Force Recon

[hart]

I'm trying to get some good info on Force Recon. I know someone who has been in the MC for about 1 3/4 years. He graduated from college and then went to Quantico for officer training. I recently saw him for the first time since he joined the Corps and he says that he is now Force Recon. Another friend of mine says it's unlikely that the guy is actually Force Recon yet but is likely a member of a Recon Battalion which is a totally different thing. My questions to anybody here who would know:

1)does Force Recon have a patch/badge they wear like the SEAL's Trident or the Army SF and Ranger tabs? If not why not?

2)does Force Recon have a training pipeline like the Navy and Army do where each SF candidate must finish a "basic" SF training course before going through advanced SF training. The Navy has BUDS and the Army has the SF A course and Ranger school. If the Marine Corps doesn't have similar "basic" training (over and above Paris Island or Quantico) for their SF guys why not?

3)do you think it's possible that this guy could have completed officer training and Force Recon training in approximately 1 3/4 years?

Thanks in advance.