Army_Black_Knights_football

Army Black Knights football

Army Black Knights football

American athletic football program of the nation's army Military Academy

The Army Black Knights football team, historically known as the Army Cadets, represents the United States Military Academy in college football. Army is a Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The Black Knights play home games in Michie Stadium with a capacity of 38,000 at West Point, New York. The Black Knights are coached by Jeff Monken, who has held the position since 2014. Army claims three national championships from 1944 to 1946. In addition, major selectors have awarded Army championships in 1914 and 1916.[2] Army has produced 24 players and four coaches in the College Football Hall of Fame, 37 consensus All-Americans, and three Heisman Trophy winners.

Quick Facts First season, Athletic director ...

With the exception of seven seasons (1998–2004) where the team was a member of Conference USA, Army has competed as an independent, meaning that they had no affiliation with any conference. As of the 2023 college football season, Army was one of four FBS schools whose football teams do not belong to any conference, the others being the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, the UConn Huskies, and the UMass Minutemen. However, they will join the American Athletic Conference starting in 2024. For all other sports Army is primarily a member of the Patriot League.

Three players from Army have won the Heisman Trophy: Doc Blanchard (1945), Glenn Davis (1946), and Pete Dawkins (1958).[3]

Army competes with their historic rivals Navy in the Army–Navy Game, traditionally the final game of the college football regular season. The three major service academies—Army, Navy, and Air Force—compete for the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy; Army has won the award ten times, most recently in 2023.

History

See also: List of Army Black Knights football seasons and 1946 Army vs. Notre Dame football game

Army's football program began on November 29, 1890, when Navy challenged the cadets to a game of the relatively new sport. Navy defeated Army at West Point that year, but Army avenged the loss in Annapolis the following year.[4] The academies still clash every December in what is traditionally the last regular-season Division I college-football game.

Army's football team reached its pinnacle of success during the Second World War under coach Earl Blaik when Army won three consecutive national championships in 1944, 1945 and 1946, and produced two Heisman trophy winners: Doc Blanchard (1945), Glenn Davis (1946). From 1944 to 1950, the Cadets had 57 wins, 3 losses and 4 ties. During this time span, Army won three national championships.[5] Army produced a third heisman trophy winner in 1958 when Pete Dawkins took the honors.[6]

Past NFL coaches Vince Lombardi[7] and Bill Parcells[8] were Army assistant coaches early in their careers.

The football team plays its home games at Michie Stadium, where the playing field is named after Earl Blaik. Cadets' attendance is mandatory at football games and the Corps stands for the duration of the game. At all home games, one of the four regiments marches onto the field in formation before the team takes the field and leads the crowd in traditional Army cheers. Two of the regiments are tasked with performing the morning parade while the last regiment is tasked with ancillary stadium duties.[9]

For many years, Army teams were known as the "Cadets." In the 1940s, several papers called the football team "the Black Knights of the Hudson." From then on, "Cadets" and "Black Knights" were used interchangeably until 1999, when the team was officially nicknamed the Black Knights. Individual cadets as well as groups of cadets to include the entire team are still often referred to as "Cadet" or "The Cadets" with regard to athletic events.

Between the 1998 and 2004 seasons, Army's football program was a member of Conference USA, but starting with the 2005 season Army reverted to its former independent status.[10] Army competes with Navy and Air Force for the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy. In 2024, Army began competing in the American Athletic Conference. While Air Force competes in a separate conference, Navy also competes in the AAC. The regular season matchup between Army and Navy is competed as a non-conference matchup after the conference championship game and therefore does not affect conference standings.

National championships

Army has won five national championships from NCAA-designated major selectors.[11]: 108–115  Army claims the 1944, 1945, and 1946 titles.[12] In addition, Army was selected by four major selectors in 1914 and one major selector in 1916. Charles Daly was the head coach of both teams.

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Lambert Trophy

The Lambert-Meadowlands Trophy (known as the Lambert Trophy), established in 1936, is an annual award given to the best team in the East in Division I FBS (formerly I-A) college football and is presented by the Metropolitan New York Football Writers. Army has won the Lambert Trophy nine times; seven times under head coach Earl "Red" Blaik in the 1940s and 1950s, and twice under head coach Jeff Monken in 2018 and 2020.[13][14]

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Bowl games

Army has played in ten bowl games. They have a record of 7–3.

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Future bowl tie-ins

The NCAA's football oversight committee determined the number of primary bowl tie-ins for each FBS conference and FBS independent for the 2020–2025 bowl cycle using eligibility data from the 2014–2017 seasons.[15] The Black Knights received one guaranteed tie-in per year. On October 24, 2019, the West Point Athletic Department announced that they had agreed to a contract that placed their team, if eligible, in the Independence Bowl for three of the six years, with the remaining years being contracted to an ESPN Events-owned bowl.[16][17]

The contract includes a clause that allows Army the ability to accept a bid from a different bowl game once during the three-year agreement with the Independence Bowl and once during the three-year agreement with ESPN Events. Aligning with this, on November 5 Army announced that it had agreed to a secondary contractual tie-in with the Duke's Mayo Bowl.[18] It agreed that it would serve as the primary backup for the bowl and would have the opportunity to accept an invitation to the game twice during the six-year cycle. The Duke's Mayo Bowl's primary tie-ins for the 2020–2025 cycle are the ACC (all years), the SEC (odd years), and the Big Ten (even years); if any of those conferences were unable to place a team into the bowl during any of those years, Army would be extended an invitation to fill their place. The opponent conferences for the Independence Bowl were announced to be the Pac-12 and the American on January 30, 2020.[19][20]

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The Duke's Mayo Bowl can extend an invitation to Army once during the even years (2020, 2022, 2026) and once during the odd years (2021, 2023, 2025) to fill a vacancy as part of a secondary tie-in.

ESPN Events operates the following 16 bowls that Army could be invited to during odd years of the cycle:

Head coaches

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† Dennis Michie coached 1 game in 1890, and then coached a full season in 1892.

Rivalries

Commander-in-Chief's Trophy

Main article: Commander-in-Chief's Trophy

Air Force, Army, and Navy have played each other every year since 1972 for the Commander-in Chief's Trophy. Air Force leads the FBS service academies with 21 victories, Navy has 16 victories, and Army has 10 victories, with the trophy being shared 5 times. Army is the current holder of the trophy.

Air Force

Air Force and Army meet annually and vie for the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy. Air Force leads Army 38–19–1 through the 2023 season.[21] In a shocking upset Army defeated Air Force on November 4, 2023, in Denver at Empower Field. Air Force was nationally ranked and undefeated going into the game. Army prevailed 23–3.[22]

After the Navy–Notre Dame game was canceled in 2020, the Army–Air Force game became the longest uninterrupted intersectional rivalry in college football.

Main article: Army–Navy Game

Army and Navy play each other annually in the Army–Navy game, which is also a part of the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy. This series is one of the oldest and traditional rivalries in the NCAA. They first met in 1890, and have played each other annually since 1930. The games are generally played at a neutral site. Navy leads the series 62–55–7 through the 2023 season.[23]

Notre Dame

Main article: Army–Notre Dame football rivalry
See also: 1946 Army vs. Notre Dame football game

Notre Dame is a rivalry which some feel [according to whom?] has fallen into obscurity. In much of the early 20th century, Army and Notre Dame were considered football powerhouses, and met 34 times between 1913 and 1947. Though the rivalry has slowed down, they last met in 2016. Many media members considered the 1946 contest to be the "Game of the Century".[24] Notre Dame leads the series 39–8–4 through the 2018 season.[25]

Michie Stadium

Main article: Michie Stadium

Michie Stadium, which opened in 1924, is the home stadium of the Army Black Knights in West Point, New York. The stadium is named after the first Army football head coach, Dennis Michie. In 1999, the field was renamed Blaik Field at Michie Stadium in honor of former coach Earl Blaik.

In 1999, Sports Illustrated ranked Michie Stadium the third-best sports venue of the 20th century.[26]

Traditions

Songs

Main article: On, Brave Old Army Team

Alma Mater is the Army's school song. Army's fight song is "On, Brave Old Army Team". Army also plays other organized cheers; Army Rocket Yell, Black, Gold, and Gray, and USMA Cheer.[27]

Mascot

Main article: Army Mules

Army's mascots are the Army Mules. While dating back to 1899, they were officially adopted as mascots by USMA in 1936.[28]

College Football Hall of Fame

Main article: College Football Hall of Fame

The following 4 individuals have been inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame as coaches.

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The following 24 individuals have been inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame as players. Daly and McEwan also served as Army's head coach.

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Other notable players

Main article: Army Black Knights football statistical leaders

President of the United States and General of the Army Dwight D. Eisenhower and General of the Army Omar Bradley were on the 1912 Army football team. Eisenhower was injured and his football career was over by 1913, when the two future generals were juniors. Bradley, a star of the Army baseball team for four years, was on the field in 1913 when Notre Dame upset Army in a historic college football game in which the forward pass was used for the first time. Bradley played end opposite the legendary Knute Rockne, the Notre Dame end who later coached the Irish to national championships before dying in a plane crash near Bazaar, Kansas, on Easter Friday in 1931.

Retired numbers

See also: List of NCAA football retired numbers
Pete Dawkins (right) and Doc Blanchard, two of the players who have their numbers retired by Army
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Award winners

Doc Blanchard – 1945
Glenn Davis – 1946
Pete Dawkins – 1958
Earl Blaik – 1946
Tom Cahill – 1966
Tom Cahill – 1966
Bob Sutton – 1996
Jeff Monken – 2018[31]
  • Vince Lombardi College Football Coach of the Year
Jeff Monken – 2018[32]
Jeff Monken – 2018[33]
  • ECAC Division I FBS Football Coach of the Year
Jeff Monken – 2021[34]
Glenn Davis – 1944
Doc Blanchard – 1945
Pete Dawkins – 1958
Joe Steffy – 1947
Andrew Rodriguez – 2011[35]
Doc Blanchard 1945
Arnold Tucker 1946
Andrew Rodriguez – 2011[36]
Andrew King – 2016[37]
Arik Smith – 2021[38][39]

Future schedules

Schedules as of September 21, 2023.[40]

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  1. At FedExField, Landover, MD
  2. At M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore, MD
  3. At MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, NJ
  4. At Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia, PA
  5. At TBD

Army has games against Tulsa in 2025 and BYU in 2032 with dates yet to be announced.

Radio

Radio rights are held by Learfield through Army West Point Sports Properties, a joint venture with the USMA, and are branded on-air as the "Army Sports Network from Learfield". Pamal Broadcasting-owned WGHQ in Kingston, New York serves as the network's flagship station.

Former affiliates (1 station)

Current broadcast team

Army Sports Network
  • Rich DeMarco (play-by-play)
  • Dean Darling (color analyst)
  • Tony Morino (sideline reporter)
  • Joe Beckerle (pre and post-game)

See also

References

  1. [1]
    Army Brand Guidelines (PDF). April 13, 2015. Retrieved June 28, 2020.
  2. [2]
    "2021 Army Black Knights Media Guide" (PDF). Army West Point. pp. 89–91. Retrieved January 11, 2022.
  3. [3]
    "Heisman Winners". The Heisman Trophy. Archived from the original on December 9, 2007. Retrieved 4 November 2012.
  4. [4]
    Ambrose (1966), pp. 305–06.
  5. [5]
    When Pride Still Mattered, David Maraniss, p. 135, Simon & Schuster Paperbacks, New York, NY, 1999, ISBN 978-0-684-84418-3
  6. [6]
    "Trophy Winners". The Heisman Trophy. Archived from the original on December 18, 2008. Retrieved 31 December 2008.
  7. [7]
    "Biography". Official Website of Vince Lombardi. Archived from the original on 30 December 2008. Retrieved 31 December 2008.
  8. [8]
    Biggane, Brian (15 November 2008). "Bill Parcells is Dolphins' Godfather". Palm Beach Post. Retrieved 25 January 2009.
  9. [9]
    Palka (2008), p. 197.
  10. [10]
    "Army Football to Leave Conference USA After 2004 Season". The Official Website of Conference USA. Archived from the original on 15 February 2012. Retrieved 23 January 2009.
  11. [11]
    2018 NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records (PDF). The National Collegiate Athletic Association. Retrieved August 27, 2018.
  12. [12]
    "2018 Army West Point Football Media Guide" (PDF). Army Athletics. pp. 73–75. Retrieved 28 August 2018.
  13. [13]
    "ECAC Announces 2018 Football Teams of the Year and Lambert Awards". ECACsports.com. January 15, 2019. Retrieved January 15, 2019.
  14. [14]
    "ECAC Announces 2020 and 2019 Lambert Awards". ECACsports.com. June 18, 2021. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
  15. [15]
    "SEC, ACC lead NCAA's bowl tie-in list with 11 out of 79 total". ESPN. June 13, 2018. Retrieved October 25, 2019.
  16. [16]
    "Army Announces Agreements with ESPN Events and Independence Bowl for Next Bowl Cycle". USMA Athletic Department. October 24, 2019. Retrieved October 25, 2019.
  17. [17]
    "Army West Point to be Featured in Independence Bowl's Next Bowl Cycle". Independence Bowl. October 24, 2019. Retrieved October 25, 2019.
  18. [18]
    "Army Reaches Deal with Belk Bowl from 2020–25". USMA Athletic Department. November 5, 2019. Retrieved November 5, 2019.
  19. [19]
    "Independence Bowl Conference Affiliations Announced". USMA Athletic Department. January 30, 2020. Retrieved February 1, 2020.
  20. [20]
    "Independence Bowl Ushers in New Era with 2020–2025 Bowl Agreements". Independence Bowl. January 30, 2020. Retrieved February 1, 2020.
  21. [21]
    "Winsipedia – Army Black Knights vs. Air Force Falcons football series history". Winsipedia.
  22. [22]
    "Army 23-3 Air Force (Nov 4, 2023) Game Recap".
  23. [23]
    "Winsipedia – Army Black Knights vs. Navy Midshipmen football series history". Winsipedia.
  24. [24]
    Boston College Even with Irish in Yardage, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, November 13, 1946.
  25. [25]
    "Winsipedia – Army Black Knights vs. Notre Dame Fighting Irish football series history". Winsipedia.
  26. [26]
    "Century's Best – SI's Top 20 Venues of the 20th Century". Sports Illustrated. 1999-06-07. Archived from the original on 2007-05-12. Retrieved 2010-01-09.
  27. [27]
    "> Alma Mater & Fight Songs". Army West Point website.
  28. [28]
    "Army Mules". USMA Athletic Department. Retrieved 10 Feb 2020.
  29. [29]
    Uniform numbers have special meaning for Army football players by SAL INTERDONATO. 18 Oct 2012
  30. [30]
    Army Retired Jerseys at Goarmy.com
  31. [31]
    "Maxwell Football Club Announces Army West Point's Jeff Monken as George Munger Collegiate Coach of the Year" (Press release). Maxwell Football Club. January 3, 2019. Archived from the original on January 4, 2019. Retrieved January 3, 2019.
  32. [32]
    "Monken Recognized as the Lombardi Coach of Year". USMA Athletic Department. January 8, 2019. Retrieved January 8, 2019.
  33. [33]
    "Army Head Coach Jeff Monken Wins 2018 President's Award". Touchdown Club of Columbus. January 4, 2019. Retrieved January 6, 2019.[permanent dead link]
  34. [34]
    "ECAC Announces 2021 Division I FBS Football All-ECAC and Major Awards". ECACsports.com. December 21, 2021. Retrieved December 23, 2021.
  35. [35]
    "Rodriguez Wins 2011 William V. Campbell Trophy". USMA Athletic Department. December 6, 2011. Archived from the original on January 9, 2019. Retrieved January 8, 2019.
  36. [36]
    "Andrew Rodriguez Wins Sullivan Award". USMA Athletic Department. March 20, 2012. Archived from the original on January 9, 2019. Retrieved January 8, 2019.
  37. [37]
    "King Honored with Defender of the Nation Award". USMA Athletic Department. November 8, 2016. Retrieved January 8, 2019.
  38. [38]
    "Army Linebacker Arik Smith Named as the 2021 Defender of the Nation". USMA Athletic Department. November 4, 2021. Retrieved December 7, 2021.
  39. [39]
    "Army West Point's Arik Smith to be honored at December 6th Bronko Nagurski Awards Banquet". Charlotte Touchdown Club. November 4, 2021. Retrieved December 7, 2021.
  40. [40]
    "Army Black Knights Future Football Schedules". FBSchedules.com. Retrieved September 21, 2023.

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