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"Dartmouth football coach\u00A0Buddy\u00A0Teevens\u00A0doesn't usually present a game ball following a win, but after the Big Green dismantled Cornell, 34-6, earlier this month,\u00A0a walk-on\u00A0player deserved the\u00A0honor.\u00A0Senior fullback Kevin Price, who made two rushing attempts for a net gain of 1 yard,\u00A0was given the football as teammates began chanting \"USA! USA!\" in the locker room. Fittingly, with Veterans Day approaching,\u00A0Price began the afternoon as\u00A0honorary captain.\u00A0The 31-year-old has made eight trips to Iraq and Afghanistan, including six tours as an Army Ranger. They were three-month deployments in which Price often served as squad leader\u00A0for combat\u00A0raids on terrorists.\u00A0The\u00A0unassuming and humble\u00A0veteran\u00A0doesn't share the details of those\u00A0deadly missions. He has addressed the team and talked\u00A0about \"leadership under duress and relying on each other and trust and accountability,\"\u00A0Teevens\u00A0said.\u00A0Assimilating back into civilian life has its challenges,\u00A0especially as a student-athlete at Dartmouth.\u00A0His days are consumed by\u00A0weight room sessions, classes, practice, nightly labs -- and a wife and two boys at home in graduate housing.\u00A0On Saturday, Price will suit up for one final game as Dartmouth hosts Princeton at Memorial Field in Hanover at 1:30 p.m.\u00A0\u00A0\u00A0\"I always wanted to play college football and kept thinking about it through the years.\u00A0It's been an amazing experience getting to know these guys, and I'm very grateful,\" said Price, who transferred to Dartmouth after attending community colleges in New Orleans and Orlando.\u00A0\"In the Army, there is a brotherhood. We talk about that same mentality here a lot. We're all working for the same goal.\"Price doesn't travel with the Big Green on the road. He has played in two home games, rushing seven times for 32 yards. In his first attempt of the season, the 5-foot-8, 200-pounder blasted through the line of scrimmage and raced 53 yards against Columbia. He\u00A0nearly scored a\u00A0touchdown before being tackled at the 3-yard-line.\u00A0Didn't matter that much\u00A0of the yardage was negated by a penalty. It ranks as one of the most exciting plays of the season.\u00A0\u201CThe reaction on the sidelines was incredible. It was another example of Kevin giving everything he has to make us a better football team,\" Teevens said. \"That one is definitely going on the highlight tape.\"Added Price, \"All I remember was this huge whole opening up and thinking I better run as fast as I can. I didn't want the guys to laugh at me when they saw the film. As a running back, you don't want to get caught from behind,\" said Price, who plans to pursue a career in nursing.Video of the rumbling 31-year-old fullback began making the rounds. Feel-good stories began popping up on the Internet. Whether Price realized it or not, he'd\u00A0become an inspiration.\"I never looked at myself as a role model or an inspiration to anyone, but I started getting messages from my old Ranger buddies. They were telling me I've been an inspiration to them. That really meant a lot. These were guys that I'd been through a lot with. These guys had been an inspiration to me,\" he said.Fifteen years ago, the idea of becoming an Ivy League football player would have been laughable to Price, who toed the line of academic eligibility at a small public school in the New Orleans metropolitan area. As a sophomore, he was suspended one game for his involvement in an on-field fight. As a junior, he missed a game after \u201Cmessing around in class.\u201D As a senior, despite being named team captain, the fullback/linebacker never played in a game because of an academic issue.\u201CI finished a half-credit short the previous year. The day before my first game, they told me I couldn\u2019t play,\u201D he said. \u201CIt was tough. I thought about not going back to school but figured I should try to graduate.\u201DHe did.\u00A0Price held a summer job in construction,\u00A0then\u00A0thought about enlisting in the Army Reserve after talking with a friend. By the time Price signed his contract\u00A0on Sept. 3, 2001\u00A0-- eight days before the Al-Qaeda attacks\u00A0--\u00A0he was\u00A0locked into\u00A0four years of active duty with plans to become a Ranger.\u201CI was told the only job available (in the reserves) was a generator repair man. That\u2019s not what I wanted from the Army,\u201D he said. \u201CI learned about the Army Rangers and how they are some of the most elite soldiers out there.\u201DMany duties of a Ranger include \u201Cconducting airborne and air assault operations, seizing key terrain such as airfields, destroying strategic facilities, and capturing or killing enemies of the nation,\u201D according to the Army\u2019s\u00A0Web site.After the Cornell win,\u00A0Price\u00A0showed the game football to his\u00A0sons,\u00A0Connar, 2, and Kayden, 6.\u00A0Connar\u00A0immediately claimed possession of the ball and slept with it that night.\u00A0The whole country can rest a little easier every night, thanks to soldiers like Price.\"Our players and coaching staff are almost in awe of what he's done and his life experiences,\" Teevens said. \"He is supremely respected. When you talk about leadership and mentoring, he is exactly the type of person you want on the team. As a football player, he's one of the most dedicated and hardest working guys and has a passion for the sport. Then there is the rest of his story that makes him so unique.\"Dartmouth is 5-4 overall and 4-2 in the Ivy League. Princeton (8-1 overall) brings a 6-0 league record into the season finale."^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.wmur.com/article/u-s-army-ranger-inspires-dartmouth-football-team/5186177>