CLARKSVILLE, TN, Aug. 7, 2006 -- As Titans players went to bed Sunday evening, they had no idea what was about to transpire only a few hours later.
With only a single practice scheduled for Monday afternoon, they figured Monday morning would be a piece of cake.
That turned out to be far from the truth.
They were awakened at 4:30 a.m. by fists pounding on their doors from soldiers of the 101st Airborne, Jeff Fisher, strength and conditioning coach Steve Watterson, and director of security Steve Berk for a team outing the head coach had been secretly planning for months.
Boom, boom, boom…”Wake up sunshine,” Watterson said as he opened the bedroom doors of the groggy and confused players.
Cameras flashed, and a crew from NFL Films was there to record the players’ initial reactions.
“Tennis shoes, shorts, t-shirt. You’ve got 30 seconds to get downstairs,” barked out Fisher.
As players made their way out of Sevier Hall, they soon realized this was no joke.
“At first I thought I had overslept,” said cornerback Pacman Jones.
“Somebody about blew my door down, but I’m not sure who it was,” punter Craig Hentrich said.
“I don’t know man, all I know is Steve Berk was banging on my door and I asked him what was wrong and he wouldn’t answer me, and then they just tried to force their way in,” linebacker Keith Bulluck said. “That was the best sleep I was having since we came here.”
“It was just total confusion at first. I didn’t know what was going on,” added center Kevin Mawae. “But apparently Jeff has something planned for us today.”
Indeed, he did.
Finally out of the dorm, players realized they would be taking part in Army PT training at Ft. Campbell, home of the U.S. Army’s 101st Airborne Division, located just 10 minutes away from where the club is conducting training camp at Austin Peay State University.
As buses arrived on base, players were dropped off in front of the outdoor training facility of the 101st. Immediately, they were ordered to do pushups and pull-ups, but that was just the beginning of what was to come.
Little did they know they were about to get the workout of their life from Sergeant Miree.
She formed four lines of about 20 players per row, first starting with some basic stretching exercises, then jumping jacks.
No sweat.
It was after she ordered players to pick up their rifles when the fun began.
With rifles in hand, players performed a variety of drills, including the Squat and Thrust, Over the Head, Up and Squat, Reverse Curl, and Military Press.
The drills began without incident, but as she continued them at great length, players looked fatigued. However, Sergeant Miree kept going strong, even barking out trash talk to some Titans throughout the process.
“One, two, three, you’re looking kind of weak,” she said smiling.
Bulluck, who was positioned directly in front of her, tried his best to keep up.
“Some of her chants were about me. She was talking about how I was going to tap out, but I was right in front and I had to keep it going,” Bulluck said. “It was tough, but at the same time, it’s all work. For me, when it comes to work, it’s all in your mind. It’s mind over matter. If you don’t mind, it don’t matter.”
Said punter Craig Hentrich: “I’ll tell you what, we were ready to stop at about 30 or 40 and she went to 101 about three or four different times. She put us to shame.”
Added wide receiver Drew Bennett: “It was harder than it looked, especially since the woman up there made it look so effortless. All of these professional athletes were falling out.”
Several players admitted, it was an enlightening experience.
“It was very humbling for a lot of guys to see that young lady up there with so much focus, determination and drive,” linebacker David Thornton said. “It really pumped some guys up to try to keep up with her. But all in all, I think that whole little exercise routine was just some good discipline for the guys. It really encourages us to keep pushing and not give up.”
After the drills finally ended, players ran one mile in groups of 15 to cap off the workout portion of their visit, which also included a repelling demonstration, taking part in simulated comat training at the Frank L. Dietrich Marksmanship Facility, and reaching out to families of soldiers serving in Iraq and other hotspots around the world.
Following breakfast at the Chow Hall, about 20 Titans players signed autographs for hundreds of fans for nearly two hours at the PX on base.
One by one, fans swarmed through, seeking autographs and pictures from some of their favorite players, including Vince Young and Pacman Jones.
But players had to do a double-take when one fan in particular, showed up at their table.
It was Sergeant Miree — with her seven-month old baby in hand.
“I’m ready to go again. You guys ready to go another round?” she asked.
“No disrespect, but we’re not coming back to see you,” Pacman responded.
In reality, Sergeant Miree is a Titans fan who was excited about her chance to work out with the team.
“I thought they were going to out-do me, but we both hung in there,” she said. “I’ve been in the Air Assault for three years, and after doing it for that long you tend to get used to it. Overall, it was a great experience for me. You can’t ask for anything better than working out with the Titans. I had fun doing it.”
As for his experience, Bulluck said the day revealed much about his teammates.
“You get to see who’s really into it and who can take what,” Bulluck said. “You can learn a lot about your teammates and the character of some other people when you have to work with them in non-football related work.”
For Fisher, it was mission accomplished.
“We’ve been secretly putting this together for quite some time now and I can’t tell you how excited I am that we were able to pull it off because the surprise factor was critical to this,” Fisher said. “What we’ve done is we’ve pulled a team together, the base together — the team and Ft. Campbell — and we hope that an event that took place like this morning will have some sort of far-reaching impact over the season.”