Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) Technician 1st Class Terry Sprinkle, from Goldsboro, North Carolina, and stationed with EOD Mobile Unit 12 at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek in Virginia Beach, participated in a static display at the Military Bowl game in Annapolis Dec. 28.

Sprinkle provided attendees of the Military Bowl an opportunity to get hands-on with robotics equipment, learn more about the Navy's EOD community, and even try on a bomb suit.

"I never knew about Navy EOD until I went to the recruiters," said Sprinkle. "This is a good way to get that knowledge out there, to let people know there is a job like this."

The Military Bowl, which has been held at the Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis since 2008, was originally organized by the DC Bowl Committee. It remains a significant fundraiser for the USO, providing that organization with more than $100,000 from this year's game and over $500,000 since the Military Bowl's inception. In an additional show of support, thousands of complimentary tickets to the game were made available to members of the Armed Forces and their families.

"It's fun," said Sprinkle, manning the display, which maintained steady lines throughout the event. "This gives folks a chance to see what we do and some of our equipment.

Hundreds of people were able to get hands-on with equipment before kickoff, trying a hand at driving a robot or putting on the bomb suit and helmet.

"It looked really interesting to me, looked kind of like a video game," said Jim Zinkhan, 15, who was at the game with family, and took the opportunity to drive the Talon robot. "I've done a little bit of robotics programming. It was really fun. It took a little bit of practice, but I finally got it. This sounds like a good thing to do in the future."

U.S. Navy EOD deploys to conduct EOD, mine countermeasure and diving operations for numbered fleet commanders and combatant commanders throughout the world.

For more news from Navy Expeditionary Combat Command , visit www.navy.mil/.