Seventy-six delayed entry program recruits swore into the Air Force before a crowd of 70,000 at a San Francisco 49ers game here Nov. 6.

The recruits -- some traveled 100 miles to the Monster Park football field -- enlisted through the 364th Recruiting Squadron out of Sacramento, Calif.

The annual swear-in started in 2004, when 49ers entertainment director Lorie Murphy jumped at the chance to beef up the team’s Military Appreciation Game halftime show.

“The crowd response was overwhelming,” Ms. Murphy said. “The event captivated the entire halftime show -– the response was as loud as when the team scores a game-winning touchdown.”

“Overwhelming” was also the word used by David Stivers, a recruit enlisting through the recruiting flight in Novato, Calif. A 26-year-old college graduate, Mr. Stivers been in the civilian work force for almost 10 years.

Mr. Stivers is enlisting for the camaraderie, discipline and “endless possibilities” he sees in the Air Force. The appreciation he and his fellow recruits received at the 49ers game confirmed his Air Force pride and convinced him that he’s making the right decision to enlist.

“The applause and standing ovations from the crowd made me very happy,” he said. “The crowd was completely supportive.”

In addition to the swear-in, the halftime show featured a ceremony for 61 Purple Heart recipients who served in Iraq, Afghanistan, Vietnam, Korea and World War II. A joint-service color guard also presented the colors while a student choir from the Defense Language Institute in Monterey, Calif., sang the National Anthem.

Maj. Gen. Gilmary Michael Hostage III swore in the enlistees. He is the director of operations at Air Education and Training Command at Randolph Air Force Base, Texas.