Army sees a marketing and PR goldmine. "The real advantage for the Army is just the amount of publicity we get," Army spokeswoman Lt. Col. Anne Edgecombe also said in the AP article. "When you think about it, who's the best recruiter for the Navy you can think of? David Robinson. He's called the Admiral, for goodness sake."

I agree 100% with the previous post. Can't get better publicity than having one of your former student-athletes play professionally. Navy would make itself look much better by simply giving Harris the same option that Robinson had.

It must be very exciting for him to be drafted. But he made a commitment to his country, who by the way PAID for his education (about $400,000 I'm told) and he needs to honor that commitment. There should be no wiggle room in any branch of the service. The Army has the lowest standards to join so they can always get someone else's son/daughter to take Campbell's place. Do you think if the game was soccer and not baseball the Army would have let Campbell out. I don't think so. Baseball, Mom and apple pie. Hum, baseball the All American sport with football right behind. The all mighty dollar strikes again!
He needs to honor his commitment, end of story!

To be fair, Marinemom, Harris has said in several interviews that although he's surprised by the Navy's decision (because it was so different than the Army policy) he's prepared to serve. "Never have I applied for anything, and never have I said I'm trying to get out of my five-year commitment," Harris told the Associated Press. "We are a nation at war, and I completely understand that."
Personally I wonder how the Army kids colleagues feel about him playing ball while they're shipped off to fight a war. Of course these kids have an incredible talent that, arguably, could be wasted in five years, but what makes them any different than someone who wanted to become a doctor or a lawyer out of college?

It's a good point Marta - as far as our national security is concerned, nothing should make Mitch Harris different than future lawyers and doctors. He enlisted in the Navy and was well aware of his commitment. He is a soldier first, athlete second and I am grateful for his service.

Ladies and Gents,
To be accurate, Campbell does not play baseball, he plays football and WestPoint actually gave two other football players the same deal (Mike Viti, fullback and Owen Tolson, punter).
Young men and women who attend Service Academies such as WestPoint, the Naval and Air Force Academies and the Coastguard Academy do not enlist in the military, but are appointed by the President to attend these government sponsored schools for which we the tax payers fund.
Upon graduation, students receive their undergrad degree and commission as an officer in their respective branch of service and are required to serve five years active duty in order to pay back their education. The cost of this education is probably more on the order of $180,000 if you count room and board, training and education.
As a Naval Academy grad (class of 97) I had friends who also had a legitimate shot at a variety of professional sports and agreed that the Navy would be wise to relax their standards in order to reap the recruiting bounty a pro ball player could provide.
Now that I am older and after serving 7 years as an Engineer Officer in the US Marine Corps, I agree with the Navy's and Air Force???s decision to require their pro prospects to fulfill their obligation. I have many friends who have served two to three tours in combat zones-ask them if they think these kids should be shown special consideration simply because they have professional level athletic talent.
If doubt Army instituted this policy for recruiting purposes as much as it did to attract better talent in order to field a better football team. Here's a news flash Army-schedule your competition to complement your talent, and hire a coach who understands how to get the most out of his players like Paul Johnson did for six years at Navy. This is the right answer for Army football and for the Armed Forces as a whole.

I understand everyone's perspective that these cadets signed an agreement offering a few years of service to their country for the education they receive.
But to act as if they are shrugging their duties by taking a spot on a professional team is ridiculous.
I believe that offering a way for these athletes to serve in athletics would be great for everybody. It would increase the talent of the team, increase the amount of televised games (in measure increasing the acadamies visiabilty).
I don't believe it should be a golden ticket to the pro's but a measured one. My plan would be to put these players on some sort of limited reserve time while the sport is in season. Once done then it should revert to a active duty status on Recruiting duty. Imagine a strapping young athlete that young adults have seen on TV coming to a class room or mall in full dress uniform.
Now I don't want anybody going to the academy expecting to drafted, and then if it falls through they refuse to honor the contract. But I feel that if someone can complete four years at one of these schools they will have the honor and discpline to go through with their contract.
It's something that needs to be done correctly and not rushed, but I believe that the service academies need to welcome the 21st century and look at other avenues that their graduates can persue.