The USS Essex’s 2,000 sailors salute U.S. Navy Capt. Russell Everitt after he assumes command of the amphibious assault ship on July 2. Former teammates recall him as a natural leader of USF’s first football team.
In Command
From USF Football to the USS Essex, former player continues to lead
By Joey Johnston, ’81
e remembers the thrill of running through the Tampa Stadium tunnel for USF’s first football game in 1997; the hard work of laying the program’s foundation; the camaraderie with his teammates; and the pride they all felt in establishing something that would last.
Russell Everitt, an offensive lineman during USF Football’s first two seasons, can hardly believe the program’s progress.
“All the great wins, all the bowl games, all the players who went to the NFL … and now we’re getting our own on-campus stadium?’’ he asks. “Man, have we come a long way or what?’’
Everitt has come a long way as well.
He’s now U.S. Navy Capt. Russell Everitt, a career military man who began as a helicopter pilot and rose through the ranks thanks, in part, to leadership skills honed on the playing field. On July 2 in San Diego, after a rigorous three-year training regimen, he took command of the USS Essex, a 44-ton amphibious assault ship and home to 2,000 sailors.
Former USF defensive lineman Shawn Hay, ’01, now a regional sales director for ophthalmic surgical supplies in Nashville, Tennessee, received an invitation to the ceremony and brought his 12-year-old son, Greyson.
“It was surreal, but I was super proud,’’ Hay says. “Here’s this guy I used to bang heads with on the USF practice field, a great friend I used to hang out with, and he’s having a moment like that. For me, it’s the significance of his journey, the entire military career and all he has done for our country. He deserves so much recognition.’’
As a teenager, Everitt says he was enthralled by the movie “Top Gun’’ and held military service as an option for his future. After graduating from USF with a business management degree in 1999, he earned a master’s from the University of New Haven because it offered training in forensic science, his chosen field.
“But while trying to decide exactly what to do, I felt the call to service,’’ says Everitt, now 48.
During a forensics-oriented internship in Sacramento, California, he purposefully strolled into a military recruiting office and announced that he wanted to fly airplanes in the Navy. He was sent to Officer Candidate School, then flight school, before becoming a Naval aviator in 2002. His first deployment to Iraq came a few months later. Everitt has since accumulated more than 4,000 flight hours in Sea Hawk helicopters.
"You’d be amazed at how many former Division I athletes are actually in the Navy and the military. We have four Division I athletes in the officer ranks on our ship alone. There’s just a natural draw from team sports to military service.”
– U.S. Navy Capt. Russell Everitt
“It has been an honor,’’ he says.
“The fact that I’m asked to lead, serve this country and defend the Constitution, that’s why I joined and it’s why I’m still here.
“What we do is so important. It’s not just defending our country from wars or our adversaries. It’s about economic freedom. It’s about the right to travel the high seas. It’s about space communication. If we didn’t have the Navy or the military, we wouldn’t be talking (freely) right now. So all of that fuels my desire to continue to serve.’’
When Everitt speaks about directing the personnel on a ship of the USS Essex’s magnitude, it strikes a familiar chord with his former Bulls teammates. They remember a 294-pound versatile center/guard, a mauler with an iron will. A loyal teammate. But most of all, they remember an unquestioned leader.
“We all respected Russell Everitt so much,’’ says former USF running back Otis Dixon, ’01. “I remember him breaking us down before we ran onto the field. He got us fired up. He inspired us. He was the kind of guy you wanted to follow.’’
Everitt’s wife of nearly 24 years, Leigh, has followed him since their days as teen sweethearts at Cape Coral High School. Everitt went on to play at The Citadel military college before transferring to USF’s startup program. Leigh attended the University of Florida. The couple married in 2002 and have three children.
“To me, Russell’s whole Navy identity has been as a helicopter pilot, so to be put in charge of a ship like this, it seems very daunting,’’ Leigh says. “But he has worked hard for this.
“Russell leads in a way that makes it sound like it’s your idea. It’s part of his charm. I think the average age on the ship is 22, so it’s all these young sailors. It’s an analogy to football. They’re working toward a common goal. There’s so much teamwork in play. So in a way, it’s very similar to the dynamic he had at USF.’’
Everitt pilots an MH 60R Sea Hawk helicopter during a 2013 takeoff in the South China Sea. He has logged more than 4,000 flight hours during his military career.
Everitt doesn’t look like an offensive lineman any more. He checks in at about 235 pounds. But he still enjoys competition and his daily workout.
“You never lose that mentality,’’ he says. “You’d be amazed at how many former Division I athletes are actually in the Navy and the military. We have four Division I athletes in the officer ranks on our ship alone. There’s just a natural draw from team sports to military service.
“People know I was part of USF’s first two teams and I really cherish those days. I remember the relationships, working hard with your buddies, getting things done. We do the same thing on this ship. We’re professionals. We teach each other. We learn from each other’s mistakes. But we push each other toward success.’’
Everitt said he’s grateful USF Football stages an annual “Salute to Service’’ game (this season, it was Nov. 6 against the University of Texas at San Antonio).
“When people stand and clap for service members, I can get a little teary-eyed because it’s meaningful,’’ he says. “When a young kid is seeing that at a game, I wonder whether a seed was just planted or if somebody just had a ‘Top Gun’ moment. Will they feel the call to service like I did?”
“I was part of a team at USF and I’m part of an even bigger team now.’’
