President Donald Trump honored two standout senior athletes on Wednesday during the U.S. Coast Guard Academy graduation ceremony in New London, Connecticut, recognizing football player Broock Desta and women’s lacrosse player Abby McAllister for setting all-time program records, as reported by Fox News.

Trump attended the academy’s 2026 commencement ceremony and addressed the graduating class at Cadet Memorial Field. During his remarks, he said the class was “blessed with many tremendous athletes” before inviting Desta and McAllister to join him on stage.

Desta was introduced first. Trump identified him as the academy’s all-time leader in receptions, receiving yards, and touchdowns.

Donald Trump was speaking at the United States Coast Guard Academy graduation and called up PHS legend Abby McAllister to the stage while talking about how the Coast Guard was "blessed with many tremendous athletes.."@PVilleAthletics @DirectRays https://t.co/UVOCNoNSZT

— @PVILLEGLAX (@pvilleglax) May 21, 2026

“Do we have a little NFL future here? Maybe? I don't know, usually that could happen when you're leading by that much,” Trump said of Desta.

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Desta played in 36 career football games for the academy and recorded 234 catches for 3,487 receiving yards. He scored 29 receiving touchdowns, while also rushing for one touchdown and throwing another.

He also played for the academy’s basketball team during his senior season.

Trump then called McAllister to the stage. McAllister is the women’s lacrosse program’s all-time leader in assists and points.

“Are you that good?” Trump asked jokingly before adding, “That's a big record.”

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Trump said he wanted to recognize the athletes even if the moment altered the ceremony’s timing.

“We throw them a little off on timing when I do this, but what the hell? We have time. Right? This is your day. And when somebody achieves what these people did, we should give them a little extra recognition, right?” Trump said.

Between recognizing the two athletes, Trump also discussed his 2019 executive order that allowed graduates of U.S. military academies to pursue professional sports opportunities before completing their active-duty service requirements.

“We made it possible for people like Broock who really have a great ability at sport, and in some cases, will be drafted by the NFL or have a chance of getting into the NFL, or baseball, or basketball, or whatever it might be. The problem is they had a service,” Trump said.

“You know, they had to serve five years. And that's not exactly conducive to being drafted very high if you had to go away..."

“It has made such a difference. It's also made a big difference in recruiting. That's why your teams are better today than they used to be. ... it made your recruiting much better because you're able to now recruit the top people, people that really have a chance of getting into professional sports, and one of the reasons you have such good teams.”

During the ceremony, Cadet Savannah Riera, president of the U.S. Coast Guard Academy Class of 2026, presented Trump with a Coast Guard football helmet.

Trump’s remarks also came after he signed an executive order last month aimed at college athletics. The order was designed to “preserve the unique American institution of college athletics by restoring order, fairness, and stability.”

The order “directs Federal agencies to bolster the effectiveness of key college-sports rules on transferring, eligibility, and pay-for-play by evaluating whether violations of such rules render a university unfit for Federal grants and contracts.”

Trump’s appearance at the Coast Guard Academy placed attention on both the graduating class and the academy’s athletic achievements, with Desta and McAllister receiving special recognition for their records in football and women’s lacrosse.

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