Army Football

On March 9th, West Point took their spring game down south to Ft. Benning, Georgia, home of the huge Army Infantry branch.  A team from the CBS Sports Network went along to film the event.

Resulting from the day is a 60-minute documentary that will air on Saturday April 14th, at 8 PM.  Viewers will have a chance to follow the day with the Army team as they tour the base and take part in events with soldiers.  The day included a tour of the "National Infantry Museum" and attendance of the Army Basic Training graduation ceremony.

Then you can follow the action, as the Black Knights play a simulated game held in a festival-like atmosphere at the base's "Doughboy Stadium" built to honor those who served in World War One.  

For the West Point players, especially the younger players who have not yet participated in summer training at an Army base, it was a chance to spend an overnight visit to a major active Army base.  They had a chance to get a feel of the "Big Army", the type of base and activity the players will serve in after graduation from the Academy.  The traveling party even flew to Georgia in a C-17 military transport, the same type of plane which flies soldiers and equipment to deployment zones.   

For several thousand soldiers at the base and their families it was a day to come out and see the West Point players on the field in a simulated game.  The players were divided up into two teams representing the Infantry and Armor branches of the Army, which are headquartered at the base. 

Not surprisingly, the host base commander, Major General Robert B. Brown, is a 1981 USMA graduate.  Among the guests on hand for the day was 1976 West Point graduate General Raymond T.  Odierno, the Chief of Staff of the Army.  We saw General Odierno last year walking the sidelines at the Army-Navy game encouraging his team.  The Black Knight football team is certainly very visible to the Army leadership. 

On a post-game conference call, Army head football coach, Rich Ellerson described the trip to Fort Benning as,

"Spectacular, better than we expected, it felt like a football game!" 

Many of the first team did not play including starting quarterback Trent Steelman.  Army should again be strong on offense with many of the key players back from the 2011 team that rushed for an average of 346 yards per game. 

Freshman Angel Santiago led the Armor offense at QB and continued to show speed in running the ball that he demonstrated last fall filling in for Steelman and in spring drills.  Sophomore Gino DeBartolo led the Infantry offense and showed running ability of his own, going 44 yards on the longest play of the day.

A clip of the program can be viewed on-line at http://bit.ly/Hs4PYm.

Channels covering the show on CBS Sports Network include Verizon FiOS Channel 94 and AT&T U-Verse Channel 643 (1643 in HD), via satellite on DirecTV Channel 613 and Dish Network Channel 158.  

Ken Kraetzer covers Army football and Iona basketball for WVOX 1460 AM in New Rochelle, NY.  His Twitter address is @SAL50NYRadio.

A few players in college football quietly over-achieve.  They live the image of what college sports should be about.  They play their hearts out on the field, come back from injuries, do well in the classroom and provide leadership to their schools.  But, they don't bring attention to themselves—leaving that to others.

These players just quietly excel at what they are asked to do and overcome obstacles that would stop most.  They prepare for greater challenges in life after sports.

Andrew Rodriguez, a linebacker and senior cadet at West Point, is that kind of guy.

The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) agreed and awarded Cadet Rodriguez the 82nd James E. Sullivan Award Tuesday night as the nations' outstanding amateur athlete.  The presentation was made at a dinner at the New York Athletic Club in New York City.

The son of an Army general you have seen on news broadcasts handling the business of a nation-at-war for over a decade, the Alexandria, Virginia native has an older sister who graduated from West Point in 2006 and is back from a deployment to Iraq.  Yes, he comes from a family of over-achievers, but not everyone accepts the challenge of a family military legacy.

In the classroom, Rodriguez managed a 4.12 grade point average as a mechanical engineering major.  He made Dean's List six times.  He will graduate as the No. 3 cadet in the Class of 2012.

Last season, I had several chances to speak with the Army senior, and on Media Day asked him why he decided to attend West Point:

"Really like the challenge, to grow as a person by coming here, the opportunity to serve, be part of both the institution and the Army afterwards." 

As an athlete, West Point's "ARod" was a regular his sophomore and senior seasons in a defense which is set up for the linebackers to make the plays.  In 2009, his first season of varsity competition, he led the team in tackles with 85.  With the soul of the Army defense, linebacker Steve Anderson, out of the game injured for the Navy game, Rodriguez rose to the occasion, making 15 tackles.

Then, the challenges: serious back injuries appeared, resulting in surgery.  He missed playing the entire junior season when the Black Knights went to the Armed Forces Bowl.  Going into the summer training camp, the coaches said he should do his recovery in stages, limiting contact, testing what his back could handle.

In the mid-August scrimmage, Andrew Rodriguez was out in the middle of the defense, making plays.  I knew his recovery was going well when he intercepted a pass and made a short run-back. He ended up playing every game, making 59 tackles—including 24 unassisted.  Against Navy, he made four tackles. 

At the Army-Navy Press Conference, I asked Andrew what it took to come back from a serious back injury to play football for Army:

"First it took a lot of support from family, friends, teammates, coaches, to keep going despite the adversity.  Great help from the training staff at Army, and a good surgery by my doctor, the combination of things helped me get back."

In December, days before the Army-Navy game, he was named the recipient of the Campbell Trophy as the National Football Foundation's National Scholar Athlete.

About what it took to excel both athletically and academically at West Point, he said:

"I am lucky to have great coaches who help me succeed athletically and good teammates, I really benefit from playing with a bunch of guys who can make me look good sometimes, even if I am not as good as it makes me out to be.  Academically, just try to do your best, work with teachers, and classmates."

Time management and working together with classmates on academics—we often hear—are keys to success at West Point.  Junior linebacker Nate Combs described for me that after practice, the engineering majors on the team would get together for study sessions.  Rodriguez commented on this in his team-oriented humble way:

"It takes a lot of time management, that is something we try to work on as a team.  So that we can succeed on the field, with school and with military duties."

Now, Rodriguez is the recipient of the AAU Sullivan Award as the nation's top amateur athlete, his second national award.  Only five college football players have won this award—two were from Army during their National Championship run from 1944 to 1946: Felix "Doc" Blanchard received the Sullivan Award in 1945 and Arnold Tucker won in 1946. 

Arnold Tucker was the quarterback for the Army team which went undefeated in 1945 and 1946.  He went on to a career with the Air Force and was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 2008.  

Rodriguez will now be noted as one of only three college football players to win both the Sullivan and Campbell Trophies.  The others were Peyton Manning of Tennessee in 1997 and Tim Tebow of Florida in 2007.

Afterwards Cadet Rodriguez, in his typical humble way, commented to the National Football Foundation:

'It is an incredible honor to win the award, I hope the credit reflects on my teammates, coaches, the program, West Point and the Army in general".

When Andrew Rodriguez graduates in May, his career path will be quite different from Peyton Manning or Tim Tebow—perhaps more like Arnold Tucker.  He may have a chance to study on the scholarship he won with the Campbell Trophy, or he may just start the series of courses or field training challenges that newly-minted Army second lieutenants take.  He will likely then take over leadership of a platoon or other military unit, perhaps in harm's way in Afghanistan or another forward position as the military likes to say.  

Years down the road, I expect we will find Andrew Rodriguez in a senior Army leadership role, a corporate position, or government responsibility.  He might even be an elected official.  Learning to handle and deal with the simultaneous demands of football, academics and military life provide him with a high potential for whatever becomes his chosen field. 

Andrew's career will be proud to watch.

Ken Kraetzer is a contributor to Bleacher Report.  He covers Army football and Iona Basketball for WVOX 1460 in New Rochelle, NY and Sons of the American Legion Radio. 

The Army Black Knights take their spring game to Fort Benning, Georgia on Friday for a day that will simulate a road game, visit a major US Army base and also model all the visibility that surrounds West Point football.

A capacity crowd of approximately 7,500 is expected at "Doughboy Stadium," built in the 1920s to honor World War I veterans.  After winning all of its road games at campus sites with a veteran-loaded team in 2010, Army lost all of its road games in 2011 with a young team.  So this will be a chance for coach Ellerson to simulate the travel drill by taking the team on the road for their spring game.

The biggest opportunity of the trip is to expose the players to one of the largest Army bases in the country.  It will be a learning experience for the players about what the Army will be like for them when they graduate and commission to second lieutenants.  They will visit an Army museum and see a bit of what they call the "Big Army."  It will, of course, be a nice chance for the soldiers at the base and their families to see the Army team.

After last Saturday's practice I had a chance to speak with West Point head coach Rich Ellerson about spring practice and about the team's trip to Fort Benning in Georgia for their spring game:

"This game has become a bit of a show, we are going to play a game, that is problematic as you come down to the end of spring football, with a little bit of sprains and nicks and strains that are going to limit us somewhat.   My intent was to give our guys that exposure, let them get around soldiers, let them get to a great post like Fort Benning, let them experience the Infantry Museum.  It will be a brief snap shot, but a snap shot of the "Big Army", which some of our younger players, they have not had that experience".

  The Coach went on to explained what the format of the spring game will be:

"The game has become something that I would not otherwise do. I might have an offense versus defense or a ones versus the twos.  As it is one team representing the armor branch-school, the other the infantry school.  It is going to be a fair fight fight, they are going to wear a jersey with pride, and be responsible to a bunch of soldiers sitting behind their bench.  so it is going to be exciting.  They will feel some pressure, they are going to feel some excitement".  

The visit is a morale building event for the base residents both soldiers and their families.  Fort Benning is the kind of place where they hold competitions among tank crews.  The base commander is Major General Robert B. Brown, a United States Military Academy graduate from 1981. 

West Point comments indicate that several other senior leaders of the Army might be on hand.  I have learned from covering the team that you never know who you will meet on the Army sideline. 

For the spring game, the West Point players will divide into two teams each wearing special jerseys representing the Infantry and the Armor branches of the Army.  They will play more of a real game than we have seen at recent West Point spring games in recent years with four, ten minute quarters being played.

Players to watch start with the quarterbacks, junior Trent Steelman and freshman Angel Santiago. 

Steelman has been the starting quarterback for the Black Knights since the first game of his freshman year.  Injuries against Vanderbilt and Temple limited his playing time the latter part of last season.  Steelman came back to play well against the Navy, running for a touchdown and throwing for another.  Needless to say, he is anxious for a solid season with another last shot at Navy in December.    

Santiago, from California, is the heir apparent who fits the option offense well.  In practice last Saturday he ran twice for touchdowns.  Simply, he is a fast runner with the ball.  He continues to work on his technique with his pitches and passes.

Freshman Larry Dixon has continued to impress at fullback, as has junior slot-back Kelechi Odocha.  Of course team rushing leader junior Raymond Maples will be a tune-up.  I did not see junior Jared Hassin scrimmaging last week, but if he plays Friday watch to see if he has recovered the acceleration which marked his terrific play in his sophomore year at Army in 2010.

Preventing turnovers, especially fumbles, on offense is crucial to coach Ellerson. He was pleased in how the offense was holding on to the ball at the practice:

"You watch that, however many plays that was, with ZERO balls on the ground. That is so important for us offensively, what ever else happened, no matter who was out there, which ever way they went,  good play or bad play, left or right, we kept the ball off the ground. If we will do that, if will are fanatical about the football, we are hard to beat."

Army football followers will watch to see the offense has new looks dreamed up by offensive coordinator Ian Shields.  With a veteran cast watch for a bit more passing.

On defense, watch for the play of the defensive line, the team's weakest area last year when junior AJ Mackey at nose guard held the line together amid injuries.  Coach Ellerson complemented the play in spring practice of several young players, including 270-pound freshman Richard Glover.   

"I am pleased with the progress made there, we have Bobby Kough back out there, so we have been been able to move Holt Zalneratis out to defensive end where he belongs, so the end position is a little better.  We have (soph) Bobby Kough, (fr.) Mike Ugenyhi, and Richard Glover all doing a really nice job inside, those are the top three guys right now, with some young talent on the way.  All in all that has been a positive in terms of how I see the team being dramatically different."

Throughout 2011, Coach Ellerson talked about the backfield having to make too many tackles, so it is a key for Army to stop more plays upfront.

Senior linebacker Steve Erzinger played just about every down of 2011 so it will be hard to replace him for next year.  The coach mentioned the play of freshman Geoffrey Bacon, who was third in tackles on the team last season.  The defensive backfield will be built around senior Josh Jackson at corner and sophomore Thomas Hollaway, the No. 2 tackler in 2011 at a safety position.

It should be a festive day at Fort Benning Friday with the game starting at 2 PM.  The West Point website will be providing an audio play-by-play provided by Rich DeMarco on www.goarmysports.com.  

Quotes were obtained exclusively for this article and Sons of the American Legion Radio.

Ken Kraetzer covers West Point football and Iona basketball for WVOX 1460 AM in New Rochelle, NY and Sons of the American Legion Radio.  His Twitter address is @SAL50NYRadio. 

The Army football team has a national fanbase and serves as a representation of the U.S. Army, so it is not surprising that they will leave West Point to play their spring game at the "Home of the Infantry" at Fort Benning, Georgia on March 9th.

In the Rich Ellerson era, the spring game at the US Military Academy has been mostly a low-key affair designed to give the 100-plus members of the Army team an opportunity to show what they can do under game conditions.  The game is the culmination of 15 spring practices held over 30 days' time.

Normally, the first-string players have a few series to work together as a unit.  Then the day is turned over to reserves and those competing for positions on special teams, the traveling roster and the scout team.

The trip to Fort Benning—located just outside Columbus, Georgia near the Alabama line—provides the Cadets a chance to see one of the Army's largest bases devoted to the training of the backbone of the Army, the infantry soldier. 

The players, coaches and staff will have a chance to tour the base, witness a basic training graduation day ceremony and visit the National Museum of the Infantry.

The game will be played at Doughboy Stadium originally built in 1924 to honor World War One soldiers.  The stadium seats about 8,500 fans and projects an Army like sense of history.  One of the base's early football coaches was West Point graduate and future President Dwight D. Eisenhower.  The base football team currently plays a six-game schedule as part of the base's recreation and morale-building activities.

The outing will be an opportunity for a large crowd of soldiers, families and more than a few alumni stationed at the base to see the Army's team practice and play a simulated game first hand.

West Point head Coach Rich Ellerson, the son of an Army officer,  is constantly making efforts to tie the football team to the Army as a whole. His players are expected to do all of the requirements of cadets, such as the annual march back for the freshman completing their own summer basic training. 

Speaking about the opportunity to play at Fort Benning, he commented in the Academy's release (via GoBlackKnights.com):

It’s something we’re anxious to do, it makes too much sense. As spring football games have become a little bit more of a media event, it’s a chance for us to showcase the program and articulate that connection with the U.S. Army.

The host of the event will be Maj. General Robert B. Brown. the Commanding General at Fort Benning, and a 1981 graduate of the US Military Academy.  Fort Benning is also known as the U.S. Army Maneuver Center of Excellence. 

It will be a great experience for us and hopefully for the folks at Fort Benning, continued coach Ellerson in the release, It’s a first-time thing. We had to get an exception from the NCAA, but it makes sense given the institutional relationships. We’ll see where it leads us.

For the Army football team, spring practice will focus on tuning up the experienced offense, which includes several key players who will be seniors next year—quarterback Trent Steelman, fullback Jared Hassin and guards Frank Allen and Matt Villanti. Many will be watching to see if Army adds more passing plays to its offense. 

West Point led the country in rushing last season averaging 346 yards per game.  Returning for his fourth year as a starter will be Trent Steelman.  It will be hard to get used to thinking of Steelman as a senior after years of watching him progress from the plebe who started every game as the QB to the vocal team leader walking up the sidelines encouraging his teammates. 

Many of the Black Knights who led the offensive attack this past year will be back, including now-junior fullback Jared Hassin.  The Wisconsin native can be expected to bounce back from injuries in 2011 that reduced his rushing total to 450 yards after over 1,000 in 2010. 

Also back will be Raymond Maples and Malcolm Brown, who both averaged over seven yards a carry and ran for a combined 1,600 yards.  Freshman Larry Dixon showed tremendous potential as fullback running for sharing duties with Hassin and running for 542 yards and five touchdowns.

Steelman remains as the go to runner in the red zone, leading the team in touchdowns in 2011 with 12, playing in only nine games.

One of the players to watch will be freshman Angel Santiago who is the heir apparent at quarterback for the 2013 season, and could play extensively if Steelman is injured—as it happened in the second half of 2011. 

Santiago is a talented runner who the coaching staff just felt needed more practice time to better handle the Army option offense. 

The defense will need to fill big holes at linebacker with the coming graduation of Steve Erzinger and Andrew Rodriquez.  Coach Ellerson told us Monday in taping our WVOX radio show that building up the defensive line, admittedly undersized in 2011, will be a priority. 

Last year, the defense depended on quite a few young players, who will improve their reactions and cohesiveness as a unit during spring practice.

Young players for West Point on defense this past year were highlighted by sophomore free safety Thomas Holloway, who was second on the team in tackles with 76.  Freshman middle linebacker Geoffrey Bacon had 60 tackles, as did sophomore safety Tyler Dickson. 

Three key seniors next year leading the defense will be veteran cornerback Josh Jackson, linebacker Nate Combs and nose tackle A.J. Mackey, who both were cornerstones in holding up the Black Knight defense in 2011. 

Jackson also was a reliable punt returner during the past season.   

Both Jackson and Mackey are from the Atlanta area, so this will be a homecoming for them.

Army head coach Rich Ellerson will be a guest in a two-part series on the Sons of the American Legion Radio Report broadcast on WVOX 1460 AM from New Rochelle, NY on Monday February 6th and 13th at 2:45 PM EST.  The interview can be heard nationally on WVOX.com.

Ken Kraetzer's Twitter address is SAL50NYRadio

We saw two weeks ago in Washington how special the Army-Navy rivalry really is.

We have heard the year-round cheers of "Beat Navy" at the US Military Academy and "Beat Army" at the US Naval Academy.  There are the pregame traditions, the bonfires, pep rallies, spirit videos and the goat and mule capers.  On game day we see the the Corps of Cadets and the Brigade of Midshipmen proudly "March On" to the playing field.  We see and hear the bands blasting at each other, parachute jumps, fly overs, color guards and attendance by the the most senior military leaders. 

This year we even had the President of the United States attend the game, flip the pregame coin, and cross midfield at halftime to spend half the game with each group of students and officials of the two Academies.

The game itself witnesses extreme competitiveness with three or four tacklers making every play, and the outcome remembered a lifetime by the seniors.    

But few outside of alumni, parents and military veterans have a true idea of what the demands of life at the service academies is really like.

Now we have a full length film to enjoy about the most special rivalry in sports.

Showtime has been working all year on a special full-length film based on recording events and conducting interviews at West Point and Annapolis. The show debuted December 21st on Showtime with subsequent rebroadcasts.  Video preview segments of the show are available here.

The show will cover a number of events we covered on our WVOX radio reports and Bleacherreport.com articles. They start with"R-Day", the day that 1,200 recent high school graduates and a number of soldiers from the field arrive at West Point to begin their training.  You will hear the unforgettable words every parent remembers for a lifetime.

"You have 90 seconds to say your good byes."

They present the parade of "New cadets" on the plain, which ends the R-Day. The "New Cadets" in their new uniforms demonstrate that they have already be shown the basics of how to march by parading in formation on the majestic grounds just above the Hudson River.

Freshman football player Terry Baggett from Chicago is followed as he is instructed by upperclassman James Whittingham of El Paso, Texas, who does not reveal that he is also a football player.

One scene they filmed, I witnessed in August followed a scrimmage at Michie Stadium.  Head Coach Rich Ellerson gave the team a talk about approaching the season, saying, "Turn of the score board, play the game one series, one play at a time."

The film interviews a number of extraordinary people such as Eric LeGrand, the Rutgers football player paralyzed after a collision with West Point's Malcolm Brown on a kickoff play last season.  The heart warming story of the supportive relationship that has developed between the Army players and Eric and his family is presented.

Another touching segment is an interview with Navy graduate LCDR Clayton Kendrick-Holmes, who is now the coach at the SUNY Maritime Academy in the Bronx, NY.  Last season LCDR Kendrick-Holmes received a letter saying he was being called up from the reserves to serve on the ground in Afghanistan for a full year. 

After the playoff game that followed an undefeated season, he left his family for training and was on a Christmas Day flight into the war in Afghanistan.  The deployment was cut short and LCDR Kendrick Holmes came back late in the summer just in time to coach his team again this year.

Then there is the game, Army trying desperately to break a nine-year streak by Navy.  The Annapolis team just as desperately not wanting to be the Navy team which lost the streak.  The result was an epic that went down to the last minute, as Army twice tied up the game and made late stands on defense to give themselves a chance.  

One of our radio colleagues, Craig Roberts, a retired Navy officer, and Media Relations Manager at The American Legion attended the the Tuesday night preview in Washington DC, provided us this review:

"Showtime’s A GAME OF HONOR is a wonderful work.  Assembled by Pete Radovich, Jr., the award-dripping creative director of CBS Sports,  this feature length – and unashamedly patriotic – documentary purports to tell the story of the ancient and fiercely intense Army-Navy football rivalry.  I say “purports” because the “GAME” in the title is a bit of a marketing ruse.  This is not a sports film.  It is much, much more than that.  It weaves sensitive stories of military families, wide-eyed plebes and cadets, jacked up athletes, fiercely proud warriors, friends old and new, and the common bond of national service into an evocative tapestry.

"Sure, A GAME OF HONOR has more than enough high-def images of crashing helmets and colliding shoulder pads accompanied by high decibel/high fidelity hoots, hollers, grunts, groans and occasional obscenities to satiate the hardcore sports fan. But, the feature-length film is balanced with a measure of pure and unselfconscious pathos in quiet, sometimes tearful tales of loneliness, courage, pride and familial bonding that compels and satisfies the viewer who doesn’t know – and doesn’t care to know – a tight end from a running back."

Thanks Craig.

Every football fan and American who interested in how military members and families prepare to serve will enjoy the show and probably watch the reruns several times. Both Academies are already counting down the days to the 2012 Army-Navy game in Philadelphia cheering every day,

"Beat Navy" and "Beat Army".

Ken Kraetzer covers West Point football and Iona basketball for WVOX radio 1460 AM in New Rochelle, NY and Sons of the American legion Radio. Quotes obtained for this article were first-hand.  His address on Twitter is http://twitter.com/SAL50NYRadio

West Point junior quarterback Trent Steelman looked crushed in the post game press conference.  He appeared to take the 27-21 loss to Navy as hard if not harder than the Army seniors.

Steelman came back to play from ankle and knee injuries which plagued the second half of his season.  Prior to that he had started 32 straight games for Army, every game since the first game of his freshman year.  When he has been injured during games, the trainers have to lock away his helmet to keep him off the field.

During games, more than any other Black Knight Steelman has inherited the Steve Anderson role of running up and down the bench exhorting his teammates to play harder and give every amount of effort.  Anderson was the emotional "holler guy" type linebacker who captained last year's team to a bowl victory. 

"Getting tired of almost," commented Steelman at the press conference looking frustrated, a bit dazed, like a player who had given his all and found it was not quite enough. As a junior he knows there will only be one more opportunity in his career to "Beat Navy" and it means twelve months of hard preparation amid all the requirements at the Academy.

No one at West Point wants to leave the program without beating Navy at least once.

This was a game that Army had a chance to win. They scored two second-quarter touchdowns to match the first quarter surge of two scores by Navy. They came back with a touchdown drive in the third quarter to match Navy's score off the second half kickoff. But it was not enough. Army lost three fumbles, which put them in a hole in both halves, forcing their defense to stay on the field.

Army head coach Rich Ellerson was asked if the close score indicated the two teams were closing in talent and competitiveness, he responded, "Sometimes being an inch away seems like a mile."

About his slotback Ray Maples, Ellerson said, "In practice he will hold on to a pitch 1,000 times."

Maples lost control of a first-half pitchout while being tackled by Jabaree Tuani. Navy converted that into a 26-yard touchdown drive in just six plays with a run by QB Kriss Proctor.

On their first drive of the day, the Middies ground out a 13-play, 58-yard drive that was stopped when Army defensive lineman Jacob Drozd forced a fumble of quarterback Kriss Proctor at the Army 19.

In the second quarter, down 14-0, Army made a comeback and took back the momentum in the game.  The Corps of Cadets was roaring in the stands. Trent Steelman ran 34 yards for a touchdown, looking like the leg injuries that have bothered him all year were non-existent.

After the Army defense held Navy to a three-and-out and forced a punt, Army went back to work, completing a 63-yard drive in seven plays with slotback Malcom Brown running five yards for a score to tie the game 14-14 at the half.  

Possibly the moment that will be remembered from this game was Navy senior fullback Alexander Teich deciding to take the second half kick for Navy him self. Teich took the kickoff and ran up the right side for 48 yards, crossing midfield to the Army 48. Navy went ahead 21-14 in five plays, capped off by a two yard run by Proctor.

Army came back and scored on their next drive with Steelman completing a 25-yard touchdown pass play to Brown. It looked liked Army had the momentum back.

Then another opportunity for Army. On Navy's next drive, Army linebacker Steve Erzinger forced Proctor to fumble, wich was recovered by Geoffrey Bacon. Army took over at the Navy 45. On a Dixon five-yard run, Army was called for a chop block, which moved the ball back into the Army half of the field. Army ended up punting, missing a chance to take the lead.

On the next drive, the Army defense would not break but could not get off the field. The Middies went on an 18-play drive, but could not score a touchdown. They settled for a 40-yard Jon Teague field goal. Navy led 24-21 with 12:03 left. It looked like Army might take the ball and march down the field once again. The Corps of Cadets was again roaring with anticipation of a drive that could give Army their first win in the series in 10 years.

Then another disaster happened—the kind that has plagued Army in recent seasons: second-half turnovers at the worst time.

On the Navy kickoff, otherwise steady Army return man Scott Williams caught the kick, ran 16 yards, and then fumbled, resulting in Navy taking over on the Army 27. The West Point defense was called on again to make a stop, and they delivered. After three attempts and no gain, Teague was again called on to kick a field goal, and he delivered with a kick from 44 yards out. 

Navy led 27-21with 10:26 to go. Army was still in the ballgame.

After Williams took the Navy kick to the Army 22, Steelman went to work. Steelman ran for 10 yards on the first play. Ray Maples converted a 3rd-and-1. Steelman completed a pass to Davyd Brooks for 13 yards to the Navy 40. It was getting exciting. Maples and Dixon combine to run for another first down at the Navy 28. 

Then Army bogged down.

On 2nd-and-6 from the 24, Steelman was sacked by Matt Warwick for a loss of five. Steelman got four back on third down. With time winding down in the game, the 4th-and-7 play was for the game.  Steelman was tackled behind the line of scrimmage again by Warwick and struggled for only a yard. 

Navy took over on downs with 4:31 left.

Army had a chance if they could stop Navy quickly. They almost did. On 4th-and-1 at their own 48, Navy lined up. They tried to get Army to jump, and they did. The right side of the Army line jumped offside. Navy had a first down and effectively the game. On the next set of downs, Navy was forced to punt, but Army had time for one play. After a Steelman to Brooks pass, time ran out on the Black Knights.

After the game, Navy coach Ken Niumatalolo expressed pride in his team and the leadership of his seniors,

"I am so proud of our seniors. Very few Navy players have ever been able to say that they went 4-0 against Army, but these kids gave everything they had and they can say it. This game could have gone either way and I feel very fortunate to be sitting here [in winner's press conference]."

Army senior captain Steve Erzinger had a game high in tackles in the game and a forced a fumble, but he was disappointed afterward. That is really that the right word. "I will have to live with the defeat," he said. Certainly a win over Navy would ihave been a wonderful capstone to his solid career at Army.

The game was marked by the appearance of many senior military officials of the Army, Navy and Marine Corps. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs General Martin Dempsey was there, along with Army Chief of Staff General Raymond Odierno.

The big visitor for the day was President Barack Obama, who flipped the ceremonial coin before the game. In another Army-Navy game tradition, President Obama left the Navy stands at halftime and crossed the field between lines of Cadets and Midshipmen. On the Army sideline, the President then shook hands with many Cadets and had his picture taken with the Army cheerleaders.

All in all a great day to be at Fed Ex Field. There is something really special to see the Corps of Cadets on one side of the field and the Navy Midshipman on the other. Army is disappointed about the loss; that is an understatement. It will sit with them for a long time.

Both teams can take pride in how they competed, and the inspiration and moment of fun they provided to members of the military watching from points all around the world.

Ken Kraetzer covers Army football and Iona basketball for WVOX 1460 AM in New Rochelle, NY and Sons of the American Legion Radio. Unless otherwise noted, all quotes were obtained first-hand.

Back in the mid-1940s, the Army football team had an outstanding backfield.

From 1944-46, the Black Knights went 27-0-1 and won three national championships behind Glenn Davis and Felix "Doc" Blanchard.

Blanchard won the Heisman Trophy in 1945, and Davis won the award the following year. Together, they were given the nickname "Mr. Inside and Mr. Outside."

Blanchard, "Mr. Inside," ran for 38 touchdowns and 1,908 yards in his college career. Davis, "Mr. Outside," ran for nearly 3,000 yards, had 850 receiving yards and even passed for 1,172 yards during his time at Army.

Davis and Blanchard were also the last set of teammates to win the Heisman Trophy in back-to-back years.

Though the numbers aren't that eye-popping, you have to keep in mind that what these two men accomplished in the mid-'40s was nothing short of amazing given the college football landscape at the time.

Back in this era of Army dominance, the forward pass was still regarded as a gimmick, much like the Tim Tebow-led Denver Broncos' option attack is now seen as a gimmick in the NFL today (though Army and Navy still run this offense pretty well in the college game).

Blanchard's 718 yards and 19 touchdowns were outstanding back in 1945, but in today's game, it wouldn't even register on the Heisman Trophy watch list.

That's more of a testament to the offensive shift we have seen over the past few decades than anything else. In 1945, Army's defense allowed only 46 points the entire season.

I'll say that again. In 1945, Army's defense allowed only 46 points the entire season. They allowed zero points in five of their nine games, an outstanding show of force.

So, the fact that Blanchard and Davis were able to put up huge offensive numbers in an era where points were very hard to come by speaks volumes for just how good they really were.

In the history of college football, there haven't been very many backfields that can consider themselves as equals to "Mr. Inside and Mr. Outside."

On the night of the 2011 Heisman Trophy presentation, it's important to take a look back and remember some of the other great players who have won the most prestigious award in college football.

A record of 27-0-1 is a three-year stretch of dominance that today's college football teams can only dream of accomplishing.