Rangers sweep the Army’s Best Squad and Best Soldier awards
Source: Task & Purpose
Loading...Strong SignalCredibility: 81%
Report Content
Five Army Rangers won all three awards in the 2026 Best Squad competition, a second clean sweep of the event by the Rangers in the last three events.
Cpl. Michael Shield was named the Army’s Soldier of the Year, and Staff Sgt. Colin Doyle as the Army’s non-commissioned officer of the year.
The two were members of a five-man squad from the 3rd Ranger Battalion at Fort Benning, Georgia, that won the service’s Best Squad competition, beating 12 others from major commands. The other members were Sgt. William Masters, Spc. William Schaeffer, and Spc. Marshall Garren.
The five were announced Monday as the 2026 winners by Sgt. Major of the Army Michael Weimer at the annual Association of the U.S. Army convention in Washington.
The Rangers beat teams from 11 other major Army commands in a week-long competition in September, with a litany of events that included timed ruck marches, marksmanship and weapons handling, medical scenarios and interviews with review boards
The team from 3rd Ranger Battalion qualified for the competition after being named the Army Special Operations Command top squad a month earlier.
The 2025 Best Squad competition was cancelled due to a government shutdown, but Rangers swept all three awards in 2023 and won the Best Squad in 2022. A team from Army Pacific won in 2024.
The post Rangers sweep the Army’s Best Squad and Best Soldier awards appeared first on Task & Purpose.
Classification
Region
North America
Analytical Domain
Tactical
Primary Category
Military Operations
SALUTE Report
Size
5 soldiers
Activity
Rangers won all three awards in the Best Squad competition
Location
Fort Benning · Georgia · United States
Unit
3rd Ranger Battalion, U.S. Army
Time
2026
Equipment
-
Summary
Five Army Rangers from the 3rd Ranger Battalion won all three awards in the 2026 Best Squad competition at Fort Benning, Georgia. Cpl. Michael Shield was named Soldier of the Year, and Staff Sgt. Colin Doyle was named non-commissioned officer of the year. The Rangers outperformed 12 other teams from major commands in a week-long competition held in September.
Key Facts
- Five Army Rangers won all three awards in the 2026 Best Squad competition.
- Cpl. Michael Shield was named the Army’s Soldier of the Year.
- Staff Sgt. Colin Doyle was named the Army’s non-commissioned officer of the year.
- The Rangers beat teams from 11 other major Army commands in a week-long competition.
- The 3rd Ranger Battalion qualified for the competition after being named the Army Special Operations Command top squad.