Courtesy Photo | Sgt. Cody McCollom, personal security officer with 36th Infantry Division, from...... read more read more
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BASRAH, Iraq – The Iraqi desert heats up to scorching temperatures, as the boogeyman ties his bootlaces and prepares for another day of classified movements through the sand. He is ready for whatever opponents he may encounter in this barren land he currently calls home.
On Contingency Operating Base Basra, the days are long and demanding for Sgt. Cody McCollom, personal security officer, 36th Infantry Division, from Dallas, Texas. McCollom, who is on his third deployment to Iraq, but that doesn’t stop him from continuing to pursue his dream of becoming a professional world-class champion fighter one day.
The only path to acquiring that dream is “training hard and never losing sight of that goal,” he said.
At five feet, seven inches and weighing 170 pounds, McCollom is nicknamed “El Cucui,” or boogeyman by his Army buddies, because a guy he fought, at one point had nightmares about him after the fight, said McCollom. After that, the name just stuck, he added.
His extensive fighting skills and infantry background contributed to his qualifications for his position as a personal security officer for Maj. Gen. Eddy M. Spurgin, commanding general of the 36th Infantry Division, during this deployment.
As a member of Spurgin’s personal security team, McCollom’s position is similar to that of a secret service agent back in the states. It is his job to put the safety of the general before his own, and he must be ready at any moment to take whatever action necessary to ensure the safety of his boss. That kind of responsibility is not for the faint of heart, which is why McCollom fits into the role so well.
He was to the world of fighting at age six when his father took him to the boxing gym for the first time and he has been fighting competitively ever since, he said.
“From that first day, I fell in love with the fight game, the competition that is so much more than you versus your opponent, but you versus yourself,” he said. “Since then, I have always done my best to be the best. Now, after 127 amateur boxing matches, including eight state golden gloves, one national title, a bronze medal in the under 19 world championships, 23 amateur kickboxing matches, six amateur grappling matches, I have worked my way up to turning pro,” he said.
But the fighting ring is just one challenge this 23-year-old has taken on to test his limits; in 2006 he added another level to his inner warrior by joining the Army National Guard, and following in the footsteps of his forefathers.
“I’ve always wanted to join the Army,” said McCollom. “Every male on my dad’s side of the family, who’s full-blood Sioux, have fought in every American war. I’ve had six great-uncles in World War II at the same time. My grandfather was in the Korean War. My uncle was in Vietnam. My dad served in the Marine Corp. My little brother is in Afghanistan right now on his first deployment. That’s how we are as a family; you fight. Every aspect of my life revolves around some type of fighting, whether it’s in a cage, in a boxing ring, or on the battlefield.”
But there is a time and a place to fight, and the privilege is not to be abused, according to McCollom.
“I was always raised never to fight outside of the gym or outside the ring,” he said. “That’s wrong. Growing up as a kid, you get into the schoolyard fights… but if I did, I was always in trouble. It’s always been; ‘you pass your grades or you don’t fight.’ It’s more of an extracurricular thing,” he said.
But the way the Native American side ties into it is you don’t quit, he said.
“And I’ve never quit in a fight, ever. That’s just how I was raised. You never quit,” he said.
His Native American bloodline has been a significant influence in his upbringing and plays an important role in how he lives his life both as a man, and a fighter.
“Every aspect of my life is like fighting, and it’s all because of my Native American side,” he said. “It’s a big part of my life,” he added.
“People look at fighting like it’s a very violent sport and it’s really not,” he said. “There are a lot of rules and regulations that are put into place to make it safe. And people on the outside look in and say, ‘Man, these dudes are beating the hell out of each other.’ But honestly, it’s a test of who has more heart or will, and who has more skill,” he said.
“You might have two fighters that are the same skill and it comes down to who has more heart, who’s going to want it more,” he said. “I go [into a fight] and I see ‘Am I better than this man?’ Let’s see who’s the better man.”
Native Americans are very spiritual and peaceful people, and the culture is deep-rooted, he explained. But there is another side of the culture just as important as the spiritual side that carries great responsibility. That is pushing yourself, and testing your mental and physical strength.
Your whole life is a series of tests, he said. How you live your life, and how you handle these tests, reflects directly on you as a man, he added.
“You can live your whole life as a man, go through all of these tests, take care of your family, and do all of these things as a man, but if you die as a coward, then to us, you didn’t become a man,” he said. “That’s the ultimate test. It’s just a part of me that I’ve lived with my whole life; you never quit and you go out on your shield.”
When McCollom first started fighting he would get butterflies in his stomach just before a fight, he said. But as he got older and gained more experience, he learned how to channel that nervous energy and use it to prepare him for the fight engagement.
“That’s one of the reasons I like to fight … that feeling you get right before you walk into the ring, knowing that you’ve done everything you could to prepare for the fight,” he said. “And you know that man on the other side of the cage has done the exact same thing, and you’re about to test to see if you’re a better fighter and your skills are better than his.”
He has worked with relentless effort to get to where he is today, but his journey to go pro has not been one he has taken alone. McCollom has found support from his family and friends throughout his life, but his greatest support system has been his best friend and battle buddy, Spc. John Jones.
Jones is a personal security officer and driver for Command Sgt. Maj. Wilson L. Early, 36th Infantry Division, and spent his last tour to Iraq with McCollom.
Jones has been training with McCollom and keeping him on track for the last four years, said McCollom.
Apart from being training partners and having multiple deployments together, McCollom says, “We’re brothers to the core.”
Jones describes their bond as, “something that most people will never have.”
We’ve been through so much together that I trust him with my life, and I have trusted him with my life countless times, said Jones.
At home or on deployment, Jones pushes McCollom to stick to his rigorous workout regiment, especially when he may want to skip a day.
As far as him working out, he’s a beast, said Jones. He never quits.
McCollom has developed an extensive variety of mixed martial arts that includes wrestling, kickboxing, Muay Thai, Jiu-jitsu, and Aikido.
In or out of the ring, no matter what challenges McCollom has faced through his life, he just keeps going.
“I rode bulls since I was 14 … it was really a bad idea,” he said nonchalantly.
When he was 17 he was stepped on by a bull, he said. He ended up in the hospital with a collapsed a lung and broken ribs.
“It took me out of the fighting game for a little while, and that’s when I ended my bull-riding career,” he said. “I rode once or twice after that, but I wasn’t as good on the back of a bull as I was in the ring,” he said with a grin.
For McCollom, it is about the journey of the fight that draws him in and keeps him going, not the end result.
“It’s a huge rush,” he said. “And win or lose, it doesn’t matter. As long as you come out of the ring knowing that you did your best, and that you put everything you had out there in the ring. And that’s why I fight. It’s that feeling that keeps me going.”
He has survived having bones crushed by a bull, he has volunteered for deployments and come back for more, his wins outweigh his loses in the ring, and his fighting performance has even given his opponent nightmares. Every test he has been faced with in life, he has met with the heart of a true warrior.
This boogeyman doesn’t hide under a bed waiting to attack. He has been on the battlefield and in the fighting ring, and nothing will divert him from his path to becoming a world champion. But keep a light on just in case, because the boogeyman is coming.
| Date Taken: | 08.30.2011 |
| Date Posted: | 08.31.2011 02:31 |
| Story ID: | 76205 |
| Location: | BASRA, IQ |
| Web Views: | 708 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, The Boogeyman has the heart of a warrior: From the fighting ring to third tour in Iraq, soldier never quits, by SPC Anthony Zane, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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