Army seeks second straight win over Navy
PHILADELPHIA — Jeff Monken’s second season at Army in 2015 ended with 10 losses and a record 14th straight defeat to Navy.
While it pointed to more of the same for a struggling program, Monken was confident a West Point turnaround was imminent thanks to successful recruiting and the number of close losses.
Turns out, he was right. Monken guided Army to a long-awaited and emotional comeback win over Navy last season followed by a bowl victory. On what could be a snowy renewal one of the nation’s top rivalries, the Black Knights (8-3) enter the 118th meeting with Navy on Saturday as a bowl-bound team again, holding a better record than the Midshipmen (6-5) for the first time since 2001.
“The cadets have fully bought into what he’s doing,” Army athletic director Boo Corrigan said.
Behind their humming triple-option offense, the Black Knights strung together six straight wins before a 52-49 loss at North Texas in their last game Nov. 18. Army has won 11 of its past 14 and clinched consecutive winning seasons for the first time since 1989-90.
“It’s good for our football team to feel confident,” said Monken, one of eight finalists for the Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year Award.
Senior quarterback Ahmad Bradshaw, who scored the go-ahead touchdown against Navy in the fourth quarter of last year’s 21-17 victory in Baltimore, has an Army single-season record 1,472 yards rushing.
Securing a second straight win over Navy for the first time since 1996 in what’s billed as “America’s Game” won’t be easy. The Midshipmen, who have played a tougher schedule, started 5-0 and spent a week at No. 25 in the AP Poll before dropping five of six.
Navy, which lost 31-21 to unbeaten Central Florida and 24-17 to Notre Dame, leads the series 60-50-7.
For an added twist, the forecast calls for accumulating snow for most of the day Saturday.
Quarterback Zach Abey, who made his first college start last year against Army, has a team-best 1,322 yards rushing and 14 touchdowns along with seven TD passes. Speedy Malcolm Perry, who has 1,437 all-purpose yards and 10 touchdowns, has also played some QB.
“People ask because you lost last year, do you want to win more?” said Navy coach Ken Niumatalolo, who is 8-1 against Army. “It never changes. There’s no added motivation. It’s Army.”