TEMPE, Ariz. -- As you walk through the main lobby of the recently completed Sun Devil Football Student-Athlete Facility, and pass the Alumni in the NFL wall, there is an American flag collage that immediately grabs your attention.

Making up the collage are headshots of former Sun Devil student-athletes and coaches who exchanged their Maroon and Gold uniform for one that represents the red, white and blue. Some you'd recognize, like Pat Tillman, Derrick Rodgers, Frank Kush and Bill Kajikawa, and others you might be surprised to find out represented both ASU and the USA.

Tommy Hudson will don the wall as well. If he has it his way, it won't be long before the headshot of redshirt senior tight endwill don the wall as well.

Hudson had been considering his career path after football since the first time he strapped on shoulder pads at Archbishop Mitty High School in San Jose, California.

"It all started when I was really little," Hudson said. "I've always wanted to be in the military."

When he was a young boy, Hudson became enthralled with a Discovery Channel special on the U.S. Army Special Forces Green Berets. Seeing grown men pushed to their absolute limits with the ability to still push forward has continued to inspire Hudson throughout his life and football career. The strength and determination displayed by the most alpha of males in that film caught the attention of a young perfectionist who strove to bend as far as possible without breaking.

Following one more season as a Sun Devil, Hudson's eligibility will be up, and he plans to join the U.S. Navy in hopes of becoming a Navy SEAL.

"I've always wanted to find my limits and I think the Navy SEAL training, that whole experience, is just like no other," Hudson said. "You find out what you're made of. If you're a quitter, if you're going to push yourself to the brink for your teammates, who you really are. Those true colors kind of show up and in football you get that a little bit, in the training and stuff, but I mean it's always going to be about an hour workout. It's close to what I'm looking for, but it's not even close to what I want it to be in terms of what I want to experience."

Hudson has had a college career filled with pushing sleds, running sprints, practicing in full pads, and countless grueling workouts. Many young men are content hanging up the cleats away for a full-time job and putting their degree to work with casual conversations at the water cooler.

Tommy is different.

"I used to think football players were tough," Hudson said. "I used to think people that lifted a bunch of weight and were screaming in the weigh troom were tough. Then you see a guy going through BUD/S school and he's getting drowned as he's swimming across a pool and doing boat circuits through the surf in Coronado. He was shivering and almost hypothermic and those guys are just pushing on. They're not getting million-dollar contracts and they're not getting huge endorsement deals from apparel companies and they're not getting huge Instagram followings. They're doing it because they're trying to find something in themselves or better themselves."

Some mothers would be wary of their son or daughter risking their lives as a SEAL. Chris Hudson, Tommy's mother, is not surprised by her son's decision.

"I think he feels like being in the military would be a gift. Just a way of giving back," said Chris. "I think he seeks that level of excellence and maybe he's afraid that if he gets into a corporation right away or something that he'll lose that edge. I think he wants to take advantage of that while he's young and strong."

What causes that aspiration to be the best? Where does the ability to push himself to the brink and continue fighting on come from?

"I think sports in general has really done it," said Chris. "That regiment, that constant striving, he just does so well with that. If you tell Tommy 'You can't do that', he will do it! He likes the challenge. It's a part of his makeup and sports have played so much into that."

In addition to his relentless attitude, Hudson exudes tremendous leadership qualities, especially inside the locker room and in preparation for the Sun Devils. As a fifth-year senior, the hybrid player who "does it all" spends much of his time teaching and encouraging the younger tight ends on the roster.

Donnie Yantis . "He wants to be the best at what he does. He's a young man that I think has earned the respect of his teammates, so when he does say something, I think it has value. "He wants to be great," said tight ends coach. "He wants to be the best at what he does. He's a young man that I think has earned the respect of his teammates, so when he does say something, I think it has value.

"He's definitely the leader of the room and he does a really good job of demonstrating that selfless attitude where if someone else is out there making a play at his position, he's praising them. I know that if I was in a foxhole, he's a guy that I would want next to me. If I was backed in a corner somewhere, he's a guy that I would want behind me…or in front of me."

With one season left in the maroon and gold, Hudson will be pushing himself to be an even better athlete while he continues to condition himself for life beyond the gridiron.

He feels he has been given every opportunity to be successful and live a carefree lifestyle wants to show how thankful he is to live in a country with those freedoms and privileges.

"It's easy to feel like you have a purpose when you're doing something that is bigger than yourself," Hudson said. "I never wanted to be one of those kids that would take an opportunity for granted. I think that's just a waste. All these kids here have one of the best opportunities in terms of the network you can create by being able to play college sports, and if you don't give back to the community somehow or you don't understand outreach and how blessed you are, I think it just gets wasted. I never want to see that in myself."

Tommy is different. He is taking his student-athlete experience, his college degree, his memories of Tempe and Frank Kush Field, and channeling them all toward his passion of serving a higher calling. And as he follows his path, he may just begin to change perceptions about how success is defined for college graduates.

"There's people out there risking it all and giving it up just because they love this country and they love the people they're leaving behind and they want to protect that," Hudson said. "There's other things you can do with your life. You have a long career. Five years is just another stint in college, it's just you're learning different things."