United States Army Sgt. Blake Wise has always been active in sports.
Wise was a forward on the 1997 and 1998 Bowling Green High School state championship hockey teams. He
also played baseball for the Bobcats and was a member of the Bowling Green State University rugby team.

A member of the military since 2004, he served two tours of duty in Iraq. But Wise still finds time to
stay active through sports whenever he has the chance. And he’s carried with him many of the lessons
learned from his playing days.
"I think a lot of that kind of guided my thought process, my decision-making and leadership ability
through the military," said Wise in an phone interview from Fort Sam Houston, Texas.
"Everything that was instilled in us back then kind of just carried over."
But Wise’s playing days aren’t quite over.
Wise is about to begin his first season with the San Antonio Raiders of the National Public Safety
Football League.
The NPSFL is a semi-pro football league consisting of teams with players that are military personnel,
police officers, and firefighters from throughout the country.
The full-contact league is a non-profit organization that benefits the Wounded Warrior Project, designed
to help veterans once they return from overseas.
His team will be playing at Cleveland’s Case Western Reserve University on May 28.
"Everything that we do to bring those soldiers home, that’s really what it’s about," said Wise,
who also serves as the team’s assistant general manager.
"Coming from an infantry unit, you’ve got that brotherhood and camaraderie," Wise said.
"That’s basically it, meeting new people, making new friends and the camaraderie that comes along
with it. We’re all public safety officials or professionals, so we all have that same kind of mentality
of wanting to help everybody."
All of the donations the NPSFL receives are tax deductible. The team’s Web site is www.saraiders.org and
anyone interested in donating or for more information regarding the team and how it was founded can
visit www.publicsafetyfitness.org. The leagues Web site is located at www.npsfl.com.
"It’s considered semi-pro. Former college and past professional athletes are playing on some of
these teams, so the competition level is pretty high," Wise said.
One of his former coaches, BGHS hockey head coach Dan DeWitt, isn’t surprised that Wise has gone on to
serve his country.
"Blake was the type of player that you would just call a good teammate and a team player. He knew
and accepted his role. He was extremely hard-working and he was committed, and he was very
disciplined," DeWitt said. "It’s not surprising. Blake obviously, back then and now, was a
person of character."
Wise served a total of 27 months in Iraq between two tours of duty as a combat medic with the HHC 2/505
Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division.
His duties included nearly all aspects of military medicine, mainly combat oriented, including in the
field and at the hospital. He also served in the New Orleans area after Hurricane Katrina.
Wise graduated with a degree in applied health science from BGSU and is currently working on his master’s
degree.
He plans on completing his 20 years of service with the military. "For right now that’s my
goal," he said.
And even though he is considered a hero by many, Sgt. Wise insists he’s simply doing his job.
"I don’t even look at it in that sense really. A lot of people want to give thanks," he said.
"But it was a choice I made to do something of that nature. I don’t ask for thanks or anything like
that. It sounds kind of cheesy, but it’s just kind of part of the job."
Wise and his wife, Renae, have two daughters. Kyra is 4 and Kelsie is almost 2.