[Plumrodimus]

Seems to me he should have had the Corporal rank beforehand. I know they dropped all the Specialist ranks except E-4, but didn't know the Rangers still used the Specialist rank.

Yeah, I've wondered that myself since it mentions he was a team leader. I found the following at http://usmilitary.about.com/cs/armypromotions/a/armypromotions_2.htm which still makes me wonder why he wasn't a Corporal.

An E-4 can be either a "specialist" or a "corporal" in the Army. So, what's the difference? Well, they both get paid the same. However, a corporal is considered a noncommissioned officer and a specialist is not. A corporal has more authority under the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ), and has a greater degree of leadership responsibility. An E-4 is normally designated an NCO (corporal) if they are a team or section leader. Corporals are more common amongst the Combat Arms, but many Combat Support MOS's (jobs) may have them.

[SAMWolf]

Corporals are more common amongst the Combat Arms, but many Combat Support MOS's (jobs) may have them.

That was my understanding too