Chicago Bears host 2nd annual USAA Salute to Service Boot Camp

The Chicago Bears and USAA had their second annual “USAA Salute to Service Boot Camp” yesterday at Halas Hall. 100 active military members, including 50 boot camp participants, got the opportunity to spend the day at Halas Hall. First, they got to take in the Bears’ morning practice, followed by a lunch break, and afterward heading to the Walter Payton Center for a combine-style boot camp on the indoor practice field.

The event is part of a growing partnership between the Chicago Bears and USAA, who has been designated as the Bears’ Official Salute to Service Partner. USAA (United Services Automobile Association) is an insurance and banking company whose products are exclusively available to past and present military members and their families. By partnering with the Bears, USAA seeks to continue it’s flourishing relationship with the NFL and it’s fans while also giving back to service members.

USAA has been the Official Military Appreciation Sponsor of the NFL since 2011. Since then, more than $66 milion has been raised for Salute to Service partners - the Pat Tillman Foundation, Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors, United Service Organizations, Bob Woodruff Foundation, and Wounded Warrior Project.

Last year, the Chicago Bears joined the growing list of NFL teams to host USAA’s Salute to Service Boot Camp. The event went over so well that it was brought back again this year. The event consisted of drills used in the NFL combine that measure physical ability - the 40-yard dash, 3-cone shuffle, broad jump, receiving gauntlet, and the QB arm challenge. After all 10 teams finished the drills, the instructors tallied up the points to see which team was victorious.

With the participants all being active military members, there were some impressive performances, including a 40-yard dash time of 4.72 seconds by 19-year-old Julian Sanford. Sanford was on Team No. 7, which was the winning team. When I asked him how fast he thought he would run the 40-yard dash, Sanford remained humble.

"Me personally, I didn’t think I was going to run it that fast because last time I ran the 40 was in high school when I ran a 4.4, and I haven’t ran in so long. I was thinking I was going to run like a 5.0 or a 4.9, but a 4.7 is good."

Sanford certainly has some wheels if a 4.7 second 40-yard dash is slower than he’s ran it in the past. One thing I noticed with all of the drills was how seriously everyone took them. There were no slackers or half-hearted efforts, yet everyone was having an absolute blast while competing. This event certainly looks like it has staying power at Halas Hall for years to come.