Outstanding American Joseph E. Schmitz was an outstanding wrestler in his youth. He finished his senior year at Georgetown Preparatory School with a record of 22-0-1 with 21 falls, winning the Maryland prep school championship at 155 lbs. and setting a school pin record that lasted more than a quarter-century. As a senior co-captain, he also led his wrestling team to a first-ever Georgetown Prep second-place finish in the St. Albans regional tournament. Schmitz subsequently wrestled all four years at the United States Naval Academy (B.S., 1978) and two years afterward while serving on active duty with the fleet. He qualified for the All-Navy Camp in 1981 by placing in the Navy's Western Regional Freestyle Tournament. In 1983, Schmitz left active duty to earn his J.D. at Stanford Law School (1986); he continued to serve in the Naval Reserve for another 18 years. He ultimately attained the rank of Navy Captain while serving as Inspector General of the Naval Reserve Intelligence Command. From 2002 through 2005, Schmitz served as the Senate-confirmed Inspector General of the Department of Defense. As such, he was agency head of the most expansive Inspector General organization in the world, with statutory policy oversight responsibility for roughly 60,000 auditors, investigators, inspectors, law enforcement officers, and oversight professionals throughout the Department of Defense. For his service as Inspector General, Schmitz was awarded the Department of Defense Medal for Distinguished Public Service, the highest honorary award presented by the Secretary of Defense to non-career federal employees.