US Army Golden Knights practice skydives

US Army parachute team trains at Air Force Reserve Base in Homestead

HOMESTEAD, Fla. ā€“ You've seen their tricks on television or at an air show, but you may have never seen the Army Golden Knights quite like this.

The Air Force Reserve Base in Homestead serves as the U.S. Army parachute team's winter home.

The Golden Knights recently took Local 10's MJ Acosta along as the rookies practiced their very first stadium jump at Sun Life Stadium.

The mission of the Army Golden Knights is to connect the American public to the Army. One of the most popular ways to do that is by jumping into the middle of a stadium before a game.

"It's nice to be able to land and walk around the crowd and for the first time, some people get to shake the hand of a soldier and say, 'Thank you,'" said Staff Sergeant Kevin Presgraves.

Presgraves was the first to jump to make sure the conditions were right for the rest of his team.

"When I left the plane, I looked up and I saw you and went, 'Oh, my, God!' I read your lips from outside of the plane," said Presgraves. "I told everyone down on the ground, it was a little more intense for her to see someone step out of the plane as quickly as it happened."

Acosta said she now knows what it feels like to be up at 12,000 feet, but said that it's nothing compared to what the Golden Knights did.

The Golden Knights stayed calm, cool and collected, but they still get butterflies despite being professionals.

"Doing that jump into the stadium felt like it could have been my first jump ever," said Sergeant Blake Gaynor. "Just a whole awesome experience and a new world of flying a parachute.