From Iraq to rugby Trio of Norwich athletes return from active duty
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By ANNA GREARSON Staff Writer - Published: April 15, 2007
NORTHFIELD – By virtue of being one of the nation's most prestigious military universities, many Norwich students are accustomed to the possibility of being deployed overseas for military service at any point of their academic journeys. For Norwich athletes, however, more than just a school year is interrupted.
Seasons of competition are left behind along with teammates, fellow members of the Corps of Cadets, friends and family. All for their dedication to serve their country.
What these athletes return to their teams with is something a coach could never teach and a game could never instill.
"General discipline and standard military things translate everywhere," said Jamie Corcoran, a sophomore on the NU men's rugby team. Corcoran served two tours of duty in Iraq over eight years with the Marines before coming to Norwich to pursue degrees in political science and criminal justice with a minor in English.
"Rugby, and people don't think about this, is a really respectful sport. You call the ref 'sir,' and you don't talk to the ref, only the captain talks to the ref. It's a very respectful, disciplined sport, and it doesn't look it, but it really is," Corcoran continued. "It's knowing when to do things and when not to do things, and when to push further and when to lay back."
Coral Lore is a sophomore on the women's rugby team who served in Iraq after competing on the NU women's soccer team her freshman year. After returning from Iraq, she converted to rugby.
"She brings leadership, she brings maturity, she brings a sense of confidence and a well-being that emanates to the other players on the team," women's coach Austin Hall said of Lore.
Hall hadn't met Lore until after her 18-month deployment.
"They really look up to her and respect her. With her leadership and maturity, nobody's got that like Coral," Hall continued.
Sixth-year men's rugby coach Robert Weggler described the three situations in which Cadets are or have been deployed: "Students like Jamie who have been in the military and came back for an education; people who are in the National Guard so they get called up and have to go; and the third are just those kids who have been commissioned in the military, have graduated, and then they go."
While Corcoran is the only civilian on the men's team, Lore remains in the Corps and the women's team features three civilians. Other NU teams have had players deployed as well.
Corcoran, who hails from Montgomery, was able to use his prior military service as an icebreaker and found a sense of brotherhood with the rugby team.
"I like rugby because it gives me that sense of camaraderie, brotherhood," Corcoran said. "You have a tight group of friends in the military, and when you leave, you lose all that. I come here and I don't know a lot of people. I'm from Vermont, but I hadn't lived here for eight years, and I come into rugby and I've instantly got maybe 50 friends, and we're all friends because we do play rugby."
Corcoran was first deployed to Iraq as active duty Marine Corps in March of 2003 for the initial invasion of Iraq and returned to the United States that May. After seven months stateside, he returned to Iraq in March of 2004 and stayed there through that October. NU rugby is Corcoran's first experience with organized athletics.
The 1-4-1 men's rugby team is no stranger to seeing its athletes deployed.
"I've been here six years, and one of my fondest memories is of a gentleman by the name of Felix Fernandez, who is playing this spring," Weggler said. "He called me two falls ago from Iraq wanting to chat. Basically, I think he was just lonely and checking up on the guys. Even though he was in Iraq, he was wanting to connect back to school and see what the rugby team was doing."
Weggler has seen the same desire to connect with the team from numerous alumni who have been all over the world for military service.
"I get emails from Iraq or Korea from kids who are checking in," Weggler said. "The bond that they have through rugby is definitely there."
While some NU veterans take some time to adjust to the academic world first, others can't wait to return to the team.
"The academic aspect is harder because you do take a break from classes," Lore, who calls Howey in the Hills, Fla., home, said. "Everyone else had a summer break and I had a year-and-a-half. As far as over there, I didn't actually get my hands on a ball or anything, but I did a lot of physical activity. When I came back, I was more enthusiastic to get in. I didn't get to play over there because I didn't have time, but even in my leisure time, not many people would know enough about it to play it with me. Coming back, I was so excited to get out there and get on the field and touch the ball that it actually increased my passion for it. I wanted to just play."
Weggler has seen enough of his athletes return from deployment to recognize the changes within those athletes.
"I think anyone who goes into that environment is going to come back changed," Weggler said. "You can just see it in their eyes. It's an adjustment, and everybody's different … You know their level of maturity is a little bit different. Obviously, anyone who goes to that situation is going to deal with some things that a normal college student hasn't experienced yet."
Though neither Corcoran nor Lore have left mid-season, that situation has come up in the recent past, especially on the men's team.
"We were all set to go to West Point (for a match), this was three years ago, and (our) starting hooker just got deployed the Thursday before our match at West Point," Weggler explained. "And he came to me and said, 'Look, I want to go to the game, but I just want to touch base with my family.'"
Lore, now a junior majoring in criminal justice, left Norwich in May of 2003 for Fort Drum, New York and deployed to Iraq from November 2003 until November 2004. She worked for the Judge Advocate General (JAG) for the 42nd Infantry Division Headquarters Company and was essentially a paralegal.
"When I left, I got put into a lot of leadership opportunities and had a lot more responsibility than I ever had in high school or here, and I was a soccer captain in high school," Lore said. "When I got back, I was more confident as a leader, so even out on the field, I feel more comfortable directing people. At practice, I feel more comfortable as a leader so if I learn something, I can help people find that too, because I had to do it over there – I didn't have a choice. Because I was pushed to have more responsibility, I'm willing to take more responsibility with the team, even though I am not a captain over here."
Hall was impressed with Lore's performance in her first official game with the Cadets against Providence College.
"In her first game she was what we call 'the man of the match,'" Hall said. "She just blew everybody's mind. She played in the B-side match as well and scored her first try and played a different position and did all kinds of good stuff."
Both the men's and women's teams are more than accepting of the veterans on the rosters, both before the deployed teammate leaves or when a veteran returns.
"Being a veteran, they are so understanding of when you have days where you just need a mental day, because we're more than just teammates," Lore said. "Most of us are really good friends, and they're really supportive."
"It's a tiny group of people within the larger group," Corcoran said of the veterans and those soon-to-be-deployed members of the men's team. "We all can talk about it, it's something we know about that the rest of the team doesn't know, but it's not anything really special…This is a pretty good, accepting bunch of guys."
The men are slated to travel to Burlington to face the University of Vermont on Tuesday, while the 5-1 women will hop a plane to Sanford, Fla. on Thursday to vie for a national championship at the National Elite Eight Championships next weekend. The No. 2 Cadets will face No. 7 Western Oregon in the first round on Friday, April 20.
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