Mark Dodge

Mark Dodge (born December 31, 1980) is a former member of the United States Army and a former college football player for Texas A&M University. Dodge was present during the September 11th Attacks on the Pentagon building, and participated in the rescue efforts and search for victims in the aftermath. After his army service ended, Dodge pursued a college football career, and was repeatedly featured by American national and regional media as a successful student-athlete of a non-traditional age and background.

Mark Dodge was born on December 31, 1980 in Yerington, Nevada. At the age of two, Dodge's parents Howard and Toni divorced and Dodge began living with his mother At an early age, Dodge's life became centered around working on the family ranch in Yerington. While attending Yerington High School, Dodge became an all-state receiver for the Yerington Lions high school football team, but ultimately made the decision to join the United States Army when he wasn't offered a single athletic scholarship to play college football.

While serving in the U.S. Army from April 2000 to January 2004, Dodge was assigned to the 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment, also known as "The Old Guard," the U.S. Army's honor guard that serves at both military funerals at Arlington National Cemetery and for various national ceremonies.

On the morning of September 11th, 2001, Dodge was at the Pentagon filing his application for a White House security clearance. As he watched news coverage of the unfolding attacks on the World Trade Center, American Airlines Flight 77 crashed into the west wall of the Pentagon building. Following the crash, Dodge and his fellow Old Guard members, stationed at the nearby Fort Myer, were mobilized and sent to the crash site. Initially, Dodge was instructed to set up tents for survivors. Once the fires were extinguished, Dodge and his fellow soldiers were then sent into the wreckage to search for the bodies and remains of victims, which were then accounted for and collected by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. In the following weeks, the Old Guard continued searching for victims during the day, and patrolled the capital at night.

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