The Ranger School Enigma

Why Go Back To High School When I Already Graduated College?

I’ve had quite a few guys over the last few weeks ask me about Ranger school for Green Berets. When should you go, is it worth it, why go back a level? I know that we’ve tangentially had this discussion before, but not as a separate thread. So here goes.

First, Ranger school is not a ‘step back’ from the Q course. The high school to university analogy just isn’t valid in this case, no matter how many times it gets repeated. The guys who spout this nonsense are the same guys who say they don’t need to take any college courses because they already got a “PhD in UW from the school of hard knocks”. Or even worse, Pineland U! Fucking weirdos.

Ranger school is THE premier small unit tactics school. Not just in the Army or the US, but in the world. I know that this is a grandiose statement, but it’s true. I’ve surveyed all of the big ones, talked to graduates and instructors, and I’ve even been an instructor in some. There are some good ones out there. Tough, austere, rigorous. But none are better than the US Ranger school. The quality of instruction, the quality of instructors, the training environment and resourcing. The best. We’ve wrung every ounce of efficacy out of it. Unmatched.

I know that Ranger school is a “leadership school” and open to all now. So by default it’s less than and doubly so because they let chicks in and they lowered the standard and it’s all RI Roulette and fuck that noise. Keep making excuses, you tabless bitches. 

So why go down to the Benning School for Wayward Boys (Fort Moore just doesn’t have the alliteration!) if all Green Berets already go through SUT during the Q? I’ll grant that the SUT training in the Q is absolutely top notch. It always has been and I’m hearing reports that it’s getting better, which is hard to do. It is phenomenal training. My SUT Cadre was SFC Paul LeFavor…yes, that LeFavor…so I  know I was trained by the best. He was incredibly knowledgeable, very demanding, and a top-tier instructor. But…

A key component to SUT is repetition. You need to see multiples TTPs, under multiple conditions, with multiple variables, and different teammates. The Principles of Patrolling are very broad and good instruction creates a box to learn in. So the more times that you can  bounce around inside that box the better you can understand the topic. SUT (I know the Phase is labeled Tac Skills, but the tac skill isSUT) in the Q is only a few weeks AND you’re dealing with many non-combat arms guys or really inexperienced guys. So the training, for as good as it is, is governed by the lowest common denominator. 

Ranger school is 8 weeks (more…if you want it!) is hyper focused, and you will get multiple leadership positions across multiple levels, guaranteed. In the Q it’s not unheard of to only get one look at a Squad Leader or above graded patrol. Quantity has a quality all its own and you simply can’t replace the power of repetition. I’ve talked to multiple recent Q course grads and their grasp of SUT is good, but not nearly as good as it needs to be. My old Team Sergeant, a former 75th guy and mountain RI would blow a gasket, though. He would berate you if you called a transport tightening system a trucker’s hitch….IYKYK. Made a junior Bravo cry once. That’s a good enough barometer for me.

The problem is that Ranger school is a suckfest. There is no other way of putting it. You are going to get smashed. You have to swallow your pride and do somebody else’s pushups. It’s humbling if not downright humiliating. And the mantle of shame if you go and fail? It can be too much for many. So many senior guys are reluctant to submit to this. It’s human nature. Completely understandable.

But they are misguided in their thinking. All Green Berets need to become experts in SUT, and a few weeks in Pineland just isn’t enough. Every JCET that you go on is focused on Advanced Light Infantry Tactics or whatever the current popular vernacular is. FID, and its wartime counterpart UW, is SUT-centric. Could you learn SUT with a concerted focus during team training? Maybe. Could you get just as much by doing an in-depth analysis and study of doctrine, training manuals, and smart books? Nope. Are there SUT SMEs with no Ranger tab? Yes. But why fiddle-fuck with a bunch of half measures? Just swallow your pride and go to Ranger School. Learn from the best in the best environment. Are you elite or not?

Why not Sapper school? It’s just as good, right? Nope. Sapper school is good, no doubt. But it’s not Ranger school. It’s just not as credible, either with your US counterparts or definitely not with our allies and partners. It’s just not. Perception matters.

So when should you go? The answer is that you should go as soon as possible. It makes no difference to your chances of getting selected, even though a Ranger tab is a good predictor of success (correlation not causation). But you should go at your first opportunity. It will definitely put you in a strong position for the Q course since you will have all of that experience to help you during Tac Skills, but also sends a message of credibility. It’s not infallible, but it’s marked. If you don't go prior to SFAS, then go as soon thereafter as possible. You'll be a stronger asset for your team.

And I would be remiss if I didn’t cite the 3 Rules. There is nothing that looks cooler than the venerable Triple Canopy. The stacked Airborne, Ranger , and Special Forces tabs just look cool as fuck. I submit that it looks better than the 4 tabs of adding a Sapper (or God help us an aRcTiC, jUnGLe, or President’s Hundred tab). Always look cool.

I also recognize that I come from a prehistoric age when silly things like colorful patches held higher esteem than normal. A pre-GWOT mindset where training was everything because there were no wars (for the record, I’m pre, mid, and post GWOT and I’m still ‘in the fight’, so I get it). Then we spent two decades of sustained combat in multiple theaters, so Ranger school took a backseat for many that looked at deployments, CIBs, and combat patches as better options. Well, guess where we are now? Post-GWOT. And we’re returning to the Army of old. Suck it, zoomers!

There it is, your answer about Ranger school and Green Berets. Am I biased? Probably. Am I right? Absolutely. I’ll close with more words of wisdom from my Team Sergeant, “You’ve either got a tab or a story, and nobody wants to hear your fucking story.”

Ruck Up Or Shut Up