BOWIE, Md. - Each week, Bowie State University Department of Athletics will spotlight one student-athlete or administrator in wake of COVID-19 pandemic that forced CIAA to suspend fall and spring competition. This week's spotlight will feature senior
Francis Orlando, a standout indoor track and field athlete from Conrad, New York.
What Orlando loves most about indoor track and field, he says, is the competition: the thrill of going against others in throwing, jumping and sprinting events. He also, he says, takes pride in showing "progression" in every contest. It's something that's vital to him because he believes that is the key ingredient to success.
In high school, Orlando participated in other high school sports such as varsity football, wrestling, and baseball. But none of such brought Orlando the same joy and excitement as Track and Field, a sport he's played since sophomore year at Cornwall Central, a high school in Orange County, New York.
After graduating in 2015, Orlando was recruited by one of the University of West Virginia's branch campuses to join the track and field team as a weight and hammer thrower. It was an experience Orlando enjoyed even though he didn't stay long.
"I definitely loved West Virginia," Orlando said. "It was more so: I went to the school to throw, and the degree that I was doing, which was Athletic Coaching Education. And I felt like it didn't exactly line up with what I wanted to do career-wise, so I ended up transferring to a public liberal arts college in Plattsburgh, New York, where I joined their division III team.
At one time in my life, sports was everything to me. I was a kid, who didn't know very much, and I just thought I'd be throwing for the rest of my life. Then you come to the realization— as you get older— that you have to look at the bigger picture and what happens after you're done with your sport. That was my perspective. Like, I have to actually look at what's going to happen after my four-year or master's degree."
During his sophomore year at SUNY Plattsburgh, Orlando decided to join the Army, a decision he felt made sense because his heart—at the time— was no longer interested in the college world.
"I felt like I needed a change," Orlando said. And, a lot of my friends and buddies ended up joining the Army themselves, so I just walked up to the recruiting station one day after one of my classes and said: 'Yeah, I want to do this.' It just felt right to me. Then it was just a smooth transition from there all the way through.
Later on, the Army eventually sent Orlando to Bowie State on active duty orders, where he was selected to become an officer through the Army's Green to Gold Active Duty Option program, which allows enlisted service members to become commissioned officers within the Army.
In order words—it will send those soldiers back to college where they participate in ROTC (The Reserve Officer Training Corps), a college program that prepares young adults to become officers in the U.S. Military by allowing them to take classes en route to obtaining a college degree.
After completion, they obtain the grade of second lieutenant, the 19th highest rank in the United States Army.
During an interview with the Bowie State University athletics department, Orlando talked about his army experience, his time at Bowie State, and more.
Tell me your personal experience of being in the Army.
For a guy, who went to college initially for sports, it was a culture shock. It's a different atmosphere, a different life: There's no more being late to things—everything's strict. You can't have a beard anymore. Your hair has to be a certain way. Your day-to-day life changes so much. Typically, you lose freedoms in the military that you don't usually appreciate in the civilian world. Just the ability to do whatever you want, but at the same time, we give up those freedoms to protect the greater whole of the nation.
After experiencing time in the Army, did you change from a character or discipline standpoint?
I think the Army has taught me the importance of time management, to be honest. Before I joined the Army, I was by no means an on-time kind of person. But the army experience taught me the purpose of getting up in the morning, to get stuff done before most people do.
Did you face difficult obstacles in the Army that made you think about quitting?
Yeah, I wouldn't say straight up quit, but there was the idea of like, "Am I able to do this?" because there were times where limits got pushed. We'd walk around with 50, 60 pounds in our backs, holding a weapon, just walking for hours on end, just losing track of time where it's just like, "Am I going to make this?" Or times where I went on runs where the pace was just so fast, you literally fade in and out of consciousness. But you have to tell yourself, like, "Don't give up; you can do this."
So, it sounds like they push your limits in order to get you out of your comfort zone.
Oh yeah, for sure. Before I joined the Army, I was like 215 pounds. Then, by the time I left basic training, I was 180 pounds. And, that was only in like two-and-a-half months of training.
When you came to Bowie State, did you look to continue your track and field career?
Yeah, when I came to Bowie, I walked on because I had contacted Coach Latimer about walking on as a thrower, and I had told her about my previous history of playing, so she let me walk on.
Tell me about your time at Bowie. How have you enjoyed your experience there?
Yeah, it goes back to the whole thing when I talked about how joining the Army will change you. Coming back to college the second time and getting the opportunity to do all the college things again: play sports, make friends, and stuff like that—I was a lot more appreciative of all that. Bowie State has been nothing but a blessing to me. They helped me pay for school, gave me a chance to throw again, and I think I made lifelong friends.
Let's talk about your future. What are you looking to be? What are your goals in terms of the future?
So, as of right now, I will be commissioning as a medical service officer in the United States Army in May. My goal is to stay for 20 years—if the Army allows it—and eventually make my way up to a general officer rank, but that's all situational-based. Things can change. I'm too young to say precisely where I want to be, but right now, that's the goal I have set for myself.
Is commissioning as a medical service office in the United States a recent interest of yours, or is something you wanted to do?
It definitely wasn't something I always wanted to do, that's for sure. When I was a kid, I thought I was going to be a personal trainer. I thought I would open up my gym and be an athlete my entire life. But then, just goals and things that I wanted in life changed.
So being in the Army changed those goals and aspirations that you had?
The Army? Yeah, it definitely changed my perspective. The Army gave me everything when I had nothing.
Outside of sports and the army, what else interests you? What are your hobbies?
Yeah, so what I honestly do on the outside is mainly three things: One is powerlifting. So whenever I'm not training for track and field or resting at home, I'm basically in the gym working on my form and technique, just to prepare for the next competition. I'll mainly do bench press, deadlifts, and squats. The second thing is working on my truck by constantly adding new parts to it.
I usually hang out with my friend, and we just kind of work on that. It's very interesting to put together, like, just working on the mechanics of a truck or a vehicle and just doing mods to it. But besides that, the third thing I do is play video games, just like Modern Warfare, and stuff like that.
What type of truck do you guys work on?
So, I have a 2021 Tacoma, and then my buddy has a 2021 Big Horn Ram. We literally just took them off the lot, too. He got his a couple of months ago, and I got mine right before 2020. So, yeah, we work on both vehicles.
Are you a truck type of guy?
I wasn't up until a couple of months ago, but now I am, yeah. I love that thing to death. It just rides differently, you know? And besides it being different, it's so easy to use compared to the tiny little Mazda I used to drive.
So that's more of your style?
Yeah, I can just throw stuff in the bed. I'm not too worried about throwing things in the car and damaging the seats because it can all just go in that big-old-bed in the back
