The Summerall Guards


Since their inception in 1932 as the Richardson Rifles, the Summerall Guards have been one of the premier military drill units in the United States. Named after General Charles P. Summerall, former chief of staff of the U.S. Army and president of The Citadel from 1931 until 1953, The Summerall Guards remain The Citadel's elite, silent drill platoon.

Unit history and background

Summerall Guard tradition states that their exhibition drill, known as "the Citadel Series", has remained virtually unchanged since 1932. The drill has never been written down and is passed from each class to the next. Becoming a member of the Guards is a competitive process. Being selected for the Guards is considered one of the highest achievements a cadet can achieve at The Citadel.
The drill steps are modeled on German close-order drill, including the famous Prussian goose step. The Citadel Series consists of a series of complex close-order drill movements, including the manual of arms, the German Squad Movement, the flank by flank, obliques, successive peeling movements, and varied individual squad maneuvers. The drill is silent and automatic except for an occasional "sound off" in unison by members of the group.
The Summerall Guards drill exclusively with the M1903 Springfield rifle with attached parade chrome plated bayonet. Other than regimental color guards, the Summerall Guards are the only unit at The Citadel to use this particular rifle. In addition to a butt stock identification number, each rifle is given both a first and middle female name. The name is carved, or burned, into the wooden stock of the rifle.
The unit has performed nationally at Disney World, the Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington, D.C., Mardi Gras in New Orleans, numerous National Football League sanctioned games, and St. Patrick's Day parade in Savannah, Georgia.
The Guards have been disbanded several times in its history including the mid 1940s due to World War II and most recently, in 1998, due to administrative changes to the Bond Volunteer Aspirant training.
In 2017, the Summerall Guards made their fifth appearance at a presidential inaugural parade For the 45th President, President Donald J. Trump. The Guards also participated in the inaugurations of Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1953, Ronald Reagan in 1985, George H.W. Bush in 1989, and George W. Bush in 2005.
The Guards also frequently perform on the campus grounds and can be seen free of charge by the public during major events.

Leadership

Members who hold leadership positions within the Guards, depending on their position, are determined by both the Summerall Guards themselves and The Citadel's administration - by a meeting mirroring a standard military promotion board. Leadership positions are open to any member of the unit; however, only Guards who both exhibit strong leadership qualities in the larger Corps of Cadets and excel during BVA Training are usually nominated by their peers.
The Commander and First Sergeant are the only two positions nominated by the Guards to attend the boards held by The Citadel's administration. Usually the Guards nominate at least two of their peers to fill each slot. However, the final say lies with the administration. It is important to note that this is a fairly recent change. Prior to 2007, the Guards elected and appointed their own leadership without influence from the school.

Commander

Three accoutrements are currently authorized at The Citadel to distinguish current Summerall Guards from other cadets while wearing many of the schools various uniforms:

Summerall Guard uniforms

Modified, black fingerless parade gloves are worn by Summerall Guards who hold the Rifle Devil feat and are authorized for wear during all BVA training related events.
The OD green patrol cap replaced the OD green "Castro" or "Ridgeway" cap in the early 2000s due to a number of manufacturers no longer producing these caps. Several of the Ridgeway caps are still handed down within the unit and are authorized for wear. The signature painted Ridgeway caps are authorized only for formation runs, Cuts Day, and Feats Day.
The OD green military duty pants have also been replaced by dark green Dickies brand work pants. This is also due to the lack of manufacturers who produce the 1960s era OD green work pants.

Bond Volunteer uniforms

Bond Volunteers, who are not selected for the sixty-one man Summerall Guard platoon, are allowed to aide in Bond Volunteer Aspirant training. They wear the Training Uniform; the Bond Volunteer PT shirt and hooded-sweatshirt are worn in place of the likewise Summerall Guard tops.

Bond Volunteer Aspirant uniforms

BVAs were required to have a close, cropped High and tight style haircut during phase two training until 2008. This was an administrative change enforced by the school. Now, BVAs are required to completely shave their heads during both phase one and two of BVA Training.
The Citadel field jacket can be added by Guard leadership in extreme cold weather conditions.

Bond Volunteer Aspirant (BVA) training

Each year, aspiring 2nd class cadets volunteer for a rigorous training and evaluation process that starts Parents' Weekend in October and goes until Corps Day in March known as Bond Volunteer Aspirant training. This annual training is considered the highlight of each Summerall Guard's tenure in the unit. It is their chance to choose the cadets that will replace their positions within the platoon and subsequently carry on the tradition to the next year. BVA training takes part in three distinct phases:

First phase

The first phase of training begins immediately following the Summerall Guard performance each Parents' Weekend in the Fall, usually early October. It is then that the pursuing Junior class cadets don the title of BVA. This phase is often compared to going through the Knob year, 4th class cadet, experience all over again. Aspirants must maintain a higher standard of personal appearance, most notably a high and tight style haircut. Formations are held without notice, weekly, and sometimes bi-weekly, to ensure the aspirants are maintaining the prescribed standards. These formations are used as a tool, by the current Summerall Guards, to gauge the commitment of their aspiring replacements. Aspirants are also required to memorize all the current Summerall Guards and their achieved feats during training. First phase includes a minimum of four PT days that introduce the BVA's bodies to the level of physical fitness and mental toughness required to pass the upcoming second portion of training.

Second phase

The second phase of training begins on the first day of classes each Spring semester. It involves hours of rigorous stationary exercises and running with an M14 rifle. Each training day starts promptly at 1500 and continues after dusk. Each day of stationary PT ends with a formation "Cuts Run". The BVA's secure their rifles and fall into a large formation by height, tallest to shortest. Each run is led by the Summerall Guard Commander; he has the responsibility of setting both the pace and distance of the run, which varies daily. The shortest runs last only a few miles; while some may last over ten miles and take hours to complete. BVA's are not allowed to know any details about the Cuts Run each day, all they know is that it will take place. The unit's First Sergeant maintains the run's cadence rhythm by blowing a whistle on the left side of the formation. Each pair of whistle blasts must be echoed by a pair of staccato-like slaps from each BVA as he slaps the stock of his rifle with the left hand. Any aspirant who falls out of the formation, or fails to maintain the "rifle smack" cadence, is pulled from the run and given a cut for that day's training.
Perfection of the drill is also stressed and much time is spent by the aspirants outside of the designated times perfecting the drill. At the end of the second phase there is a final "Cuts Day" where the aspirants are graded on their drill proficiency and for each mistake a cut is assigned. Each BVA squad is moved from one station to another where they are instructed to complete different version of The Series. A total of eight Guard graders are assigned to each station, one for each member of the squad, to assign cuts for any mistakes made. When a squad has completed their last station on Cuts Day their time in the second phase ends. Each aspirant's total number of cuts, from both Cuts Runs and Cuts Day, are tallied by the Guard leadership at the conclusion of Cuts Day.
The following day a roll call formation is held and the sixty-one BVA's with the lowest cuts are chosen to become the new Summerall Guards. Fifty-one "Regulars" composing the marching platoon and ten "Alternates" kept in reserve to fill in as needed. The remaining cadets who are not selected are known as "Bond Volunteers", or BV's, named after a former president of The Citadel, Colonel Oliver Bond. They do not take part in any performances, but are allowed to take part in training. However, if a Summerall Guard graduates early or is dismissed from the unit for whatever reason, a BV may be "bumped up" into the platoon and given the title of Summerall Guard; thus maintaining the infamous sixty-one member head count.

Third phase

The third phase centers around the new platoon's constant practice of The Citadel Series in anticipation of their debut performance on the Citadel's Corps Day Weekend. Corps Day Weekend usually occurs in early March. It is at this time that there is a ceremonial passing of rifles and the new members of the unit officially take the title of Summerall Guards. After the old Guards hand over their rifles, and officially end training, the new Summerall Guards perform for the first time in public. After the performance, the new Guards are given their distinctive blue Summerall Guard field jacket patch by an old Guard who took care in ensuring their success during training.

Feats

Feats conducted on Feats Day