The phone rang in Larry Marmie's house late Sunday night.
It was Ranger Tillman checking in, saying hello from his new station at Fort Lewis, Wash.
"Are you in a position now where you can actually be deployed?" the Cardinals defensive coordinator asked.
"Within 18 hours," Pat Tillman replied.
Just like that, the phone will ring and Tillman could be on his way to Iraq.
For those keeping score, Tillman and his brother, Kevin, are now full-fledged Army Rangers. They completed infantry training. They became certified airborne parachutists. And just before Christmas, they graduated from RIP, the Ranger Indoctrination Program that separates great men from the really good ones.
Of course, no one doubted Tillman would get to this point when he walked away from the decadent life of a professional athlete and a contract that would've paid him $3.6 million over a three-year period.
After he told a friend at Arizona State that life had become "too (bleeping) easy," no one thought Tillman wouldn't succeed at scaling mountain cliffs, slogging through dangerous swamps and jumping five times out of a perfectly good airplane.It has been eight months since Tillman came home from his honeymoon and promptly left the Cardinals to become a legitimate American hero.
He is an athlete who has learned combat skills, compass readings and how to survive chemical and nuclear attacks. And now that his country may soon be calling, Tillman couldn't be more enthused about his new uniform.
"I've worked for the Army for 27 years, and it's a time unlike any I've ever seen," Darby said. "I've seen some people making some very difficult decisions during a very difficult time for our nation. And while I can't speak for any single soldier, I can tell you that Ranger Tillman has made it very clear that he wants to be a Ranger. He's worked toward a goal, he's made it, and he's declined all media interviews. And we all think it's very admirable."
But, one day, Tillman will surely tell his story to a captivated nation.
God willing.
I was so glad to find this piece...I was thinking about Pat Tillman just the other day!
What a great American patriot and a role model and his brother's no slouch either.
Godspeed,Tillman brothers and the Night Rangers, and Happy Hunting.
