Rice Memories: Austin Wilkinson
5/9/2020 8:08:00 PM | Football, Blog
From starting center to Naval Aviator
Austin Wilkinson was a starter from his collegiate debut at Rice against UCLA in 2005 and over the next four years, he made a total of 43 starts at center (only missing the last five games of the 2007 season due to an illness). His 2004 recruiting class would go on to lead Rice to its first bowl berth in 45 years in 2006 and two years later, its first bowl victory in 55 years. He was prepared to move on to a career coaching and teaching until a stop into a Naval recruiting office to sent him in a far different direction.
When you think back to your time at Rice, what are your earliest memories?
"My first memory of Rice is my parents dropping me off at the curb and nervously walking across the 25 yards of grass to Hanszen College. Like many others, I was a naïve 18 year old experiencing my first time away from home with no idea what the next five years would bring. By the time I walked back through the Sallyport, I would experience three head coaches, two bowl games, and most importantly, friends and memories that would last forever.
The first time I walked on the field as a redshirt freshmen was a complete blur. Two weeks prior to the start of the season, I was the backup guard and excited about the possibility of getting a play or two. In a flash, I was a center and about start against UCLA in the Rose Bowl. I was spending hours after practice snapping a football to anyone willing to retrieve the snaps I was launching over their head. I always remember the feeling of walking out the tunnel just before kickoff. It's the one time you can look around, take in the atmosphere and stare at the sheer number of people in the stands. Once the first snap happens, the crowed went away and it was just you and the guy in front of you.
While your senior class was in the process of smashing school records and winning 10 games, most of them were also preparing for their lives after football. Was a career in the military part of your plan?
My journey to the United States Navy was not something I had considered when graduating from Rice in December of 2008. After spending a semester obtaining my teaching certificate I decided to walk into a recruiting office and see what my options were. After being told "You should become a pilot", I explained to them my terror of rollercoasters and unease flying but was told "You will get over it".
I decided to take the leap and pick aviation, spending the next 6 months riding every carnival ride I could find from the recruiting station to my hometown to get over my fears before shipping off. Other than marrying my wife Kelly, it was the best decision I have ever made.
Aside from overcoming your initial unease about flying, was there anything else you had to do in preparation for entering the Navy?
I knew I had to drop some weight. I was weighing around 275 at the end of 2008 and by the time I was out of Officer Candidate School I was down to 198. I was very motivated to get the weight off I had carried around for so long. I was able to do it by going on a very strict diet and getting into long distance running. That coupled with the officer version of bootcamp shed the pounds quickly. Though I've gained some of the weight back, I continue to enjoy running and have since completed two half Ironman races.
Walk us through the steps to go from former college football center to Naval Aviator
I started my military career in Newport, RI at Officer Candidate School in November of 2009. After commissioning as an Ensign in the United States Navy, I moved to Pensacola, FL to start my aviation career. Flight school is a series of bouncing around to different duty stations over the course of two years depending on what aircraft you will eventually fly. I moved from Pensacola to Corpus Christi to fly the T-34C "Turbo Mentor" where I selected Tailhook (planes that land on aircraft carriers) and then moved to Kingsville, TX to fly the T-45C "Goshawk" where I would eventually earn my wings of gold and was assigned to Whidbey Island, Washington to begin training on the and select the EA-18G Growler.
One year later, I was assigned to my first operational squadron, VAQ-136 "Gauntlets". During my three year tour I would flew on the USS Ronald Reagan and the USS George Washington during two deployments. I then served as a flight instructor, teaching students how to fly and employ the EA-18G before being selected as the Carrier Airwing Five, CAG Paddles based in Iwakuni, Japan. I am the head Landing Signal Officer, standing on the aft portion of the ship communicating with pilots to ensuring safe recovery both day and night onboard the USS Ronald Reagan. On a pair of South China Seas deployments I had the opportunity to fly the F/A-18EF "Rhino", EA-18G, and E-2 "Hawkeye". I have accumulated over 1600 flight hours, 271 arrested landings (landing onboard an aircraft carrier) including 90 night arrested landings. After this tour I will be resigning my active duty commission, returning to the Houston area to peruse a job as an airline pilot, and join the reserves as an instructor in Kingsville.
As you prepare to return home to Texas, does your time at Rice come back into greater focus?
The farther removed from my time at Rice University, I realized I owe my experiences over the last 11 years to the opportunities Rice has given me. It has not only given me a diploma, but friendships, mentors, and the motivation to succeed.
There is no chance that I would have made it through my Rice experience without the support of the people around me, especially my fellow offensive lineman. Going through the same hardships and triumphs brought us extremely close together as a team and created a support network I depended on. We wanted to succeed and pushed each other to be better on and off the field. That close comradery is what would eventually drive me to my future career in the military.
When you think back to your time at Rice, what are your earliest memories?
"My first memory of Rice is my parents dropping me off at the curb and nervously walking across the 25 yards of grass to Hanszen College. Like many others, I was a naïve 18 year old experiencing my first time away from home with no idea what the next five years would bring. By the time I walked back through the Sallyport, I would experience three head coaches, two bowl games, and most importantly, friends and memories that would last forever.
The first time I walked on the field as a redshirt freshmen was a complete blur. Two weeks prior to the start of the season, I was the backup guard and excited about the possibility of getting a play or two. In a flash, I was a center and about start against UCLA in the Rose Bowl. I was spending hours after practice snapping a football to anyone willing to retrieve the snaps I was launching over their head. I always remember the feeling of walking out the tunnel just before kickoff. It's the one time you can look around, take in the atmosphere and stare at the sheer number of people in the stands. Once the first snap happens, the crowed went away and it was just you and the guy in front of you.
While your senior class was in the process of smashing school records and winning 10 games, most of them were also preparing for their lives after football. Was a career in the military part of your plan?
My journey to the United States Navy was not something I had considered when graduating from Rice in December of 2008. After spending a semester obtaining my teaching certificate I decided to walk into a recruiting office and see what my options were. After being told "You should become a pilot", I explained to them my terror of rollercoasters and unease flying but was told "You will get over it".
I decided to take the leap and pick aviation, spending the next 6 months riding every carnival ride I could find from the recruiting station to my hometown to get over my fears before shipping off. Other than marrying my wife Kelly, it was the best decision I have ever made.
Aside from overcoming your initial unease about flying, was there anything else you had to do in preparation for entering the Navy?
I knew I had to drop some weight. I was weighing around 275 at the end of 2008 and by the time I was out of Officer Candidate School I was down to 198. I was very motivated to get the weight off I had carried around for so long. I was able to do it by going on a very strict diet and getting into long distance running. That coupled with the officer version of bootcamp shed the pounds quickly. Though I've gained some of the weight back, I continue to enjoy running and have since completed two half Ironman races.
Walk us through the steps to go from former college football center to Naval Aviator
I started my military career in Newport, RI at Officer Candidate School in November of 2009. After commissioning as an Ensign in the United States Navy, I moved to Pensacola, FL to start my aviation career. Flight school is a series of bouncing around to different duty stations over the course of two years depending on what aircraft you will eventually fly. I moved from Pensacola to Corpus Christi to fly the T-34C "Turbo Mentor" where I selected Tailhook (planes that land on aircraft carriers) and then moved to Kingsville, TX to fly the T-45C "Goshawk" where I would eventually earn my wings of gold and was assigned to Whidbey Island, Washington to begin training on the and select the EA-18G Growler.
One year later, I was assigned to my first operational squadron, VAQ-136 "Gauntlets". During my three year tour I would flew on the USS Ronald Reagan and the USS George Washington during two deployments. I then served as a flight instructor, teaching students how to fly and employ the EA-18G before being selected as the Carrier Airwing Five, CAG Paddles based in Iwakuni, Japan. I am the head Landing Signal Officer, standing on the aft portion of the ship communicating with pilots to ensuring safe recovery both day and night onboard the USS Ronald Reagan. On a pair of South China Seas deployments I had the opportunity to fly the F/A-18EF "Rhino", EA-18G, and E-2 "Hawkeye". I have accumulated over 1600 flight hours, 271 arrested landings (landing onboard an aircraft carrier) including 90 night arrested landings. After this tour I will be resigning my active duty commission, returning to the Houston area to peruse a job as an airline pilot, and join the reserves as an instructor in Kingsville.
As you prepare to return home to Texas, does your time at Rice come back into greater focus?
The farther removed from my time at Rice University, I realized I owe my experiences over the last 11 years to the opportunities Rice has given me. It has not only given me a diploma, but friendships, mentors, and the motivation to succeed.
There is no chance that I would have made it through my Rice experience without the support of the people around me, especially my fellow offensive lineman. Going through the same hardships and triumphs brought us extremely close together as a team and created a support network I depended on. We wanted to succeed and pushed each other to be better on and off the field. That close comradery is what would eventually drive me to my future career in the military.
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