This will work! #staywithcoach

June 6, 1944. An American paratrooper jumps into Normandy in the dark and lands on the roof of a church. By the end of the war he had been declared dead, held a funeral he didn't attend, escaped the Nazis, and fought his way toward Berlin in a Soviet tank unit. His name was Joseph Beyrle. He's believed to be the only American soldier to serve in both the US Army and the Red Army during World War Two. Beyrle was from Muskegon, Michigan. He joined the 101st Airborne, the Screaming Eagles. His buddies called him Jumpin' Joe. On D-Day night his plane was hit by flak and he jumped early. He came down on a church roof, slid off, and lost his unit in the chaos. For a few days he fought on his own, blowing up a power station and cutting German communications. Then he was captured. Here's where it gets strange. A German soldier ended up wearing Beyrle's uniform and dog tags. That German was killed. When the body was found, the Americans identified it as Joseph Beyrle. The army told his parents their son was dead. His hometown held a funeral mass for him. His obituary ran in the local paper. Meanwhile, he was very much alive, being moved from one German prison camp to another. He escaped more than once. One time he and two other prisoners jumped off a train heading east. They thought they were heading for Russia and freedom. They got lost and ended up in Berlin, where they were caught by the Gestapo, beaten, and tortured. In January 1945, from a camp in eastern Germany, he finally made a clean escape. He went east, toward the gunfire. Toward the Soviets. When he found a Soviet tank unit, he walked out with his hands up, holding a pack of Lucky Strike cigarettes, and shouted the only Russian he knew. American comrade. It worked. He asked to join them. And they said yes. For about a month, an American paratrooper rode with Soviet tank crews as they pushed toward Germany. He used his demolition training. He fought. He was reportedly welcomed by a Soviet officer who was one of the rare women commanding a tank battalion. Then a German dive bomber attacked. Beyrle was badly wounded. He was evacuated to a Soviet hospital. Soviet Marshal Georgy Zhukov reportedly visited, heard his story, and gave him papers to get to the American embassy in Moscow. When he showed up, the embassy didn't believe him. As far as the US was concerned, Joseph Beyrle was dead. They held him under guard until his fingerprints proved who he was. He made it home to Michigan in April 1945. In 1946 he got married. In the same church where they'd held his funeral. Decades later, in 1994, he was honored at the White House by President Bill Clinton and Russian President Boris Yeltsin for serving both countries. And the last twist. His son, Joseph Beyrle II, grew up to become the United States Ambassador to Russia.

‘Crunch’ — Influence Trap 🪤

GOTW Friday is the East End showdown as #3 @gohshsfootball visits #1 @VarinaFootball. @StevenA_88 will have updates from @PHSAthletics01 at @TDKnightsFB all night. @CoachCriz & I are on at 630pm on @910TheFan, 910am, 105.1fm, @Audacy app & online here audacy.com/stations/thefanri…

My favorite part? This is all about pride! #staywithcoach

This week's @CBS6 @910TheFan coaches poll is out 1 @VarinaFootball (27) 2 @TDKnightsFB (1) 3 @gohshsfootball 4 @MidloFBRecruit 5 @PHSAthletics01 6 @HuguenotFB 7 @Manchester_FB 8 @tesfootball 9 @DSFfootball 10 @RecruitHermFB @CoachCriz @LaneCtvsports @CBS6SportsSean

Congrats to our @TheBTT players of the game from tonight, @MicahScott1400 from @PHSAthletics01 & @qb_king7 from @HopewellFB

QB Counter read. #Slick #staywithcoach

WATCH postgame extra. @CoachCriz @jeremy_lapidus & I wrap up @PHSAthletics01 GOTW win, big wins for @gohshsfootball, @KWHSFB, and other key results facebook.com/GHessRVA/videos…

LOL. I understand the fiscal element, but I wish that was true. #staywithcoach

"My heart is full." Coach Gaines

WATCH Jerome Mathis postgame interview. @CoachCriz & I chat with the @PHSVAFootball coach after big GOTW win facebook.com/GHessRVA/videos… @PHSAthletics01 @PHS_CrimsonWave

Tonight on the HS walk-thru on @910TheFan, @CoachCriz & I had a great chat with @AtleeFootball coach @CoachMattGray. Here is a link with you can LISTEN open.spotify.com/episode/2em…

Jenks HS (OK) running a Tackle Reverse RPO I would like to see this with Penei Sewell or Trent Williams soon 😂

Coming up after the break on the HS walk-thru on @910TheFan, @CoachCriz & I visit with @bcprva coach @KurtvonBargen, then later we will chat with @AtleeFootball coach @CoachMattGray

The HS Walk-thru is underway on @910TheFan. @CoachCriz & I are chatting with @KWHSFB coach @scott_m2018

This late in the season you have to go back to 1932... Petersburg 6-1 and Hopewell 7-0-1.

I’m glad this rivalry is back to it’s former intensity. #staywithcoach

Saw the results (good & bad) yesterday. #staywithcoach