation on Dec. 8. Stache will move on to Fort Stewart (Ga.) were he'll be stationed for the next 3 to 4 years.
Having had the training and heard numerous first-hand accounts of what happens in Iraq, Stache's initial hesitation and fear of possibly going overseas is gone.
"I've trained with the 82nd airborne and I've heard their stories," Stache said. "I feel more prepared now if I have to go overseas."
Stache said what he's been able to experience and what he will experience in the near future is not too bad for a kid from Alcoa. What began as a desire to play baseball transformed into a desire to serve his country.
"You don't want to play baseball unless you want to make the big show, but I made it up to D-I baseball which I'm thankful for," Stache said. "Playing baseball was just continuing that childhood dream,
"I'm grown up enough to look forward to my professional career."
A career where he'll be working toward the most important goal in the world today - freedom.
