Lt. Col. Dan Oosterhous, the men’s tennis coach at the United States Air Force Academy, visited the Austin Tennis Academy this past Monday. He came to Austin to scout tennis players at the UIL state tennis tournament and players at ATA as well.

 

Growing out of the Army Air Corps, the United States Air Force Academy was founded in 1959, making it the youngest of the military service academies. The Academy is a very prestigious school similar to the Ivy League schools. Located right outside of Colorado Springs, Colorado, the campus sits on 18,000 acres and has a fantastic tennis facility, comprised of thirty outdoor tennis courts and four indoor courts. Although 18,000 acres may seem large, the campus is pretty small and has a student population of only about 4,000. The rest of the land is used for military training and an airport.

 

 

I had the opportunity to speak with Coach Oosterhous, I found that attending the Academy takes dedication and hard work. You must be ready for a vigorous class schedule as well as the discipline that comes along with being in the military. When you make the commitment to attend the Air Force Academy you are pledging to serve a minimum of five years in the Air Force after you graduate. This is not a bad thing though; you have a guaranteed job the minute you graduate, and in today’s recession with jobs hard to find, that is hard to pass up.

 

The Academy has many other benefits than just a guaranteed job. First, you are given one of the best educations in America. You have the opportunity to excel in leadership and gain valuable military training. Every person that attends the Air Force Academy is on a scholarship, where everything is paid for in full. Unlike many college students around the U.S., you graduate college with no debt.

 

Also, going to the Academy means you are in the Air Force. The minute you show up, you begin receiving a pay check. Being in the Air Force means that there are strict rules; the campus has a no alcohol and drug policy. Breaking these rules could result in a discharge.

 

 

The United States Air Force Academy is very different than most colleges in the U.S.  All classes start and end at the same time, much like what high school is like. Everyone lives in assigned barracks and is on much of the same schedule. Freshmen are only allowed to leave campus a couple times a semester, and only have three weeks’ vacation in the summer. The other three weeks are spent in military or leadership training. The partying that goes on at a lot of colleges is nonexistent at the Academy. They ban these activities to teach discipline and leadership.  A typical student-tennis player’s daily schedule looks like this:

 

6:00am - wake up, morning details; 7:00am -  march to breakfast; 8:00am – class; 12:00pm – Lunch; 2:00pm – Tennis practice; 4:00pm – Fitness and conditioning; 6:00pm – Dinner with team; 7:50pm – In rooms, begin studying; 11:00pm – Curfew, lights out

When Coach Oosterhous is looking for a recruit, he said he looks for a positive attitude, strong work ethic, and the ability to forget previous points. Rankings are not his top priority, although most players in the Air Force line up are four star recruits or better. When Coach Oosterhous comes to watch a player he looks for the players ability to reset, focus on the next point, and that they keep fighting.

 

 

The Air Force men’s tennis team competes in the Division One Mountain West Conference. This conference includes teams such as TCU, BYU, UNLV, New Mexico, Utah, and San Diego State. This is very competitive conference that often has two or three ranked teams. Air Force just finished their season with a loss to TCU in the Mountain West conference. The team started their season off strong, with their best win being over longtime rival Army. Overall, the team went 10-14 and is expecting even better results next year.

 

Being a tennis player at the United States Air Force Academy takes much more than the average tennis player at any other college. You must be willing to give up some of the freedoms and activities that would come if you were not to go to the Air Force Academy. You must have the work ethic and dedication to play at the highest level. The goal of service academies is to produce military leaders for the future. The level of excellence is set very high for a reason. Cadets must excel on the tennis court and in the service of their country.