By Robin Nelson ‘22, Texas A&M University Corps of Cadets - May 22nd, 2025
Founded in the fall of 2011, the Corps of Cadets Marksmanship Unit (CCMU) provides all cadets, regardless of their experience with competitive marksmanship, an opportunity to develop as leaders, compete on the national stage and build relationships that will last a lifetime.
“My goal is to provide cadets with real challenges, in stress filled environments, where the consequences of the choices made will have significant, meaningful outcomes. This focuses on the rewards of success, and the pain of failure. Our cadets don’t just experience leadership in a lab or a role playing environment, they are participating in, and running, an elite organization that functions consistently at a national championship level,” said CCMU Head Coach Kevin Jimmerson '89.
Utilizing this hands-on experience with leadership, preparation and discipline, cadets on the team graduate with far more than competitive shooting accolades.
“My focus as Coach, and our team’s organizational structure, is not about winning. It is about preparation. ‘Amat Victoria Curam, Victory Loves Preparation.’ If you prepare well enough, victory may find you. The life lesson I want our cadets to learn is the discipline to prepare. As leaders, they must know their job is to serve those they are privileged to lead. They serve by finding, developing and creating the circumstances where preparation can occur to its maximum,” Jimmerson continued.
Through elite mental and physical training, the CCMU has amassed numerous national titles and individual awards, and is consistently recognized as one of the top teams in the competitive marksmanship realm. Following the recent completion of their thirteenth season, members of the unit have once again claimed championship titles on the national and international stages.
In March, the CCMU traveled to Talladega, Alabama to compete in the Scholastic Action Shooting Program (SASP)’s National Championship. Divided into three squads of four shooters, the team competed in the competition’s production, 1911 and pistol caliber carbine divisions against universities from across the nation. With one squad posting record-setting performances in the production and 1911 divisions, CCMU earned their ninth national champion title at the event. In addition to the team’s squad-level performance, cadet Thomas Nunnally '27 set the collegiate record for the fastest production individual match time with a time of 34.23 seconds.
“Everything we do prepares us for SASP. That includes our mindset going into a match, the basic fundamentals of shooting and preparing ourselves physically and mentally outside of shooting. The fact is, there’s never a time we aren’t training. Because of the inherent simplicity of SASP, everything can be taken for granted. This is where we shine as a team. We take these stages, like everything else, extremely seriously,” said Nunnally, who just finished his sophomore season with the team.
While the drive to win is not a new feeling to Nunnally, he says that he’s excited to be able to share his experiences with the family that he’s found on the team.
“I've been shooting for years, so the idea of breaking personal records is not new to me. However, I am more excited to be able to share what I know with the team. I love these dudes. Plain and simple. I don’t see them as teammates anymore, I see them as my family. I can count on any of them for anything,” Nunnally said.
Immediately upon their return to College Station, the team’s sights were locked on their season’s final competition at the SIG SAUER Relentless Warrior Championship. A combat-style 3-gun match, the challenges the team faces at SIG are much different when compared to the action-style match they compete in at SASP. Because of this difference in style, members of the team must quickly adapt to the associated changes.
“Our coach always says that winning SASP and SIG is like winning the Superbowl and the World Series, with the same team, in the span of a month. They are two extremely different shooting sports. At SASP, we use iron sights on pistols that are different from the pistols and red dot sights that we use at SIG. It is one thing to train using a different pistol, but constantly switching between iron sights and red dots is extremely difficult,” said Parker Pugno '25, who served as the unit’s 2024-2025 Commanding Officer.
Following intense preparation, the CCMU traveled to Epping, New Hampshire in mid-march to compete at SIG. In another difference from SASP, SIG is exclusively attended by the United States Service Academies, Senior Military Colleges and the Royal Military College of Canada.
“I have thoroughly enjoyed getting to compete against cadets from across the U.S. and Canada. At the end of the day, we are each pushing each other to get better, not just in shooting, but rather in a wide plethora of skills that will carry us into our careers. These skills include critical thinking, performing under pressure, working with and leading a tight knit team and so much more,” Pugno said.
With his future career as an officer in the United States Space Force in mind, Pugno says that these relationships with other cadets have enhanced his understanding of the military as a whole.
“The Space Force has an emphasis on helping the joint force and providing force multipliers to each branch of the military. By gaining a greater understanding of the different branches, I believe this understanding will help me in my career in the Space Force. Thanks to these opportunities to compete that few, if any, other Space Force cadets have received, I feel prepared to meet the Space Force’s emphasis,” Pugno said.
In addition to testing each shooter’s marksmanship abilities, the match’s six stages also demanded peak physical and mental performances from its participants.
“SIG is extremely mentally and physically rigorous, while still being a lot of fun. Going from training in Texas to competing in the below freezing temperatures, rain and snow in New Hampshire was not easy, but it was more than enjoyable,” Pugno explained.
“The competition required a level of athleticism, calling for us to lift and carry 60 pound sand bags, navigate obstacles and have the speed and agility to be a proficient shooter. Mentally, each stage required in-depth planning and performance under pressure when the clock was running. The stages require you to have expert level muzzle and trigger discipline, as well as expert level marksmanship and rifle and pistol manipulation.”
As a result of their dedication to mental, physical and technical readiness, the CCMU earned their second national title in less than a month at the competition. In addition to being crowned the overall champions of the seventh annual SIG SAUER Relentless Warrior Championship, the team also had five cadets place in the top ten individual shooters, with cadet Shiloh Lewis claiming first.
For members of the CCMU, it’s not simply about winning national championships. Members cite the community the unit has provided them as one of their favorite aspects of being a member of the Corps of Cadets.
“CCMU has been the heart of my Corps experience. With a high operations tempo year-round, we’re always training, pushing limits and competing. Every year, only about ten freshmen out of 100–200 applicants are selected, and not all of them make it all four years. The level of commitment it takes to stay on the team bonds us tighter than most friendships ever could. With only about 20 of us total, we know each other inside and out, to the point that we can predict each other's actions in competition and in life,” said Pugno.
“It's a privilege to contribute to Texas A&M’s legacy in such a unique way. Every title we bring home represents more than just a win—it’s the result of countless hours of training, sacrifice and dedication. To know that my teammates and I are leaving our mark on the university’s history is deeply rewarding. We’re proving, year after year, that Texas A&M is the best place in the country for developing elite, high-performing individuals—on and off the range.”
The CCMU is one of many smaller groups that thrive within the overarching Corps community. Similar to the larger Corps, the CCMU is home to cadets from a wide variety of life experiences, interests and goals. Using these differences to their advantage, cadets in the CCMU and all across the Quad work toward the Corps’ mission of developing well-educated leaders of character who are prepared for the global leadership challenges of the future.
If you are interested in helping the national champion Corps of Cadets Marksmanship Unit continue to provide community and premier leadership development opportunities to cadets, please contact Kelly Corcoran at the Texas A&M Foundation here.
