TAMPA -- The superintendent of the U.S. Naval Academy isn't in town just for his team's football game against the University of South Florida, which features Newsome High School graduate Will Worth quarterbacking the Midshipmen.
Vice Adm. Ted Carter, who served at MacDill Air Force Base more than two decades ago, is extolling the academic, athletic and service virtues of the 171-year-old school.
One point he makes is that with the Navy engaged around the world, often in conflict, the academy is pumping out up to 800 new ensigns every year for the Navy and as many as 275 second lieutenants for the Marine Corps. That represents a third of all commissions for submariners, aviators, surface warfare officers, Navy SEALs and explosive ordinance disposal technicians and about 20 percent of all new Marine officers.
And with the Middle East raging from Iraq to Yemen, those new officers are getting a taste of battle quickly, Carter said in a telephone interview Friday.
Three new ensigns, fresh out of the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, experienced naval combat first-hand recently off the coast of Yemen.
Two of those ensigns were aboard the USS Mason when it came under fire from missiles fired by Houthi rebels in Yemen. The other, a former Navy football player, was on the USS Nitze when it fired Tomahawk missiles in response.
But missiles and bombs aren't the only way to wage war in the modern world. Carter said the academy is dealing with issues like cyber war by making it an educational emphasis.
The academy, he said, is going through the process of being accredited for its undergraduate cyber security major, which would make it the first service academy to have one.
It's just part of why the class of 2020 is in some ways the most competitive and diverse ever, Carter said. For the first time, nominations for the highly sought-after acceptances are coming from each of the 435 Congressional districts and all 100 senators.
Florida has played a big role, as the state with the second most students, trailing only California, Carter said. And 13 of Navy's football starters hail from the Sunshine State.
That point got a lot of cheers Thursday night at a reception aboard the SS American Victory honoring Military Appreciation Day at Raymond James Stadium, where the game will be held at 7 p.m. tonight.
Carter told a crowd of about 200 alums, family members, and retired and active-duty flag and general officers that 41 wounded veterans and seven Gold Star families will be attending and honored at the game. Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn was also on hand.
Jerry Lavely, a 1990 academy graduate, was part of a group of alumni who worked for months planning events over this weekend "to make it more than a tailgater and football game.
"Since this is now a conference series, the idea is to honor the Naval Academy football team playing in Tampa every other year," Lavely said. "The intent was to really involve the military community while celebrating the Navy football team and spirit of the game. The reception on the American Victory ship is a great example as a perfect venue to demonstrate that and we hope it will continue."
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Explore all your optionsFor Carter, the trip to Tampa is a welcome return.
He served at MacDill from 1993 to 1995, first as the operations director at U.S. Central Command, then as an aide to the deputy commander.
"My family loved living here," he said. "We lived in Tierra Verde and I drove 40 miles to live in paradise."
Navy (5-1) takes on the Bulls (6-2) tonight at 7 p.m.
Contact Howard Altman at haltman@tampabay.com or (813) 225-3112. Follow @haltman.