Coach’s Journey: Mickey Matthews Diary

Friday/Saturday – Had dinner with Kay at Dulles.  She is very apprehensive about me going on this trip!  Flew to Dohan – 12 hours 15 minutes from Dulles.  Plane left at 10pm.  Got an aisle seat (thank God - I’m claustrophobic).  Watched movie (The Wrestler).  I’m afraid I wouldn’t give good reviews.  Read a couple hours-I always enjoy John Feinstein.  Slept 6 hours - ?  My travel companions are Bobby Hauk from Montana, Chris Smeland from West Point, Rob Akey from Idaho. When we landed in Dohan it is HOT.  Met by a nice guy from the military base.  We waited at the airport for our host and David Bailiff from Rice.  They were one hour behind us on a plane from Houston.  There are a lot of people looking at us.  I’m sure we look really different from everyone around here. We drove to the barracks at Camp As Sayliyah.  Bailiff is my roommate.  He is one my favorites.  He was a graduate assistant for me at Southwest Texas and his having a brilliant career.

Sunday – Got up early – maybe late, my time is all messed up. Went for a work out this morning.  Got dressed and all of us went to an 11:30 autograph signing.  I brought a lot of JMU Camp t-shirts and gave them away.  Met a guy from Carlsbad, NM – close to my hometown of Andrews, Texas.  Great conversation – I was the first guy who knew where Carlsbad was.  This afternoon rode on a Stryker.  Very impressive. We all met the C.O. – nice guy – gave us an overview of Camp As Sayliyah.  Went to dinner downtown with one of his assistants.  I just could not eat the food – too much West Texas in my blood!  Came home watched Tiger win his golf tournament.  It is 1am here, and it is 5:00 on the east coast.  Found out we were delayed!

Monday – Slept till noon.  Could not believe it!  We were all very tired and our time is really messed up.  Called Kay, my daughter, Meredith, and my grandson, Jackson, on Chris Smeland’s cell phone.  One last shower and we headed to the Al Udeid Air Base that night.  Did I say it was hot.  Ran into some Army guys at air base from Huntington WV.  They were big Marshall fans, and we had good conversation about my days there.  Great guys.

Tuesday night / morning – Flew all night on a C-130 to Kandahar.  We were allowed in cockpit and flew over the Straights of Hormuz.  We could see the oil tankers lined up to load up.  It truly was an amazing sight.  We left around 1am and arrived as the sun was rising.  Met at the airport by Steve Bell from Yuba City, California.  Steve used Chris’ cell phone to check on his nine year old son’s Little League game back in Yuba City.  We observed the compound the Forces had built – a large square of eating and shopping establishments all connected.  Basically a mall, that is really hot.  Pizza store had a sign “out of pizza sauce” we were not for sure why they were still open for business.  Many NATO troops – more NATO troops than Americans here – and yes it is hot.  Everyone had lunch and crashed from 12:00 till 6.  Show tonight at 8.  It is still hot.  A humorous side-everyone on the trip is giving me a hard time about my camera.  It is Kay’s and it is pink.  For some reason they can’t get used to a football coach having a pink camera.  So every time we take pictures I listen to harassment about my camera.<

Tuesday night – High was 117 today.  Had a good crowd tonight.  They are so young.  Everyone makes fun of my pink camera still.  Bailiff and Hauk are relentless.  I wish Kay had given me a black one.  Met a JMU grad – Cooper was last name – from Woodstock – now stationed in Ft. Lewis (Washington).  Saw our co-pilot, female, Libby, who flew our plane from Qatar to Kandahar.  She is an Air Force Academy graduate.  Really a nice person.  Emailed Kay tonight from barracks.  It’s the first computer we have had access to since we arrived.  We are all sleeping in one room-all five coaches, one army personnel and our host.  I went to the restroom during the night-about 100 yards away-when I returned I humorously listened to the music in the room.  Lots of snoring!

Wednesday – Up at 7:00 to catch 9:00 flight to Bagrum Air Base – WRONG.  We kept getting our planes canceled because of different problems.  Spent the day with a general and his staff from the Illinois based National Guard.  We were at the airport for 11 hours waiting for a plane to Bagrum.  Rather frustrating.  We became great friends with general and his staff.  The general ordered out pizza for everyone!  It is hot – 118 – today.  Met a soldier from King George VA.  Yes he is a JMU Duke Fan.  We were standing outside when we saw them lower our flag to half mast and British lowered theirs.  We were told when we suffer casualties the flag is immediately lowered.  It did lower our spirits.  You never forget you are in a war zone.  They are all so young.  Arrived at Bagram 7:00pm.

Thursday morning – Up at 3:30am to catch plane from Bagrum AF Base to Sharona FOB (Forward Operating Base).  Waited at air terminal.  They have a USO Pat Tillman Memorial building at Bagram.  About 50 minutes over some unbelievably rough terrain and high mountains.  Met by Becky, the liaison for us, and one of her fellow officers.  Great lady and nice young man.  Went directly to breakfast at 7:00am with the troops.  The head of operations is a 1997 JMU Graduate.  He is a South Lakes High School Graduate.  Loves JMU Football. 

All of us lined up at a table.  We all brought lots of t-shirts/hats.  A young lady from Hampton High was there.  Super interaction with soldiers.  Their eyes brighten up when you visit with them.  They are truly great young men and women.  We are in the middle of nowhere and these guys and girls are so impressive.

The coaches were then given a first hand demonstration in an m-rap.  The best description I could give – a heavily armed highly computerized fancy 4x4 pick up truck.  They let me in and were going to give me a ride.  I was too claustrophobic!  I had to pass – but all the coaches took rides.  There were all very impressed.  We then went to the air strip.  The pilots informed us because of weight that only four could go and three had to remain behind.  Coach Akey, myself and Steve Bell stayed behind – the plane returned in 2 ½ hours.  The troops were most hospitable.  When we finally did return about 4:00 we visited the Bagrum hospital.  Most humbling.  Visited with a kid that was injured in IEDs and a youngster who had just gotten shot that morning.  It was difficult for all of us.  A humorous incident – one nurse (from Montana State) was giving Bobby Hauk a hard time about being a Grizzley.  He was very gracious – but she definitely was not a Griz fan.  We gave him a hard time about it on the way back to the hut.

I crashed for two hours.  I made contact with Sam Daniels’ brother who is stationed here.  Had dinner with him and his buddy from Illinois.  They gave me a plaque from their group.  Another early rise in the morning.

Friday morning – Went for an early workout at an open air fitness facility.  On the way I stopped and visited with some guys headed to Kabul on a mission with their m-raps. They are so young!  Breakfast and left for a 10:00 am meeting with the A/10 and F-15 Eagle 336th F.S. Rocketeers out of Base Seymor Johnson in North Carolina.  They could not have been more hospitable and informative.  Saw videos and program on what and how they do it.  Had some pilots scrambled while we were there to support some of our ground troops in a fire fight.  We were there four hours.  Met one young captain who had just returned from a mission.  He and I had a lengthy conversation about what they did in Afghanistan.  We went back to the barracks.  We stopped at the Special Forces base in Bagram (a base inside a base is the best way to describe it).  Ran into some more guys from West Virginia who were Marshall fans.  One had been to our football camp fifteen years ago, and remembered me.  We did a session tonight and spoke to a good group.  Just prior to this session, the Air Force Captain I had met that day at lunch brought me a flag that he carried while on combat missions on July 4.  Very humbling.  It is 11pm and we are trying to catch the 1am flight back to Qatar.  We did.

Saturday morning – Had breakfast at 6am.  We arrived at 4am.  Slept all day.  Had dinner, and we all packed to come home.  Our plan leaves in the morning.

Sunday morning – Caught the 9am out of Dohar to Dulles.  We will arrive at 4pm EST.  My daughter and grandson will pick me up.  Our football camp has started and I will see the campers as soon as I arrive.