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Staff Sgt. Cecil Graham plays for a championship flag football team on an American military base in Iraq.
The reward, he said, was ``unforgettable.''
Graham was among a group of U.S. soldiers who spent New Year's Day on their base in Baghdad, playing a game alongside college football greats such as Ty Detmer and Tony Casillas. Graham's team was coached by Barry Switzer; Tommy Bowden coached the other side in the 8-on-8 game that'll be aired during halftime of Monday night's Fiesta Bowl.
``We have to keep going over here,'' Graham, of Roanoke, Va., said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press after the game. ``A lot of people don't know what we go through over here. A lot of people have their own assumptions. But like Coach Switzer and Tony said, to know that people at home have our back, it's a blessing. It's unforgettable.''
Unforgettable for Switzer and Casillas, too - for many reasons, one of them perhaps more memorable than others.
Casillas said warning sirens telling everyone to ``get down'' blared three times Thursday night, a reminder of the constant dangers in that particular part of the world.
``That was surreal,'' Casillas said.
The game, sponsored by Tostitos as part of the Fiesta Bowl and held in coordination with the USO, went off without incident.
``I take home more respect than I've ever had before for the discipline, the respect they showed for us and themselves,'' Switzer said after the game. ``I see the leadership, the commitment to their country and it's a wonderful thing to see, I promise you.''
Casillas, who had never been to Baghdad before, said he would jump at the chance to return.
``In a heartbeat,'' Casillas said. ``I'd do it as many times as I can. Guys like Cecil Graham and being part of this football game today, for me as a person, I feel very grateful to experience this. These guys, they're here for a year, and we tried to be a very positive influence. It was just a great experience.''
