ERIK LARSEN is an eight year veteran of the U.S. Army, serving in a variety of roles that included a ranger infantryman as well as a recruiting NCO.
Erik was born and raised in a small town in South Dakota, where he enlisted in the U.S. Army immediately after high school. He completed Infantry OSUT, the Basic Airborne Course, and the Ranger Indoctrination Program before being assigned to 1st Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment. While at 1/75, he served in a variety of positions and deployed to both Iraq and Afghanistan on multiple occasions.
After his fifth deployment, Erik volunteered for recruiting duty and was assigned to the Syracuse recruiting battalion as a recruiting NCO. While on recruiting duty, he ran a program specifically for those wanting to join the ranks of the 75th Ranger Regiment, as well as other SOF units, and developed a study guide for them that formed the basis for Ranger Knowledge.
Erik is currently the owner of Blackside Concepts and is working towards his bachelors of science in business administration.
JACK MURPHY is an eight-year Army Special Operations veteran who served as a sniper and team leader in 3rd Ranger Battalion and as a senior weapons sergeant on a military free fall team in 5th Special Forces Group.
Growing up in New York, Jack enlisted in the U.S. Army at age nineteen. Completing Infantry Basic Training, Airborne School, and the Ranger Indoctrination Program, he was assigned to 3rd Ranger Battalion. As a Ranger, he served as an anti-tank gunner, sniper, and team leader, and he graduated from Ranger School and Sniper School.
After several deployments to Afghanistan and Iraq, he attended the Special Forces Assessment and Selection course and was selected as a special forces weapons sergeant. Over a year was spent training in the Special Forces Qualification Course, including further weapons training, SERE School, language training, and more.
Assigned as the senior weapons sergeant on a military free fall team in 5th Special Forces Group, Murphy was again sent to numerous schools and training courses before being deployed to Iraq. Acting as the senior trainer and adviser to an Iraqi SWAT team, his Special Forces team conducted Direct Action and other missions across northern Iraq.
After leaving the military in 2010, he is now working towards a degree in political science at Columbia University.
Murphy is the author of Reflexive Fire, Target Deck, and the PROMIS series. As an author and managing editor for SOFREP.com, he has written numerous nonfiction articles about weapons, tactics, special operations, terrorism, and counter-terrorism. He has appeared in documentaries, on national television, and on syndicated radio as it relates to military current affairs.
SOFREP.com is the #1 site on the Internet for news and information as it relates to the Special Operations and Intelligence community. In a very short time, SOFREP has become a legitimate source of alternative non partisan news media. The editors of SOFREP are from the US military Special Operations and Intelligence communities, and most have over a decade of operational experience that sets them apart from typical journalists.
ERIK LARSEN is an eight year veteran of the U.S. Army, serving in a variety of roles that included a ranger infantryman as well as a recruiting NCO.
Erik was born and raised in a small town in South Dakota, where he enlisted in the U.S. Army immediately after high school. He completed Infantry OSUT, the Basic Airborne Course, and the Ranger Indoctrination Program before being assigned to 1st Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment. While at 1/75, he served in a variety of positions and deployed to both Iraq and Afghanistan on multiple occasions.
After his fifth deployment, Erik volunteered for recruiting duty and was assigned to the Syracuse recruiting battalion as a recruiting NCO. While on recruiting duty, he ran a program specifically for those wanting to join the ranks of the 75th Ranger Regiment, as well as other SOF units, and developed a study guide for them that formed the basis for Ranger Knowledge.
Erik is currently the owner of Blackside Concepts and is working towards his bachelors of science in business administration.
JACK MURPHY is an eight-year Army Special Operations veteran who served as a sniper and team leader in 3rd Ranger Battalion and as a senior weapons sergeant on a military free fall team in 5th Special Forces Group.
Growing up in New York, Jack enlisted in the U.S. Army at age nineteen. Completing Infantry Basic Training, Airborne School, and the Ranger Indoctrination Program, he was assigned to 3rd Ranger Battalion. As a Ranger, he served as an anti-tank gunner, sniper, and team leader, and he graduated from Ranger School and Sniper School.
After several deployments to Afghanistan and Iraq, he attended the Special Forces Assessment and Selection course and was selected as a special forces weapons sergeant. Over a year was spent training in the Special Forces Qualification Course, including further weapons training, SERE School, language training, and more.
Assigned as the senior weapons sergeant on a military free fall team in 5th Special Forces Group, Murphy was again sent to numerous schools and training courses before being deployed to Iraq. Acting as the senior trainer and adviser to an Iraqi SWAT team, his Special Forces team conducted Direct Action and other missions across northern Iraq.
After leaving the military in 2010, he is now working towards a degree in political science at Columbia University.
Murphy is the author of Reflexive Fire, Target Deck, and the PROMIS series. As an author and managing editor for SOFREP.com, he has written numerous nonfiction articles about weapons, tactics, special operations, terrorism, and counter-terrorism. He has appeared in documentaries, on national television, and on syndicated radio as it relates to military current affairs.
BRANDON WEBB
is a former U.S. Navy SEAL; his last assignment with the SEALs was Course Manager for the elite SEAL Sniper Course, where he was instrumental in developing new curricula that trained some of the most accomplished snipers of the twenty-first century. Webb has received numerous distinguished service awards, including the Presidential Unit Citation and the Navy Commendation Medal with a “V” for “Valor,” for his platoon’s deployment to Afghanistan following the September 11 attacks. He is editor for Military.com’s blog Kit Up, SOFREP’s Editor in Chief, and a frequent national media commentator on snipers and related Special Operations Forces military issues.