Alec Whipple has always revered the men and women in uniform that represent and defend the United States, and he has the same desire to one day serve his country as well.
Whipple is a freshman on the University of Denver hockey team and is also a member of the school's Army ROTC program. He plans on joining the military after earning his finance degree and minor in economics at Denver.
"As a young kid, that is what I dressed up as for Halloween (a military member). Subconsciously, I obviously had an inclination in liking to do that from a young age," Whipple said. "When freshman year rolled around and I had the opportunity to join ROTC, I kind of realized that this is an opportunity to put together sports, your intellect, your character, pretty much everything that makes you as a person different from others. I saw it as an opportunity to put myself in a different category and do something a little different than the traditional path of a college athlete."
The Excelsior, Minnesota, native's family has a military background. Two of his mom's great uncles served in World War II, with U.S. Navy Captain John Cromwell receiving the Purple Heart for his actions in battle and was later posthumously the recipient of the Medal of Honor.
"From a young age, seeing and hearing about that. You obviously don't know the gravity about it when you're young," Whipple said. "As you get older, you understand the type of sacrifice and what it takes. I think that is something that sticks with you when you're really young. I think that is what ultimately fueled the passion that I do have and the respect I have for people that do serve."
Whipple started his Army program in late August and has tackled a busy schedule in the first quarter of the year with his responsibilities with ROTC, his academics and as a Division-I student-athlete on one of the nation's top hockey teams.
He starts his mornings with school, with ROTC class electives taking up his Tuesday and Thursday mornings. He then spends the next several hours in the gym and on the ice with the Pioneers team before working on homework or taking part in more ROTC activities in the afternoons and evenings.
There is also a fitness and workout-portion of ROTC that occur early in the mornings, but as a D-I athlete he is excused from attending those while the team is in-season.
Balancing that type of schedule can be tough, but Whipple is appreciative of support that he's received from the DU coaches, teachers and the ROTC officers to help him navigate each time commitment with his busy calendar.
"There are people on both sides of it, on the Army side of it as well as coaches and teachers that make it all work," Whipple said. "Being in-season, that is probably the most difficult part of it, time-wise. They are good about saying, 'Hey, focus on your sport, that is obviously a big part of it and that will obviously help you with this down the road if you choose to do this.' As far as the field training, that happens in the fall and spring."
His first field training occurred just prior to the start of hockey season.
Whipple and his fellow ROTC members from DU and nearby Metropolitan State University of Denver were transported via helicopter to Wyoming to be introduced to aspects of the job that they will use on a daily basis if they decide to pursue the career.
"They teach you the basics of being an Infantry leader and what to expect in the future," Whipple said of his first field training experience. "You learn how to navigate with a compass, protractor; they introduce you to firearms. They also shuffle you up there on a helicopter, which was my first-ever time being in a helicopter, so that was a really cool experience and kind of made the whole trip worthwhile. You don't really get a lot of sleep, but the experience was a lot of fun."
There are certainly similarities to working in the miliary and playing a Division-I sport, especially ice hockey. Both feature a group of individuals that trust one another to do their job while working together to accomplish a specific goal.
"You kind of build that close bond and brotherhood with people the same way you do playing on a hockey team," Whipple said. "I've been lucky to have that here at Denver. Playing a sport, especially like hockey all the way through now, learning to work with different types of people in those environments, whether it be a game or school or now just starting down that military journey. It's an important skill to have and that will continue well into the future."
Whipple says he is a goal-oriented person, and that aspect has certainly played a role in getting him to Denver.
He played high school hockey in Minnesota on powerhouse Minnetonka before continuing to work on his craft for the previous two seasons with the Trail Smoke Eaters of the British Columbia Hockey League. Academically, he graduated Magna Cum Laude from Minnetonka and was recognized as the school's Hockey Scholar-Athlete of the Year in 2022.
"I never really knew if I was going to be able to play college hockey. It was always a goal and then I was kind of like, 'I'm not going to leave anything on the table. I want to make this happen, if I can,'" Whipple said. "So that mentality of going all out for a given objective, I think that is something that is preached in the military."
Whipple isn't exactly sure what part of the Army he is interested in joining, but Infantry, the Rangers and Special Forces all have a draw for him at this time.
Whenever he does decide to join the military, his experience playing hockey and his time with the Pioneers will certainly benefit him.
"The paths of Infantry, Ranger Regiment, Special forces, those areas that are super similar to playing on a hockey team," Whipple said. "You build that close relationship with individuals; you go out and accomplish a mission and you operate in the same way a team here at Denver would in a lot of ways. Granted, the stakes are a little bit higher, but in many ways it's the same feel.
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