[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2004, Book I)]
[April 19, 2004]
[Pages 601-603]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Remarks on Presenting the Commander in Chief's Trophy to the United 
States Naval Academy Midshipmen
April 19, 2004

    Welcome. Please be seated. Nice going, you finally got back. 
[Laughter] I am proud of the Midshipmen of the United States Naval 
Academy, the proud keepers of the Commander in Chief's Trophy. Welcome. 
Earning the trophy says a lot about these men. It says you work hard, 
you set high standards, and you beat Army. [Laughter]
    I'm honored that Tony Principi, the 
Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs, has joined us. He is a 
proud graduate of the Naval Academy.
    I appreciate Senator Thad Cochran from 
Mississippi who is with us, who is on the U.S. Naval Academy Board of 
Visitors. Senator, thank you for coming. You honor us with your 
presence.
    I appreciate the Governor of Maryland, Bob Ehrlich, joining us today. Thank you for coming, Governor. He 
claims he was a pretty good linebacker in his day--[laughter]--slow but 
could hit hard. [Laughter] Also on the U.S. Naval Academy Board of 
Visitors is the Lieutenant Governor from Maryland, Michael 
Steele. Thank you for coming, Michael. 
Glad you all are here.
    Gordon England is with us, the 
Secretary of the Navy. He reminded me of the time I went to the Army-
Navy game in the fall of 2001. It was a miserable experience for the 
Naval Academy. My, times have changed. [Laughter] Mr. Secretary, I'll 
give you some of the credit.
    General Hagee, Commandant of the Marine 
Corps, is with us. General, thanks for coming. I told the General coming 
in, his troops in Iraq are performing brilliantly. Thank God we're on 
the same side.
    I want to thank Vice Admiral Rodney Rempt, the Naval Academy Superintendent, for joining us today. 
Coach Johnson, Paul Johnson, a winning coach, 
is with us. Coach, appreciate you being here. Proud you're here.
    As I said, it's been a while since the Commander in Chief's Trophy 
was at the Academy. It turns out that the last time it was there--when 
Ronald Reagan was the President. And a lot 
of the players on this team weren't even born. [Laughter] That's a long 
time ago for them. [Laughter] It's not so long ago for some of us older 
fellows.
    I--here's what I found interesting about this team and its captain, 
Greg Cooper, that the night after you beat Army, 
Cooper flies to Colorado Springs to pick up the trophy. That's called 
desire. [Laughter] It turns out that Cooper wasn't sure how big the 
trophy was and that it was too heavy for the flight home. So he rents a 
truck and drives the trophy from Colorado Springs to Annapolis. When we 
recruit the

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finest, we look for determination in the U.S. military, and we have 
found it in Captain Cooper.
    I've watched some of your games on TV. The first scouting report I 
got, however, on the mighty Midshipmen football team was from Number 
41--that would be President George H.W. 
Bush--who went to see the Rice game. I don't know if you remember the 
Rice game, but Navy beat a pretty darn good team by 32 points in 
Houston. He said, ``Prepare the grounds for the arrival of the 
Midshipmen this year to receive the Commander in Chief Trophy.'' I said, 
``Okay.'' [Laughter]
    One of the things that the young men at the--and women at the Naval 
Academy learn is leadership, how important it is to be a leader, what it 
means to lead, how one sets standards and calls people to a higher 
calling. That's what we expect of the officers who wear our uniforms, 
and that's what Coach Johnson has taught the 
young men who play football for the Naval Academy. He believes in high 
standards. His view is: Failure is not an option; success is what we aim 
for.
    He had some great individual stars on this 
team but, obviously, was able to say to those stars, ``You're playing 
for something greater than yourself. You're playing for the team, so 
that perhaps, if you do what I ask you to do, and if you work hard 
enough, you can come to the White House and receive the Commander in 
Chief's Trophy.''
    Coach Johnson, you have set a high 
standard. You and your team has achieved one of the most dramatic 
turnarounds in NCAA football history. And it is my honor to welcome you 
and your team and your leadership qualities here into the East Room of 
this great house of the people.
    You know, I know that every player works hard to work--to win on 
Saturday afternoons. And that's vital if you're a football player. I 
mean, what the heck, you might as well work hard so you can win. I don't 
know a lot of people who work hard so they can go out and lose. But one 
of the things that I know you know is taking place now is that you're 
preparing to lead our Nation in a time of war, that you wear uniforms of 
football so you can--and you'll wear a uniform of the United States of 
America as we fight the first war of the 21st century. It is the 
teamwork that you're learning on the field that will enable you to lead 
others to make America more secure. That's the lesson you're learning as 
you became great football players.
    I'm proud of your predecessors. Many of the people who played 
football at the Academy are now serving overseas. They're serving 
brilliantly in zones of combat. They're doing everything they can to be 
as tough and as compassionate as we expect our soldiers to be. They're 
tough on the one hand and compassionate on the other. We have got a 
mission in this Nation, and that is not only to make ourselves secure 
from an enemy which hates our freedom but, at the same time, spread 
freedom so that the world will be more peaceful, so people have a chance 
to live with dignity and hope. And members of the classes before you, 
members of the great Naval Academy classes, understand that mission, and 
they're accomplishing it with great class and dignity.
    Many of the seniors here will be given that same opportunity to 
serve our Nation. And I just want to tell you the Nation will be 
grateful for your service, be grateful for your sacrifices, will be 
grateful of what you do to make the world a better place for all of us 
to live.
    And now it's my honor, Coach, to present 
the Commander in Chief's Trophy to winners, people who achieved the big 
dream, people who will represent our country in the finest of Navy 
traditions. May God bless them, and may God bless their families. And 
May God continue to bless the United States of America.
    Coach Johnson.

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Note: The President spoke at 1:02 p.m. in the East Room at the White 
House.