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Military academy prepped Cowboys trio for NFL, and more
REPRINTED WITH PERMISSION
OF THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS
08:33 PM CDT on Tuesday, October 5, 2004
By JEAN-JACQUES TAYLOR / The Dallas Morning News
IRVING - Fork Union (Va.) Military Academy sits on 650 acres of rolling hills and lush foliage in the middle of the state, the middle of nowhere in central Virginia, halfway between Charlottesville to the west and Richmond, the state capital, to the east.
Founded in 1898, Fork Union is a college preparatory boarding school for boys in grades 6 through 12 as well as postgraduate students.
It's also an institution known for producing football players. Lots of them.
Last year, Fork Union had 25 players on NFL rosters.
Three alumni play for the Cowboys.
Vinny Testaverde, Dexter Coakley and Eddie George all attended Fork Union. Each said it played a pivotal role in shaping their lives.
And they're not just talking about football.
When Testaverde, Coakley and George attended Fork Union, each found himself at a crossroads.
Fork Union helped direct them toward the right path. Here are their stories:
Vinny Testaverde
Vinny Testaverde had a great time in high school.
He was the stud quarterback at Sewanhaka High in Floral Park, N.Y., constantly lavished with praise. Every big-time college across the nation wanted his signature on its national letter of intent.
But Testaverde hadn't paid much attention to his studies, so his grade-point average suffered.
That limited his options.
Al Testaverde, his father, decided Fork Union would give Vinny the discipline he needed to succeed in life whether or not he played football.
So they scheduled a visit.
Testaverde and his parents spent a day touring the barracks and the campus. Al Testaverde was impressed; his son was not.
As they exited the property, Testaverde's father pulled the car over to discuss the visit.
"What do you think?" Testaverde's father said.
"Dad, there's no way I'm going there," Vinny said.
"Son, I've been pretty easy on you in high school. You're going there. This is the kind of place you need to be successful in life," his father said.
End of discussion.
Testaverde spent a year at Fork Union, where he played quarterback and learned the self-discipline that has helped him play 18 seasons in the NFL.
Then he went to Miami. He won the Heisman Trophy in 1986.
"When I talk to people about Fork Union, I tell them it was the best year of my life," Testaverde said. "It taught me discipline. It taught me how to be on my own. It taught me a lot of things that I use in my life today."
Dexter Coakley
Dexter Coakley knew his parents didn't have the money to pay for college.
Football was his way to an education and a better life. While his grade-point average was good, Coakley didn't have the SAT scores he needed to be accepted into a four-year college.
That left him with two choices: junior college or a post-graduate school such as Fork Union.
"I didn't want to go the juco route and lose a couple of years of eligibility," Coakley said. "If I went to Fork Union, I could get my SAT scores and play a high level of competition in football. It seemed to be the best choice."
Playing against junior colleges and Division I junior varsity teams, Coakley said he improved as a player.
Life in the barracks helped him grow as a person.
It wasn't just about raising the flag in the morning and lowering it at night. And it wasn't just about spit-shining shoes and making the beds so tight that a quarter would bounce 10 feet high.
It wasn't even about the constant marching. Or the uniform. Or the demerits.
Fork Union taught Coakley how to endure.
"You don't know how hard it is to have some 12-year-old kid bossing you around, but that's the way it is," Coakley said. "I packed my bags in my mind a thousand times, but I knew I couldn't go home. My parents didn't have the money to finance college. I couldn't let the scholarship I had at Fork Union go to waste, so I stayed."
He's glad he did.
Coakley received a scholarship to Appalachian State, and the Cowboys made him a third-round pick in 1997.
He has been a starter for seven years, played in three Pro Bowls and earned millions.
The kid from Mount Pleasant, S.C., has become a success.
"Fork Union taught me about accountability," Coakley said. "You didn't want to be the reason that the whole company had to march. You didn't want to be the reason that the parade didn't look right.
"It's the same way on the football field. You don't want to be the reason that the team lost or the defense gave up a touchdown."
Eddie George
Eddie George was being a knucklehead.
He knew it. So did his mother.
That's how he ended up at Fork Union.
Now, he's one of only 17 NFL running backs to rush for more than 10,000 yards.
And he owns the NFL record for consecutive starts by a running back with 130. The streak, which began with his first game as a rookie, ended last week because the Cowboys started the game against Washington in a five-receiver formation - not because of injury.
"I wouldn't be here in the position that I am without Fork Union," George said with a smile as he remembered his years at the prep school.
"I didn't want to go there. It was difficult. But at that particular time, that's what I needed, and my mom made sure I got it."
Donna George wanted her son to improve his schoolwork. And his attitude.
She thought Fork Union would provide the discipline he needed to succeed in life. George wanted no part of Fork Union.
"I went up early for football camp, and I was the only one there," he said. "I was coming from Philadelphia to the middle of nowhere.
"The TV wasn't working. There was no radio. I was in the barracks by myself. I don't know how I made it through that first night. I was ready to go home."
Three months into his first of three years at the school, he stopped fighting the system and piling up the demerits.
"I just had to get used to it. Every minute of the day was regimented," George said. "There was always something to do. You didn't have free time to sleep or do nothing."
George didn't start as a junior at Fork Union and had only one scholarship offer after his senior year, so he decided to stay for one more year of post-graduate work.
He earned a scholarship to Ohio State after the season. Three years later, he was the 1995 Heisman Trophy winner.
E-mail jjtaylor@dallasnews.com
FORK UNION'S FINEST
Here's a look at some current NFL players who attended Fork Union Military Academy:
Player, Team
Plaxico Burress, Pittsburgh
Dexter Coakley, Cowboys
Rickey Dudley, Tampa Bay
Eddie George, Cowboys
James Jackson, Cleveland
Dave Kadela, Carolina
Brian Kozlowski, Washington
Billy McMullen, Philadelphia
Roman Oben, San Diego
Chris Perry, Cincinnati
Terrence Stubbs, NY Jets (practice squad)
Vinny Testaverde, Cowboys
Ernest Wilford, Jacksonville
Visit this link for more picture of Testaverde, George, and Coakley from their days at FUMA.
Posted by CPT Dan Thompson, Tuesday, October 5, 2004 11:00 PM
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