United States Marines Corps the next stop for Ridgeland’s Christian Gentry

Senior Night has become a time-honored tradition for high school sports.

Ridgeland will hold its Senior Night for football this Friday, prior to its regular season home finale against Gilmer. Senior football players, as well as cheerleaders and band members, will be honored in front of the home crowd and recognized for their accomplishments and their commitment to Ridgeland High School.

Offensive lineman Christian Gentry will be one of those honored pre-game, but his ceremony will be a little bit different.

Not only will Gentry be recognized for his athletic achievements at Ridgeland, those in attendance will also be witness to him making a different kind of commitment.

Back on Sept. 16, he joined the United States Marines’ Delayed Entry Program and was officially sworn in during a ceremony in Knoxville. However, there were no friends or family on hand that day, so a small public swearing-in ceremony will be held prior to kickoff so that the entire Ridgeland community can be a part of the event.

“This was something I thought about for a long time, over a year,” Gentry said of his decision. “I sent in my information and two days later they called me. A week later, the recruiter visited my house and that’s when I decided that this is what I wanted to do. Two weeks after that, I became a Marine.

“It’s not going to be easy, but I know I have everyone at Ridgeland on my side to give me moral support.”

According to the Marines’ website, the Delayed Entry Program incorporates recruits into the inactive reserves and includes an agreement to report for active duty, most often called “shipping out to boot camp”, at a specific date in the future, anywhere from several days to several months.

The contract that is signed to enter the program is legally binding. Recruits must be at least 17 years old, have a high school diploma or GED, pass a physical exam and are required to pass intellectual tests.

“I’ll get to finish my senior year of high school,” Gentry said. “Then I’ll swear in again and leave for boot camp after I graduate.”

In the meantime, Gentry will have to continue to pass a series of strength tests, which he said include three pull-ups, 44 crunches in two minutes, 60 reps with a 40-pound push press in two minutes and running 1.5 miles in 12:30.

“The first time I took the test, I passed everything but the pull-ups, said Gentry, who also wrestles and plays baseball for the Panthers.”Once I pass it consistently, they’ll let me know when I leave for boot camp.”

With his contract signed, Gentry is obligated to become a Marine. However, he said that if he earns a full-ride scholarship to play a sport in college, it would be possible for him to go into active duty in the Reserves while still being a fulltime college student, although he would still be required to go through boot camp.

“The recruiters have goals they have to meet so now that I’m committed, there’s really no backing out,”

he said. “But you have to do what’s best for others at times and what’s best for yourself, and while I want to do what’s best for myself, I want to help others and help my country.

Gentry said he has other relatives that

served their country in the military, including his great-grandfather.

“It’s always been on my mind,” he said. “My friends and family definitely don’t want me to leave, but at the same time, you have to grow up. I mean, someone has to do it, right?”

Among the people that Gentry sought out advice from was Ridgeland head

football coach Wesley Tankersley.

“He told us about it the week before he did it,” Tankersley said. “I just told him I was proud of him. Obviously, that’s an honorable decision and something our whole team is proud of. For him, it’s going to be a great opportunity further his education, even in the military. It will give him a lot