If you don't think that game was monumental to Navy you obviously didn't watch

If you don't think that game was monumental to Navy, you obviously didn't watch the game. It was one of the most defining moments of college football, as it showed grit, determination, and the human desire to never give up. While many football players look ahead to their potential future in the NFL, the Navy football players know their path is far different. They came to play a game, be their most competitive against a vastly superior talent pool, and hopefully, show some young school-age boys a different view of what sportsmanship, commitment to one's country, unselfishness and sacrifice really mean.  The Navy's sidelines aren't filled with dead-pans into the cameras, or "we're number one" shouts.Instead, their sidelines are filled with empty chairs; chairs with a set of shoulder pads and jersey of each of their fallen comrades.A poignant and solemn reminder of really how unimportant football is in the scope of things. Perhaps no game signifies the importance of the contributions made by the service academies more than the Army-Navy game played the first Saturday of every December.The beautiful sight of college football is completely captured in this game. Young cadets in their formal uniforms, with brass buttons shining in the sun, and their clean-cut, scrubbed faces ready for a day filled with fun, and yet, carrying with them the knowledge that their future is uncertain, but embraced, nevertheless.They are football players who don't possess the five-star athletic ability of some of their rivals, but whose hearts and minds are so driven, that they are a force to be reckoned with in every game. To quit is not in their language.To finish strong is their mission.To face all odds with bravery, and to finish the game with intensity.To represent the finest America has to offer, with dignity and class To play the game the way it was meant to be played. Nothing more.For most seniors, the last game of the year is the most emotional. Almost every player knows it is their last time on a football field.

They also know that for some of them, it's the last time they will see some of their teammates' faces.Many of them will be deployed, and during wartime, some will not come back.It is at this point, that they realize they have just played their final football game, and it's time to get serious with life.It's time to say goodbye to their teammates, time to say goodbye to the other players. Each one of them knows, while they fought tooth and nail to beat each other up on the field, eventually, they all will be working together, on one team, to defeat the enemy and to protect the very precious soil that they stand on. And play on.After the game is finished, the losing team's alma mater is played, while the winning team's players stand side-by-side with the losing side's players, facing the losing side's academy section of the stadium. And the process reverses for the winning team.Each side?once enemies on the field?comes together as one after the game, and solemnly recognizes that they all have each other's backs for as long as they live For sure, there are no losers in this battle on the field. America, however, has certainly lost some of their finest representatives of real men, and the sport of football has lost some of its greatest players. Not due to their athletic prowess, nor their bowl wins or great comeback-wins.

  No, football has lost some of its greatest players because of what they represent?excellence both on and off the field. Sacrifice.And all of football is truly graced to have these service academies remind us of what is really important in sport. Army, Navy and Air Force capture the essence of sportsmanship?competition, pride and class. Something both college and professional football players need to never forget, and perhaps, even learn.The next time you watch one of the service academies play, remember JP Blecksmith's face. Remember this young man with short-croppedblond hair, squeaky-clean good looks and a mega-watt smile that could light up a room.He wasn't just a football player.

He was somebody's son or brother who tried to make you proud of his team and proud of your country.And, more importantly, he made sure your family was safe while he was watching your back Yeah, they all have our backs We thank you for giving us these great games And we thank you for making us proud to be Americans.      James Patrick Blecksmith, Navy, '0309-26-8011-11-04 Go Navy, beat Army. R.I.P.  *special thanks to JP Blecksmith Foundation, at JPBlecksmith .. More than 100 Customers Across Range of Industries Around the Globe Select IBMSystems Over HP, Sun in First Quarter of 200962 Customers Switch from Sun and/or HP to IBM Power SystemsARMONK, N.Y., April 22 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- IBM (NYSE: IBM) todayannounced that more than 100 companies worldwide chose IBM Systems in thefirst quarter of 2009 over offerings from HP and Sun. Thirty-four of the winswereagainst combined HP and Sun systems; five against HP systems; and oneagainst Sun systems.Fueling these wins were System z performance ingrowth markets, with 37% revenue growth in those markets in 1Q09.Customers that have recently selected IBM Power or Systems z enterpriseservers over competing offerings from Sun and HP include: Adecco, BaylorCollege of Medicine, Kookmin Bank, Randstad, Reliant Energy, Inc.