MUSKEGON – The Muskegon Big Reds spent a few hours outside of their comfort zone on Tuesday.

So did U.S. Marines Staff Sgt. Brandon Wilson, in a different sort of way.

Twice a year, Muskegon head football coach Shane Fairfield invites a pair of local Marine recruiters to visit his team and put the players through a series of intense military-style training drills.

On Tuesday they were on the practice field at Muskegon Middle School, and the athletes were put to the test.

Marines Lance Corporal Matthew Ward runs alongside a Big Red as he carries a teammate during the grueling “Maneuver Under Fire” drill.

Most of the Big Reds looked pretty tired when they were done, but they also seemed proud that they conquered the rigorous workout.

That’s the idea, according to Wilson, who ran the drills along with Lance Corporal Matthew Ward.

“The purpose is to get them to do something that they’re not comfortable with,” Wilson said. “You’ve got to get guys out of their comfort zone sometimes.

“Football is football, building strength and stamina and running up and down the field, but training to go on the battlefield is a totally different environment. You have to have that war mentality, and I think that’s what the coach is trying to instill in these guys.”

The first two drills – an 800-meter sprint and timed push-ups – were challenging enough, but the main event – the “Maneuver Under Fire” drill – looked agonizing.

Ward runs with a player as he carries a pair of ammo cans, which each contained 30-40 pounds of sand. 

That drill involved players running, crawling, then running again for about 50 yards, turning around and dragging a teammate by the underarms for a few feet, then putting the teammate on their shoulders and running for a few more feet, before sprinting back to the starting line.

That was only the halfway point. After returning to the starting line they had to pick up a pair of ammo cans, each filled with 30-40 pounds of sand, and sprint the entire course again.

The drill was clearly challenging for all of the Big Reds. Those in better shape handled it easier, and some were even able to sprint to the end with the two heavy ammo boxes in tow. Some of the heavier kids struggled, but everyone made it.

The last few kids to do the drill had a Marine and a huge crowd of teammates moving alongside them, cheering them on to finish.

A player winces as he finishes the exhausting 800-meter sprint. 

“It’s tough,” said Muskegon junior slot receiver Destin Piggee. “It’s about getting through it with your team pushing you. That’s what you have to do, you have to encourage your teammates. It builds confidence and strength. It’s a whole body workout. You have to have a good mindset to get through it. You have to be strong.”

Junior lineman Lundon Ervin said he struggled with the 800-meter sprint, explaining that “cardio is one of my worst things, I’m not that good at running, but I pushed through.”

He said the toughest part of the “Maneuver Under Fire” drill was carrying a teammate on his shoulders.

“It was very hard,” he said. “I was going to wait to do it, but I decided to get it over with right away. My teammates lifted my spirits and kind of pushed me through it.”

Ward oversees a group of Big Reds going through the timed push-up phase of the workout.

Having the kids push and encourage each other made the workout a success, according to Sgt. Wilson.

Obviously the Big Reds, like all football teams, already go through strenuous conditioning to prepare for the season, and one evening of military drills isn’t going to make a huge physical difference.

But the military drills put a more difficult challenge in front of the players, and meeting it helps build confidence and a sense of teamwork, qualities that will come in handy during the coming season, which will begin for Muskegon with a home game against East Kentwood on Aug. 26.

“The goal is to help build motivation, confidence and teamwork,” Wilson said. “These guys were out here motivating each other to get through it. Some of these guys stopped and wanted to quit, but their teammates were around them, telling them ‘Let’s get this done,’ and they finished. That made it fun.”

“This is an exhausting, bone-aching workout, but they were motivated by the fact that they’re teammates were doing it with them,” added Lance Corporal Ward. “It can be thrilling when everyone is cheering you on.”

Ward encourages a player during the crawl portion of the “Maneuver Under Fire” drill. 

The challenge went both ways, according to Wilson. He’s been doing the drills with the Big Reds for about a year and a half, and he calls it “the toughest thing I’ve had to do in the Marines.”

It’s not the physical part that challenges Wilson. It’s talking in front of people, like he had to when he spoke to the big group of players on Tuesday.

“I’m not a people person at all,” Wilson said. “This is outside of my comfort zone. But over the last year and a half I’ve gotten better at it, and that’s what it’s all about.”100