New Defense Secretary A Closet Online Football Chatterer

Robert Gates, as those of you who lower yourselves to pay attention to the world outside of sports might know, was confirmed by the U.S. Senate as the new Secretary of Defense, replacing Donald Rumsfeld, the Marty Mornhinweg of foreign policy. Gates was most recently president of Texas A&M University and has made no secret of his rabid love of Aggie football.

Well, maybe a little bit of a secret. Turns out that Gates has been posting on the TexAgs forum as "ranger65" over the last four years, tuning in and piping up on all matters Aggie football. Last night he came out of the message board closet.

Folks, as I just posted on another thread, it is time for true confessions as I prepare to depart Aggieland. Ranger 65 is Dr. Gates ('65 because that is my college class and Ranger because he's buried in my front yard). I have enjoyed reading you all for the past four and a half years — well, at least most of you. You are all hard core Aggies, and I have listened and paid more attention to you than you might imagine. Good luck to all of you in the future. Bob Gates

The administrators of the site did confirm it was Gates, who will no longer be posting on the site, considering, well, he has an unmitigated global disaster to deal with. Fun while it lasted, though!

Dr. Gates Breaks Cover [TexAgs.com]