Army Football

Many of the Black Knights will be home for Thanksgiving this weekend, undoubtedly a beneficial break for the players and cadets.  They will return to West Point next week to begin two weeks of preparation for the Dec.10 Navy game at Fed Ex Field in Washington, D.C. 

Half the challenge will be keeping focused amid all the attention the Army-Navy game receives.

Army goes into game preparations uncertain of who their quarterback will be. 

Junior Trent Steelman played briefly against Temple before injuring his right knee.  It was his first game back since suffering a high ankle sprain on Oct. 22 against Vanderbilt.  Previously, the Bowling Green, Ky., native had started 32 straight games for Army—every game since the first one of his freshman year. 

After the 42-14 loss to Temple, I was on the field taking photos of the players during the singing of the alma mater and walked off the gridiron just behind Steelman and fellow junior fullback Jared Hassin.  The quarterback was noticeably favoring his right leg, which might have even been in a brace.  This is not a good indication that he will be available for Navy. 

Steelman has three weeks to get better.  He is passionate about playing, but being ready to start might be too much to ask given his prior injury this season.  He has already had two surgeries since coming to West Point.  The Army training staff is cautious about letting players back in action if they are not ready.

After the Temple game, coach Rich Ellerson addressed the media, commenting that freshman quarterback Angel Santiago had not had enough preparation for the game since most of the practice repetitions were given to Steelman.  On the game, Santiago ran six times for 11 yards, and threw four times with one completion for seven yards. 

And it is worth noting that one long Santiago pass near the end of the half might easily have been caught at the goal line by sophomore wide receiver Anthony Stephens. The coaches like the quickness that the freshman QB brings to the Army option offense. 

If Steelman can not play, starting a freshman at Fed Ex Field in front of 85,000 people might be a risky thing to do.  Army has a habit of making mistakes early that put them behind. 

That leaves senior Max Jenkins as the possible starter at quarterback against Navy.  Jenkins is the Deputy Brigade Commander of the Corps of Cadets, which means he is number two in the chain of command that runs life for the cadets at West Point. 

Jenkins was the starter for the shutout win over Fordham in the snow, and against Air Force at Colorado Springs where the team played well in the first half.  He is a player everyone around the football program respects and looks to for direction.  He has been through the Army-Navy experience before and knows what to do.

Comparing statistics, Santiago and Jenkins are similar.  Santiago, who started against Rutgers, has run the ball himself 45 times for 184 yards and an average of 3.6 yards per carry, and one touchdown.  

The coaching staff appears to keep the play calling limited with Santiago in the game.  He frequently hands the ball to one of the fullbacks for a dive play up the middle, or runs the ball himself around the end rather than risking a pitch out to one of the slot-backs.  The native of Fontana, Calif., has completed seven of 21 passes without one interception. 

Jenkins, on the other hand, has run 33 times for 128 yards—an average of 3.6 yards per carry and two touchdowns.  He appears most comfortable in getting the ball to the backs in the Army option backfield or running the ball himself in short yardage situations.  Just don't ask him to run around the defense himself.  On passing,  Jenkins completed only six of 31 passes for two touchdowns and two interceptions.   

But, the Houston native is cool under pressure, just what you would expect from a prospective Army officer.  After games he is very honest in speaking about what happened.  Jenkins is a leader and a stand-up guy.

We spoke to him about the upcoming Navy game, which will be his last wearing the Army colors.

"Its the biggest game of our year, " Jenkins said.  "We haven't been looking at it too much because you can not afford to do that.  We have to forget this Temple game and focus on beating Navy because, at the end of the day,  that will somewhat salvage the season if we can pull that one off."

At times Army has been playing three freshmen up the middle on offense with Santiago at quarterback, Ryan Powis at center, and Larry Dixon at fullback.  Powis has received praise from coach Ellerson, who is not afraid to play young guys who show they can contribute right away and have potential for the future. 

Dixon, from Bremerton, Wash., is Army's fourth leading ground gainer behind Ray Maples, Steelman, and Malcolm Brown.  On the season, Dixon has 477 yards on 77 attempts—an average of 6.2 yards per rush and five touchdowns.  

After the Temple game, I caught up with Steve Erzinger.

"I don't think it will be hard to get everyone to focus on this game, especially after just playing a quality opponent like Temple," Erzinger said.  "We have three weeks off to get everyone healthy, get everyone right.  I think it is always special to get an opportunity to play those guys; it's a tough environment.  No matter what the records are, it is always a good game."

You can hear our complete post-Temple game interviews with Jenkins, Erzinger, junior defensive back Josh Jackson, and junior defensive tackle A.J. Mackey here.

Army Notes: Mark Holtzman, executive director of the Pinstripe Bowl for the New York Yankees, spoke on the Army Radio Network prior to the Rutgers game and mentioned serious discussions about scheduling another Army-Notre Dame game at Yankee Stadium, using the words "sooner than later" to describe when the game might happen.

Sal Interdinato of the Times-Herald Record, talked about the ongoing Notre Dame scheduling discussion with Army Senior Executive Associate Athletic Director Roberta Beretta, who said, "We are talking about a three-game series with them and we are only talking to teams that want to play us at Michie." 

Sounds like the discussions are pointing toward one game at Yankee Stadium, one game at Michie Stadium and one game at Notre Dame.  All of those games would be special days to look forward to.  You can read the entire article here.

As we celebrate this special American holiday, we remember those in the US military who are serving away from their homes and families, perhaps in a distant part of the world, or at sea on a Navy ship.  Enjoy the holiday where ever you are.  And thank you for your service.

Happy Thanksgiving to all. 

Ken Kraetzer covers West Point football and Iona College basketball for WVOX radio in New Rochelle, N.Y., and Sons of the American Legion radio.

At Thursday night's "This Week in Army Football Radio Show" held at West Point's First Class Club, head coach Rich Ellerson hinted that junior quarterback Trent Steelman might be back in action on Saturday. Steelman has not played since the October 22 Vanderbilt game, when he suffered a high ankle sprain. Otherwise expect to see freshman Angel Santiago lead the Army offense. 

Coach Ellerson said Steelman "had practiced" and that he is "hoping Trent's back." In past weeks, Ellerson had said that Steelman would need to be able to practice on Wednesday in order to play on Saturday.

Last week at Yankee Stadium, I watched Steelman long toss with Max Jenkins and test his footwork. He looked a bit careful but comfortable. I will not be surprised to see No. 8 run out on the field with the Black Knight offense. 

Steelman's presence in the lineup would be a lift to Army, which has lost two straight games to Air Force and Rutgers. Both games were opportunities for the Black Knights to win but second half mistakes caused them lose control of both contests. Ellerson detailed what Angel Santiago brings to the offense versus the experience in decision making that Max Jenkins would provide:

We absolutely need the quarterback's legs. They require those legs to be evident, and Angel's got better feet than Max. Max makes great decisions and Max has got a million reps and I trust Max implicitly. What I really didn't know was how Angel would handle all that. I don't know that I could imagine him handling it any better than he did as a competitor. I'm especially pleased with how he threw the ball.

Obviously, he's one of those guys who is very, very comfortable playing the game of football. You put the ball in his hands and surround him with the football team and he's in his element. I'm not surprised, but I'm pleased that that's the way it looks.

Steve Addazio, comes in as head coach for Temple, after the departure of Al Golden to Miami. In five seasons, Golden had taken Temple from 1-11 to 8-4 last season. Previously, he had been the offensive coordinator at Florida.

So far Addazio has the Owls at 6-4 with a signature 38-7 win at Maryland, a dominating 42-0 win at Ball State and a 34-0 home win over Buffalo. They held Penn State to 14 points in a close loss at Lincoln Financial Field on September 17. Temple comes off 24-21 home win over Miami of Ohio on November 9.

This is Army's fourth game traveling to the Mid-America Conference. So far they have lost 49-26 at Northern Illinois, 48-21 at Ball State and 35-28 at Miami of Ohio. The challenge has been defense and turnovers.

At his Tuesday press conference, Ellerson described the challenge of playing another good team that is already eligible for a bowl:

"Temple's another real challenge. They've already gotten themselves bowl eligible. They're a very, very physical, very veteran offensive football team, particularly on the run side. The quarterback's legs - (Chris) Coyer is really something. Obviously, the running backs we've seen in the past, (Bernard) Pierce and (Matt) Brown."

The Owls average 254 yards per game rushing the ball, eight best in the NCAA. Much of that comes from junior tailback Bernard Pierce, who is averaging 115 rushing yards per game, 13th-best in the NCAA and best in the MAC. Junior Matt Brown is averaging 70 yards per game while also be a threat on kickoff and punt returns. Ellerson continued about the Temple offense:

They have a senior, veteran, physical offensive line that's been really productive for them, and had their way with us a year ago. Defensively, they've just put some tremendous numbers up this year. You look at them a little bit like you look at Rutgers, except you can't watch them defend the option, so you have to prepare very generically. They're a big, athletic outfit that has put some really impressive numbers up this year. So, we've got our work cut out for us.

 Coach Ellerson talked about his own team in reassuring terms:

They're so resilient. They're excited to play. They've got their heads down. They're playing hard. They're trying to stay in the moment and win the next fight, and they're giving themselves a chance.

That speaks, I think, to that internal leadership that they have. Those guys aren't letting the record talk them out of having fun, talk them out of competing, talk them out of trying to get better. They're doing all those things. I couldn't be more impressed with their resilience and their toughness and their ability to get ready to go fight again.

Army played last week against Rutgers with three freshman in key offensive positions—Larry Dixon at fullback, Ryan Powis at center and Angel Santiago made his first collegiate start at quarterback. Ellerson appeared pleased with the performance of Santiago.

"We're pleased with how Angel (Santiago) came out and played last week," he said. "It was his first time in a stadium like that against an opponent like that. To go out and play with that kind of poise and consistency was really impressive and speaks volumes about his character."

Last week, the freshman QB Santiago carried 30 times, more than half of Army's 54 rushing attempts.  Slotback Raymond Maples leads the team in rushing with 891 yards, sat out with an injury. Ellerson commented on the availability of Maples to play this week in his home town of of Philadelphia:

"I was almost sure that we were going to have him, but I'm not sure anymore. He took a test today and got a headache. I don't know. We'll stay loose and adjust here. Obviously, with the new standards, we're very, very conservative and cautious with that. Our medical folks are on top of it, and they'll let us know. I'm optimistic, but I think it's still somewhat questionable."

One of the examples of leadership that was great to see last week was Trent Steelman running out to encourage Santiago after the freshman had made an apparent fumble on the Rutgers goal line, a call which was reversed on replay. Ellerson commented on the leadership among his three top quarterbacks:

"They have that relationship. Max (Jenkins), frankly, has got them all under his wing a little bit. At West Point, you're not just going to win part of the day, you have to win all day. Max is one of those guys that wins all day. He does a wonderful job, not just of managing the quarterbacks, but the offensive side of the ball and the team in general."

One of my questions this week for the coach was about the 15 pass attempts Santiago threw against Rutgers, it appeared West Point can open up the offense a bit with passing when Santiago is in the game.  Ellerson said:

The situation was such that we had to, we needed to, and he was reasonably proficient doing it. There were a couple of throws he made that we've had a hard time making, which is encouraging. It doesn't necessarily change our approach to the game. We've never been hesitant to throw when Trent (Steelman)'s playing or, for that matter, when Max (Jenkins) is playing, when we thought that's what we needed to do. But it was nice to see that he was that comfortable in that phase of the game and that accurate.

Later, I asked the coach about the improvements in the Army defense and maturity demonstrated by the young players in recent weeks against both Air Force and Rutgers: 

 "I love the way they're competing. Obviously, every week we're having to come up with some novel solutions to the challenge at hand, given what we are physically. You mentioned the number of tackles our free safety had; that's typically not a good sign. But, we're using all 11 guys. There are some young guys who have been pressed into service and in some cases pressed into service in positions that are not typically theirs who have grown into it and played a little bit better each week."

The coach was very specific about the threat from the Temple offense:

This is an outfit that had their way with us a year ago running the football. That's a veteran offense. That's a very good, very physical, very veteran offensive line. They've got four of five seniors. Their tight end is a senior. Their fullback is a senior. Pierce and Brown are both little nightmares and now they've added the quarterback's legs to the equation. Then you go out on the perimeter and you've got two 6'4", 6'5" receivers on the perimeter who every time they stand up they're open."

When a team reaches the point of not being able to achieve its goals for the year such as qualifying for a bowl game or beating a major rival like Air Force, frustration can set in. Ellerson was very appreciative of the leadership being provided by his three captains Steve Erzinger, Max Jenkins and Andrew Rodriquez:

I really do think just as an entity, the Army football team is in good hands with our senior leadership and especially those captains. They've kept us together. A lesser group of guys faced with the kind of adversity and the challenges that we've had would have given in to their more baser instincts, and these guys haven't let that happen.

We've stayed together. We've been resilient. We've continued to fight back. We're doing so many things well enough to be successful in spite of our relative immaturity physically. We're giving ourselves a great chance. I think that speaks volumes. We shouldn't be surprised that we have some great character and some great leadership on an Army football team. That should be the standard and these guys do not disappoint in any meaningful way.

It could be a tough one for West Point Saturday in Philadelphia. They may have their starting quarterback for the past two and a half years, Trent Steelman, back—we will see. They play a Temple team that beat Ball State 42-0—a team which beat Army 48-21 two weeks before that in September.  Perhaps this is the week that Army puts four quarters of solid football together. We know they will be making a major push in three weeks to break the streak and beat Navy, an achievable goal.

Perhaps the drive to "Beat Navy" begins on the familiar field of Lincoln Financial Field against Temple.

Ken Kraetzer covers Iona basketball and West Point Football for Sons of the American Legion Radio. He will produce a special one hour Army-Navy game special to be broadcast on WVOX 1460 AM and nationally on WVOX.com Tuesday December 6th at 5 PM EST. He can be reached at KGK914@aol.com.

Unless otherwise noted, all quotes were obtained first-hand.

Tony Odierno comes from a military family, he graduated from West Point in 2001 and went on to lead a unit of the First Cavalry Division in Iraq in 2004.  He suffered a serious injury in the war and now works for the New York Yankees as a stadium executive.

It has been 10 years since his West Point graduation and the world has changed enormously in that span.  So much has been asked of those who have served in the military.  Army soldiers like Captain Anthony K. Odierno have been through so much.  He was wounded on Baghdad's Airport Road on Aug. 21, 2004 when a rocket propelled grenade pierced the Humvee he was riding in, killing his driver, and wounding the gunner in the vehicle. 

Since then he has recuperated from the loss of his left arm, earned a graduate degree from New York University and accepted a new position at Yankee Stadium as a stadium operations executive.  We have talked to Tony the past two years for our West Point radio show before the Army football team has played at Yankee Stadium.  I meet him for the first time today at a Veterans Day package drive for troops the Yankees held with the USO and Bank of America.

Tony stood out in the crowd right way.  He has that "West Point" look, stands straight as an arrow, well trimmed hair cut, piercing eyes and takes in what is going on around him before saying anything.  He has been busy preparing the Stadium for the second visit of Army to play football in the new Stadium.  

We spoke with Tony earlier this week on our West Point Football Report, he described how proud a task it is for him and the team to prepare Yankee Stadium for the visit by the West Point football team, students and alumni:  

"You always enjoy having Army here at Yankee Stadium.  Just working with everyone at Army.  Obviously I still know a lot of people there.  It is great to catch up with them.  They have such a great tradition of playing games here in the old stadium and last year in the new Yankee Stadium.  It is great to have them back."

Last year's Army game at Yankee Stadium was a Notre Dame home game with the crowd of over 50,000 fans predominantly routing for the Irish.  This time it will be an Army home game with a large number of Cadets in the stands, the Army bands will be playing "On Brave Old Army Team", and many of the military traditions will be on display that fans at Michie Stadium enjoy.  Tony commented about Army playing a home game at the famed Bronx, New York ball park:

"We are happy to have Army as the home team this year.  I think it is a real chance for everyone in New York who might not necessarily have been to West Point to come to this game, and see the Corps of Cadets.  We will have the 82^nd Airborne jumping in to the Stadium and learning a little of the history and traditions of West Point.  And what it stands for, and that is service to our country, and service above self."

Playing football in the fall and winter at baseball parks used to be very common, now in an era of sport specific stadiums, it is a novelty.  In the old Yankee Stadium when football was played there, the field was laid out along the third base line.  Now the field is laid out between home plate and center field.  With the success of the Babe Ruth and Joe Dimaggio led Yankees, there was a sense of glamour for the football games played at the old Yankee Stadium. 

It really was a big stage stage for the games between Army and Notre Dame in the 1920s to 1940s and later when the football Giants called the stadium home from the 1950s to 70s. The famous 1958 Giants-Colts overtime playoff game that brought professional football into the television era was played there.

It is a big job to convert the stadium to be a first class football arena with an all grass field and press areas on the fifty yard line.  Tony described for us some of what is involved:

"There is a lot of stuff to do.  Unfortunately this year, we had more time then we would have liked.  We would have liked to have gone a lot further in October.  It begins with excavating and sodding the infield and making the entire field grass for this game.  Obviously, there is the equipment, goal posts, even to converting some of our suites to coaches booths on the fifty."

Going back to his near death experience in Iraq and the platoon of 50 soldiers he was in charge of, in 2008 he described to Jack Curry of the New York Times, his immediate military bred reaction, 

"I can't just sit here, I have to get out and continue to lead these guys."

The Army Captain said when he awoke in a military hospital, the first thing he saw was  aback pack from the Wounded Warrior Project, it reminded him that someone cared.  The first concern of an Army platoon officer is the well being of those he is responsible for.  About those he served with in Iraq:

"I owe my life to a lot of the guys who were on my team.  After going to Walter Reed, the care there was excellent.  There are a lot of great organizations out there.  Everything from the VA to Army programs, to non-profit organizations, the Wounded Warrior Project which I am on the board for, they are all doing a great job making sure our veterans and our injured service men and woman are the most well adjusted after the experiences that we go through over there."

On Oct. 27 Tony and his dad, Army Chief of Staff, General Raymond T. Odierno jointly received the Gunnery Sergeant John Basilone Award for Distinguished Military Service presented by the National Italian-American Foundation in Washington DC.

You can listen to our complete interview on:

 http://legionpost50ny.com/Radio_SAL_111108_Anthony_Odierno_USMA01.html

The West Point Black Knights take on Rutgers at 3:30 p.m. Saturday at Yankee Stadium, one of my favorite places in the world.

Ken Kraetzer produces the West Point Football Report for Sons of the American Legion Radio heard Tuesdays at 5:30 p.m. on New Rochelle based WVOX 1460 AM and nationally on WVOX.com.  Reach him on kgk914@aol.com.

Some college football games are very hard to understand.  A strong performance of a team in the first half disappears in a second half wave of fumbles, interceptions and bad decisions.

Army’s 24-14 loss at Colorado Springs to Air Force (5-4) will be remembered as a missed opportunity to stop a streak of five straight Falcon wins over the Black Knights.  A win would also have given Army (3-6)  a chance at the Commander In Chief’s Trophy and the trip to the White House that goes with it. The win over Army secured retention of the prized Trophy for Air Force in 2011.  On Oct. 1 they had a 35-34 overtime win over Navy.

Army went to Air Force Saturday afternoon as a 16-point underdog, their starting quarterback for 32 straight games before last week Trent Steelman was hurt.  The Army defense is young and inconsistent especially on the road.  They faced an Air Force team coming off of tough-fought games with the likes of Notre Dame and Boise State.  The Falcons had beaten Navy earlier in the year for the first leg of the Commanders In Chief Trophy played between the three service academies.

So how surprised was the crowd of over 46,000 at Falcon Stadium and a national television audience on CBS Network that at the end of the first quarter Army held a 14-0 lead?

Army took the opening kickoff and went 81 yards down the field in 12 plays capped off by a one yard quarterback dive by Max Jenkins for the score. After an Air Force fumble by their quarterback Tim Jefferson at their own 18 yard line, in two plays the Black Knights were back in the end zone on a 13-yard Larry Dixon run.

The second quarter saw more domination by Army, but mistakes which eliminated attainable scores.  After two three-and-outs by Air Force, Army drove down to the Air Force seven yard line.  On fourth-and-one, Army went for the score and Max Jenkins tried what he achieved in the first quarter, a dive play running behind his freshman center Ryan Powls.  Jenkins ran into a mass of players at the line and appeared to stretch his body and the ball sufficiently across the goal line but did not get the call from the referees.  A touchdown and field goal opportunity missed for Army.

Near the end of the half following an Air Force fumble, Army started yet another drive down the field on their own 28.  In six plays the Black Knights were down to the Falcon 18.  Slot back Scott Williams made a slashing run through the right side of the defense and was heading for the goal line before being tackled just short by the Falcons Josh Hall who forced the ball free and punched it towards the end zone.  The ball continued rolling through the end zone for a touchback. Army lost another touchdown opportunity that was so close.

This was one of those moments Army fans have come to dread, reminiscent of the play in last year’s Navy game when Trent Steelman had the ball stripped from his hands by Wyatt Middleton who ran the ball back for a touchdown.  Never the less Army led by two touchdowns at the half and was dominating on both sides of the ball.

It might have been interesting to have heard Air Force coach Troy Calhoun speak to his team at the half.  What he said changed the play of his team which came out on recharged and ready to play while Army lost all their momentum.

In the first half Army out gained Air Force 286-81.  All the Army yards were gained on the ground.  They controlled the ball 20:34 of the first half.  The second half would be a different story. 

Off the second half kickoff, Air Force went 60 yards down the field and got on the scoreboard on a field goal by junior Parker Herrington.  Later in the quarter Air Force marched down the field led by a 35-yard Tim Jefferson pass to Zack Kauth pass to the Army three.  Jefferson ran the ball in himself from the two. Air Force completed a two point conversion on a run by Asher Clark to make the score Army 14 Air Force 11.

Then Army started to self destruct.  On the first play of the next Army possession, QB Max Jenkins fumbled a snap from center which was recovered by the Falcons Brady Amack at the Army 29.  The Army defense did a great job holding this turnover to a second Parker Herrington field goal but Air Force had tied the game at 14 all with 3:35 to go in the third quarter.

On the next Army possession on fourth down at their own 36, Army tried a fake punt, but the play was botched and Air Force took over at the Army 14.  On the fourth play QB Tim Jefferson ran for his second touchdown of the quarter to give Air Force a 21-14 lead.

Then early in the fourth, an Army fumble by fullback Jared Hassin was recovered by Jon Davis giving the Falcons procession at the Army 19.  This possession was again slowed by the Army defense but resulted in Parker Herrington’s third field goal of the half from 39 yards out to give Air Force a 24 to 14 lead.

Army threatened late in the fourth with a first down at the Air Force 30, but after an incompletion, Max Jenkins was intercepted by Jon Davis at his own 19. 

In the second half Air Force out gained Army 220 to 80 and in passing 122 to 26.  Army seems to struggle in the second half of games.  The opponents seem to find remedies to the Army option attack.

 Afterwards, Army coach Rich Ellerson spoke with Tony Marino of the Army Sports Network about what led to the loss to Air Force:

“Penalties, turnovers, and missed opportunities.  We played hard, our guys competed hard, but we did not play well enough. 

About the success in the first half:

“We had some takeaways in the first half, we had some stops, that is a prolific outfit on offense that Air Force has.  We made a couple of plays, we got a couple of takeaways, we were productive on offense.  We held on to the football, we did all the things you need to do to win a game, except we did not finish a couple of opportunities.  We had a chance to be in the end zone twice and managed to not do it. 

About the second half:

“In the second half, it is a tale of turnovers and penalties.  We can still move the ball, we had plenty of chances.”

The Black Knights now must regroup and get set to play Rutgers of the Big East, at Yankee Stadium next Saturday.  Rutgers is now 6-3 on the year after Saturday’s 20-17 overtime win over South Florida at home.

The game will hopefully see a visit by Rutgers Eric Legrand who was paralyzed last year in the Army game when he tackled Malcolm Brown on a kickoff play.  Legrand has been making progress in his recovery and was with Rutgers last week for their game against West Virginia.  We hope he will be at Yankee Stadium on Saturday.

We all want to wish Eric continued success on his recovery.

Ken Kraetzer produces the West Point Football Report by Sons of the American Legion radio broadcast Tuesday night’s during the season at 5:30 PM on WVOX 1460 AM in New Rochelle, NY and heard nationally on WVOX.com.  Reach Ken on KGK914@aol.com    

The Air Force game week is always different for Army and its fans.  Most weeks leading up to West Point games the talk is universally respectful.  This week at Air Force you will see and hear "Beat Army" and at West Point there will be a constant repetition of their goal for the week "Beat Air Force" amid the ubiquitous year round "Beat Navy" cheers.

If you cruise around some of the Air Force Academy and West Point pages on Facebook and the Internet you will probably find a few "Spirit videos' made by cadets of each school poking some fun at their counterparts at the opposing Academy.  These tend to end with one of the timeless cheers or one of the fight songs. 

With the game in Colorado Springs this year a sizable number of Army cadets, cheerleaders, and their band will accompany the team west for the game.  It is worth pointing out that the cheerleaders at Army are called the "Rabble-rousers", as this distinction has been described to me on more than one occasion.  The banter back and for between the bands and cadets of each school is half the fun of watching the game.

Amid all the competition and rambunctious activity is the very evident respect that the service academies have for one another.  Only someone who has been a student at Air Force, Navy, or Army understands the daily challenges that are made of those who choose to attend these academies not part of life at civilian colleges.  There is also the understanding that in the years to come the graduates will be serving together shoulder-to-shoulder as officers in the US Armed Forces.

This is the second game of the "Commanders In Chief" competition between the three service academies.  In October in Annapolis, Air Force defeated Navy in overtime 35-34.  Air Force won the trophy last year which carries with it a trip to the White House to be greeted by the President.  Army has not won the CIC since 1996, the last year the Black Knights went to a bowl game before last year.

Air Force (4-4) comes home to play Army (3-5) after a shutout win 42-0 at New Mexico last week. Prior to that the Falcons had lost three straight to Notre Dame (59-33), San Diego State (41-27) and Boise State (37-26).  Air Force is dealing with a number of injuries including a broken nose suffered last week to junior quarterback Tim Jefferson. The defensive line for Air Force is also shorthanded with an injury to defensive end Harry Kehs, and from prior injuries to Ben Kopacka and end Zack Payne according to the Colorado Springs Gazette.

Indications from Air Force coach Troy Calhoun at his Monday press conference were that Tim Jefferson would play unless tests determined a serious condition. A nemesis to Army last year, the Atlanta, Georgia native scored two touchdowns running the ball and threw for two more both to the now senior wide out Johnathan Warzeka.

Army has regained momentum on the year with the dominating win against Fordham in the snow last week.  The Black Knights lead the NCAA in rushing with an average of 369 yards per game on the ground. The set backs on the season have been the 15 fumbles lost in the eight games and not playing well on the road. 

Army Head Coach Rich Ellerson has gotten quite good at handling the regular questions he receives from ‘Voices” as he calls them surrounding the program about the Air Force and Navy games.  He is quite pointed at saying he teaches the players to think about the coming week only and to focus on the games one play at a time.  At his weekly Tuesday press conference he tried to put this week’s game with Air Force into a coaches perspective:

"It's the most important game of the year, because it's the one that we play this week. We're 100 percent committed to staying in the moment and working overtime trying to find a way to be 1-0 this week.

Acknowledging that the players, their friends, their classmates in the barracks as the dormitories at West Point are called are getting excited about the game, he said:

"Obviously, there's a little bit of a buzz. Guys are excited to go. We're going to stay in the moment and try to have fun with this next adventure."

On my radio show this week, I described that Coach Ellerson describes every upcoming opponents like they are all the Green Bay Packers.  He commented about the Air Force team on Tuesday:

“It's going to be a tough one. (Air Force) is a very gifted outfit. They've had some challenges on defense, a little bit like we have, but they're getting some guys back. Offensively, they're an absolute nightmare. They've made a bunch of plays in the kicking game. They're a complete outfit, and it's going to be a great challenge."

The hot topic of the week is if junior quarterback Trent Steelman would be able to return from a high ankle sprain he received in the Vanderbilt game two weeks ago.  Against Fordham, with Steelman in the press box, senior Max Jenkins ably guided the Black Knights to an impressive victory. 

Jenkins ran for two touchdowns and completed a pass to Anthony Stephens for another score as Army ran for 514 yards on the snowy afternoon. Highly touted freshman Angel Santiago played the third quarter seeing his second action for Army after handling himself well in his initial varsity action against Vanderbilt.

Coach Ellerson said that Trent Steelman would have to practice on Wednesday in order to play on Saturday, commenting: 

 "Want to make sure we aren't just dumb-tough. Obviously, we'd love for him to play. He desperately wants to play. We just need to be smart and make sure we don't set him back and lose him for some games that we might otherwise have him for."

I asked the coach if he could clarify the QB plan if Trent Steelman is unable to play?

"We'll start Max (Jenkins). Our intention was that Angel (Santiago) would play earlier and more than what he did on Saturday. The conditions were the determining factor there. I'm just not sure how meaningful the turns under those conditions would have been developmentally, so we kind of got away from our script. Our plan would be to start Max and play Angel relatively quickly"

Max Jenkins showed against Fordham that he can lead the offense and run the ball himself inside on short age plays when needed such as in goal line situations.  Santiago offers more running speed and outside quickness, two qualities highly valued by Ellerson and the Army coaches who have successfully implemented the option offense.

About the Air Force defense,  coach Ellerson commented:

“They're comfortable trying to defend the triple option. They see it in house. They see it routinely in their schedule. Those are the things about this that are challenging.

The Army defense has been inconsistent this year giving up an average of 491 yards per game and 27.4 points.  Stats obviously improved by the Fordham shutout.  I asked coach Ellerson about how Army will approach stopping the Air Force offense:

 “It's a tough deal. They can be a devastating triple option attack if they choose to be. And yet, (Tim Jefferson) is really having a good year throwing the football. They have a go-to running back in Asher Clark. He's the real deal. They've got a lot of things in their playbook they can go to.

“If you try to defend everything on every snap against these guys, good luck. Added Ellerson, “They're really good, so you're going to have to pick your spots. And, when you guess wrong, you're going to have to survive it so you can line up again. Last year, we guessed wrong and they got us for a bunch. "

Sometimes it is helpful when an out of town writer asks a question providing a fresh perspective about an ongoing topic, in this case the somewhat struggling season of junior fullback Jared Hassin. After gaining over 1,000 yards last Hassin has struggled overcoming injuries. 

The Delafield, Wisconsin native started his college and military career at Air Force then decided to leave and apply to West Point.  He sat out two years waiting to be eligible play again in 2010.   So this will be a meaningful return to a past chapter of his life.  Coach Ellerson addressed the Colorado based reporter's question:

 "Jared's part of the starting rotation. We're playing a couple of fullbacks. Larry Dixon is off to a great start, but Jared's right in the middle of it. He's still in the starting rotation.  Jared just took such a beating last year as a wishbone fullback for 13 games with really not much time off, and frankly he's still paying the dues for that. He has some chronic health issues that are kind of making us struggle to get him ready to play without getting him behind the curve physically. He's still a huge part of it, and is very, very capable.

A question that frequently comes up as the Army football program is improving is how long and what will it take to catches up to Air Force which has won the last five games and 20 of the last 22 contests played between the two.  Some have said Air Force has a recruiting advantage being the only service academy in the western half of the country, Coach Ellerson responded:

"Obviously, we really like the path we've chosen. If you're narrowing the track, that implies that we're on the same track. The truth is, we have our own vision for Army football. We think we're gaining on that objective. We really feel strongly about the voice we've chosen and the path we've chosen for Army football. We're going to be competitive week in and week out.

Will Army be competitive against Air Force this week considering that the strong probability of not having the starting quarterback available and playing four freshman on defense, Ellerson added:

“For that you have to tune in. I have so much respect for their program and what they do with it. You look at that senior outfit on offense and how much they do and how well they do with it and how well and efficiently they execute. You could argue that the physical maturity side of it very much stands on their side of the field, but we're gaining on it."

Max Jenkins, the senior from Houston, Texas is the likely starting quarterback for Army.  Max who is as polite an individual as you will ever meet, also serves as the deputy brigade commander in the Corps of Cadets talked about the opportunity to play for the Commander in Chief Trophy:  

"It's exciting, it's a great opportunity. Like you said, we haven't really had success against them in the past, but it's over, it's a new team, new season and one of our team goals is to win the CIC so this is the first step in that process.

Well, there you have some of the pregame analysis and I am left to give you my prediction on the outcome.

As can be expected, Army should be able to use its strong ground game to move the ball against Air Force.  Not hard to predict that the Falcons will score points against the young Army defense.  Watch how Army tries to close the gaps in their defensive line with linebackers and even safeties.  How about a late fourth quarter scenario, its all tied 28 all, Army has the ball on the Air Force 20 yard line, its fourth down and in comes senior Alex Carlton to attempt a field goal.  The ball is snapped, the hold is good, the kick is up….

Army pulls a 31-28 upset!

Ken Kraetzer produces the West Point Football Report by Sons of the American Legion Radio broadcast from New Rochelle, NY Tuesdays during the season at 5:30 PM on WVOX 1460 AM and heard around the world on WVOX.com.  Reach Ken on kgk914@aol.com.

Army junior quarterback Trent Steelman will miss the game against Fordham on Saturday at Michie Stadium due to injury.  This will end his Academy record 32 consecutive game starting streak.  The Bowling Green, Kentucky native has started every game West Point has played since his freshman year in 2009.

Steelman injured his ankle last week against Vanderbilt and the indications are he could miss much of the rest of the season.  As an option quarterback, Trent is used to playing through the frequent injuries that accompany that role, and will be especially frustrated to miss playing time for the first time in his career.  The coaches and trainers are probably going to have to lock away his helmet and cleats this week to keep him off the field.   

I asked Coach Ellerson at his weekly press conference about Steelman's status for the balance of the season, the only player to start for him in his tenure at the Academy:

"We expect to have him back. We can't say when. It's going to be week to week, but it's not going to be this week. We know that."

Starting at quarterback for the Black Knights will be senior Max Jenkins who has played occasionally over the past two years when Steelman has suffered minor injuries during games.  The Houston, Texas native is an expert in the Black Knight offense and provides the ability to both pass and run the ball. 

In addition Jenkins is the Deputy Brigade Commander in the Corps of Cadets which means he is the number two official in Corps' chain of command.  He is a prospective Army officer who keeps a cool head and is as we find at Army so often, very cordial to talk with after a game, win or lose.

We will likely see freshman Angel Santiago, from Fontana, California get significant playing time at quarterback.  The number three on their depth chart, the 5' 7" 175 pound Santiago is highly regarded by the coaching staff.  Army uses three huddles in practice so that each quarterback has a chance to get in daily repetitions practicing the plays.

In the West Point option offense quickness is valued as well the toughness the quarterback and runnign backs need to demonstrate.  Steelman often carries the football himself in crucial short yardage situations such as near the goal line.  About the overall quarterback situation Coach Ellerson said: 

"Max Jenkins will be the starting quarterback, but we intend to play Angel Santiago.  Max is a senior and he's got thousands of reps and he's the guy that when you're going into a contest where there's a lot of uncertainty about what your opponent's         going to be doing and how you match up it makes all the sense in the world to have           a veteran hand out there. We feel like there's a little more explosiveness in Angel,           and as things get settled down we'll look to get him in."

The Black Knights have not played Fordham since 1949 when the Rams placed little emphasis on the sport.  Army also got their first win in football against Fordham in 1891.  Currently Fordham are trying to upgrade their program with the intention of leaving the Patriot League for perhaps the Colonial League.  The Rams, despite higher quality recruits are 1-6 on the year and lost 45-24 last week at Lafayette.  Commenting on Army's opponent for the last game of the year at Michie Stadium: 

"Another week, another season. Fordham, like us, has struggled on the scoreboard, but when you watch their tape there is an awfully lot to respect. They spread you out and throw the ball. They threw the ball 52 times last week and completed 32 of them. They had a running back get almost 130 yards. Defensively, we're never quite sure what we're going to get"

Army freshman fullback Larry Dixon has been receiving increased playing time for Army and led the team against Vanderbilt with 92 yards including a 57 yard run.   He often shares practice reps with back-up quarterback Angel Santiago.  Commented coach Ellerson about the 6'0" 220 pound Dixon,

"Larry is playing well, and Jared (Hassin) is struggling a little bit physically.  When you have Angel (Santiago) out there, obviously Angel and Larry are just that much more comfortable with one another."

The questions for the West Point staff are: How long they will be without Trent Steelman?  Will he be back for Air Force, Rutgers or Temple?  Will he even be back for Navy in six weeks on December 10th?  Coach Ellerson tends to go with young players with speed and quickness.  That could very well mean Angel Santiago could be the "Go to" QB beyond Fordham.  Commenting further on Santiago:

"Obviously, Angel is going to play. I was encouraged. He got most of his reads. He made some things happen with his feet. He completed a ball. He scored a touchdown. That's not surprising. He's had a million reps in practice. He's prepared well. It's gratifying to see him get into a tough environment and handle it well.  That's not surprising that he handled that."

I asked Coach Ellerson if he would have to change or limit the play selection with Jenkins or Santiago in the game:

"So much of what we do is dependent on where our opponent goes. Those guys are competent hands at everything we do offensively."

On defense the Black Knights have to find answers as they gave up 530 yards of offense last week to Vanderbilt.  On the season they are giving up 191 yards per game on the ground and 220 yards in the air.  With extended injuries to starters Antuan Aaron at a corner and Jarrett Mackey at defensive end, defensive Coordinators Payam Saadat and Chris Smeland have been using a number of freshman and sophomores throughout the unit. 

The play of middle linebacker Geoffrey Bacon stood out last week at Vandy as the freshman from Milwaukee led the team with 13 tackles, of which six were solo and he also pulled down an interception.  Also notable additions to the starting lineup in recent games has been Jacob Drozd at right tackle, sophomore Tyler Dickson at free safety, to be backed up by sophomore Thomas Holloway, freshman Haryden Pearce at strong safety. I asked Coach Ellerson about the development of these young defensive players:

"Well, those guys have all been in those spots. It's good to get Geoffrey involved, but that's not new for him. Yeah, we're young, but they're not rookies anymore. The number of reps those guys have had, those experiences they've had out there, and some of those experiences have been hard. Those things need to start to pay off for us. They need to be able to take those experiences and grow and get better. Jacob took a lot more turns this week than what he's taken, but he's been playing pretty much in every game. That's not unusual. Same with Tyler (Dickson) and Thomas Holloway. They're playing all the time, so that's not news."

Saturday's game has been a virtual sellout for weeks as it is the last home game at Michie Stadium.  The Black knight have a home game at Yankee Stadium against Rutgers in two weeks, but that is a different situation.  For a visiting team to come the US Military Academy and play in the tight confines of Michie Satdium gives the Cadets a big home field advantage.  I asked Coach Ellerson if the large crowd at Michie Stadium will help provide the team a lift coming off the two road losses:

"It has to be. It's great that we're going to have a great crowd, and it's great that we're at home with our seniors, but we need to love to play the game. And the good news is there's no quit in this bunch. They love to play; they're playing hard. They're frustrated, but they haven't given up on themselves; they haven't given up on each other. They like to play. They're playing hard. We need to play better; we need to play smarter. We need to coach better."

The weather forecast is amazing, three to six inches of snow sometime during the day.  That should not effect the Army running game.  Everyone at West point will be pulling for senior Max Jenkins to have a solid game in his first varsity start.  Watch for freshman quarterback Angel Santiago to come in during the second half and show what he can do for the tough stretch of games coming up against Air Force next week, then Rutgers and Temple. 

And then there will be the snow!  Prediction Army 31, Fordham 17

Ken Kraetzer covers Army football for WVOX 1460 AM in New Rochelle heard nationally on WVOX.com.  He produces the West Point Football Report broadcast every Tuesday night during the season at 5:30 PM EST.  Reach him on kgk914@aol.com

When you meet West Point linebacker Andrew Rodriquez he looks you in the eye.  The senior from Alexandria, Virginia has come back this year from a serious back injury and surgery that kept him out of the entire 2010 season. 

This year he is back and providing leadership to the "Second Row" of the Black Knights defense as Coach Ellerson likes to put it. So far this season, West Point's "A-Rod" has 35 tackles, two fumble recoveries and an interception in seven games.

In addition to playing football, Cadet Rodriquez is one of the best students at the Academy holding a 4.14 grade-point average. In the spring 2010 semester he had a registered grad of A plus in all five of his academic courses and has been on the dean’s list five times.  In 2009 he was a CoSIDA Academic All-District I selection  

But perhaps his greatest academic recognition occurred this week when Rodriquez was named one of 16 finalists for the William V. Campbell Trophy given to the top scholar-football player in the country.  The award named in honor a former Columbia University coach given by the National Football Foundation provides a post graduate scholarship. The son of a US Army General was selected along with the 15 others from a pool of 127 nominations.

The Campbell Trophy Award recipient will be announced on Dec. 6 at the National Football Foundation Dinner at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York City.  Shaun Castillo was the last Army player to receive this level honor in 1999.

Rodriquez serves as Army captain along with quarterback Max Jenkins, and fellow linebacker Steve Erzinger.  The coaching staff eased him back into the staring line-up during August practice testing his recovery.  An interception he made in the mid-August scrimage at Michie Stadium announced his return to competitive form.  In 2009 "A-Rod" was the leading tackler on the Army team with 85 tackles of which 40 were unassisted.  He also had two fumble recoveries and two interceptions.

Each university is limited to one nomination each year for consideration by the Campbell Award committee.  The nominees must be a starting player maintain a top Grade Point Average, and demonstrate outstanding leadership and citizenship. 

The other members of this year’s scholar-athlete class include Drew Butler (Georgia), Kirk Cousins (Michigan State), Micha Davis (Delta State), John Dowd (Navy), Yaser Elqutub (Northwestern State), Chris Ganious (South Dakota), Clay Garcia (Colorado School of Mines), Chandler Harnish (Northern Illinois), Tysyn Hartman (Kansas State), Chaz Hine (South Florida), Joe Holland (Purdue), Jared Karstetter (Washington State), Ryan Tannehill (Texas A&M), Patrick Witt (Yale) and Michael Zweifel (University of Dubuque).

Notable previous winners of The Campbell Trophy include Air Force's Chris Howard in 1990; Florida's Danny Wuerffel in 1996; Tennessee's Peyton Manning in 1997; Chad Pennington of Marshall in 1999, Florida's Tim Tebow in 2009, and Texas' Sam Acho last season.  The Campbell Trophy was first awarded in 1990.

Have to believe Cadet Andrew Rodriquez is a strong candidate for the Campbell Award. 

Ken Kraetzer covers West Point football for WVOX 1460 AM in New Rochelle, NY and is heard nationally on WVOX.com.  Reach him on kgk914@aol.com