Cadet Michael Stanley, a junior in Air Force ROTC majoring in building construction in the College of Architecture and Urban Studies, will travel with the Hokies to receive the flags at Saturday’s football game at West Virginia.

The Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets and the Virginia Tech football team continue their proud partnership to highlight the colors during the pre-game ceremony at every football game.

Three football players, chosen because of their performance in the last game or at practice, carry the American flag, the state flag, and the team’s spirit flag and lead the team onto the field. They deliver the flags to cadets on the field. 

The cadets, also selected based on their performance in the corps, render honor to the flags and carry them off the field. An upperclass travels with the team to away games. Three first-year cadets are selected for home games.

Stanley, who serves among the training cadre for the first-year cadets, sets a solid example for those around him, said Austin Askew, the cadet commander of the corps’ 2nd Battalion and a senior in Army ROTC majoring in business information technology in the Pamplin College of Business.

He remains “invested in his people and consistently asks them questions to get to know them better,” Askew said. “He is extremely caring and genuinely wants the best for his people. He is intuitive when his freshmen need a little more of a tailored teaching experience and adapts his approach. He is always flexible and ready to help anyone at any time.”

Stanley sees the training process as a special one because of the opportunity to see a cadet who’s new to the military experience learn and become more confident as the semester progresses.

He also recognizes the importance of tailoring instruction to the individual cadet. “It’s a special privilege to be able to not just tell them what to do but to walk them through the training in a way that’s meaningful to them.”

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