Stars and stripes at The Game
When alumna Danielle Thiriot ’07 returns for the Harvard-Yale game (aka The Game) on Saturday, she’ll have one of the best seats in the house. Above the house, in fact, and traveling at 300 knots, about 345 mph. The Navy lieutenant — call sign “Purple” — will be one of two pilots conducting a U.S. naval pregame flyover, immediately following the playing of the national anthem. Thiriot attended Harvard on an ROTC scholarship and was commissioned the day before she graduated from Harvard. “We’re able to do very dynamic flying, things nobody else can do,” said Thiriot, who will pilot an F/A-18E Super Hornet jet over Harvard Stadium. “I’m lucky to be able to do it. It’s one of the best jobs in the world.” In addition, Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus, who graduated from Harvard Law School with a J.D. in 1976, will attend the game. At halftime, the secretary will...