The creator of high-octane “Ranger Coffee” really wants the Army
to beat the Navy in this Saturday’s game in Philadelphia, so much so
that he’s launched a video in supporting the Army underdogs, who
haven’t won the hottest contest in college football since 2001.
“Navy cadets, we call them squids, and the hardest part of being
a squid is dealing with the rejection letter from West Point,” said
former Army Capt. Zack Thomas, who stars in the video entitled “Eat,
Drink and Beat Navy.”
The video is just over one minute long and shows Thomas
calmly going through his morning routine, shaving, eating breakfast,
drinking Ranger coffee and looking passively at a struggling,
hog-tied purported Navy “cadet.”
“It’s the ultimate rival. In my mind there’s no rival in the
world that compares to the Army-Navy rival. We love to bash on each
other,” said Thomas, a West Point grad who left the Army and his job
at the 4th Ranger Training Battalion to attend seminary.
His plan is to return to the Army as a chaplain.
In the meantime, Thomas is raising money for the 75th Ranger
Regiment Association and other military groups by pushing
Ranger-themed coffees at his Web site http://www.rangercoffee.com,
which also features the video.
“Airborne Coffee,” a darker roast of coffee nicknamed “prop
blast,” is the latest addition to Thomas’s family of 12-ounce bags
of coffee, which sell for $11 and $12.
Sales these days, he said, average about “two to three bags a
day.”
“It’s still more or less a hobby because we’re not making a whole
lot at it. We can’t retire or anything,” said Thomas, who makes
about $1.60 on the bag, with $1 for each sale going to the military
organizations.
To help boost sales, Thomas said he’s offering a Christmas
special of two bags for $20, plus tax and shipping. “It’s
great to send to the troops overseas, to give them some good coffee
and help keep them awake during the holiday season,” Thomas
said.
Orders can be made right on the Web site.
As for the Army’s chances of winning this Saturday?
“I don’t want to talk about it.”
