Jay Doerfler’s picture may never be on the cover of a Texas A&M souvenir football program. His name may never be tossed around among a list of Aggie football greats, but that’s fine with him; he has been able to experience A&M like almost nobody before him.
Doerfler, a senior from Georgetown, Texas, is the only A&M student who can call himself a football player, a member of the Corps of Cadets, an officer in a fraternity and a part-time university employee.
Five days a week, Doerfler’s schedule is busy from sunrise to after sunset, a schedule that typical college students rarely have.
“I definitely like being busy,” Doerfler said. “On my busy days I don’t have time to think about anything else except sticking to my schedule.”
Every Tuesday morning, Doerfler wakes up extra early to be at Duncan Dining Hall at 5:30 a.m., where he prepares breakfast five days a week. He gets off work in time to make it to his 8 a.m. Air Force class. Doerfler, an engineering technology major who is a member of Squadron 17 of the Corps of Cadets, attends class until noon.
At this point, he has only a two-hour window to run errands. During that time, Doerfler often gets work done for his fraternity, Brothers Under Christ, where he serves as pledge captain.
“I came to A&M to go into the Corps, but I heard about (Brothers Under Christ) and about the group of guys and how awesome they were. I knew I needed that to help me to grow spiritually,” he said.
At 2 p.m., Doerfler heads over to the Bright Football Complex to dress for football practice that normally lasts five hours. Football practice is Doerfler’s last commitment each day, and he is usually accompanied by fellow walk-on and long-time friend Trey Brooks.
The two grew up wanting to attend A&M and both dreamed of being a part of the Twelfth Man football tradition.
“(Doerfler and I) always talked about it, but never really believed we would actually do it,” Brooks said. “It was awesome when he made it because I thought high school had been our last time to play defense together. It’s definitely a lot sweeter being able to do it with him.”
Although Doerfler knows the odds are against him, he ultimately wants the honor of being the Twelfth man on the A&M kickoff team. He says that depends on how well he plays in spring practice and how much stronger he gets in the off-season. In other words, he would have to really turn the coaches’ heads for that to happen.
Yet, his satisfaction goes far beyond being a part of A&M’s football program.
“Football has been an amazing blessing,” Doerfler said. “I doubt I’ll ever play in a game, but I feel my purpose on the team is far greater than that. There’s a lot of guys on the team who need a good friend and a good influence and I think with God’s help I can be that influence.”
Recently, assistant coach Mark Tommerdahl talked with Doerfler about his role in the program. Doerfler was getting bored at the punter position and there were several talented players in front of him. So, the last few months he has been practicing as the scout team safety.
“You often hear the cliche, but (Doerfler) is a good program guy,” Tommerdahl said. “He’s the type of guy that you want in your program. You can tell that the entire A&M experience is important to him.”
Somewhere in the midst of his busy schedule, Doerfler often thinks about another dream he wants to make reality: flying.
“I’m going into the Air Force and will try to earn a pilot slot. Flying has been something I’ve wanted to do since I was young,” Doerfler said.
Most importantly, he said that without guidance through his religion, he would not have been able to earn these accomplishments.
“The main thing I’ve learned is just trusting in (God),” Doerfler said. “Every time someone asks me I tell them that there’s no way I can do it all. But God gives me the time, He gives me the know-how and He gives me the strength. There’s no way I can do it on my own.”