Rangers Blake Powers and Austin Thomas forge military careers after football

In their most difficult moments of Army Ranger School, Blake Powers and Austin Thomas were always able to find more painful memories from their Indiana football careers. For Powers, the 6-foot-5, 240-pound former quarterback, it sucked to have a 120-pound rucksack on his back for a 12-mile march — but it wasn’t much worse than “The House of Pain,” a station led by IU line coaches Steve Addazio and Joe Cullen during mat drills, which offered the cruelest possible mixture of sprints and barrel rolls.

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Ranger School Book Exposes...

...the challenge, the pain and the leadership value of U. S. Army Ranger School. Experience the first book to illuminate the best leadership school in the U.S. Army; Ranger School. Ranger School puts you at ground level and drives home leadership principles through impactful first-person stories. Learn what Ranger School is like. Feel the claustrophobia of the first night, the frustration of exhaustion and the pain of hunger. "No-excuse leaders don't have to act tough, but they must display mental toughness. Is it a coincidence that a 2006 study found that companies led by ex-military CEOs outperformed the S&P 500, and that such leaders lasted longer in their jobs?"