Upon the outbreak of World War II, each branch of the U.S. military faced the seemingly insurmountable challenge of providing enough officers to command the massive influx of new soldiers, sailors, and airmen necessary to fight the war. Adding to this problem was the increasingly specialized nature of warfare, which required men trained in engineering, languages, and other more esoteric disciplines. To alleviate this situation, the U.S. Navy established technical training schools at colleges and universities under the V-12 program. The V-12 program allowed officer candidates and sailors training for specialized service roles to enroll at colleges and complete a shortened course of study, eventually entering active service as junior grade officers. Georgia Tech, due to its focus on engineering, was selected as a V-12 school and Navy personnel enrolled as full students as part of this program. This allowed the Tech athletics program to have its pick of healthy, able-bodied men enrolled at the school, regardless of whether or not they had any prior college playing experience.