Come on Vanderbilt, knock off somebody good. You came close against South Carolina. You still have Georgia Tech, Florida and Tennessee (Kentucky too, but they do not count) on the schedule. You can do it. Pull the upset!
Why the love for the Commodores? Because the hard-charging group of young cadets of Army (3-5) knocked them off earlier this season and those kids deserve to say that they beat the team that beat someone. I am sure they could care less, of course. Should they win two more games this season they will reach the five victory mark for the first time since the 1996 squad won a whopping 10 games. That seems like ages ago, but this squad is making progress under new coach Rich Ellerson. I was able to see the Black Knights play last Friday—it was my first night game at Michie Stadium—and they held their own for long stretches of time against a superior Rutgers team. I know “holding your own against Rutgers” does not sound like much, but you have to walk before you can run and the Cadets are strolling quite comfortably. They still have games against Air Force and Navy, who combined to beat Army 50-7 last season—and it will be good to chart their progress against their biggest rivals.
Navy (6-2) is playing at such a high level that they will be tough to beat for Army or for that matter Notre Dame on November 7. The team’s only two losses were against Ohio State and Pittsburgh and they proved the last two weeks that they can win in different styles. Two games ago they knocked off an improved SMU squad on the road in OT, 38-35. Last week they went up against an underachieving yet still solid Wake Forest team. And they had to beat them in the rain and without injured QB Ricky Dobbs, who has made a name for himself this year with his brilliant play. So the Midshipmen won a defensive struggle, 13-10, with soph QB Kriss Proctor celebrating his first-ever start by scoring the eventual winning TD on a 40y run in the 3rd Q. Navy and Wake have now split the four games they have played in the past three seasons, including the Deamon Deacons’ 27-17 win in the EagleBank Bowl last December.
Notre Dame (5-2) can begin preparing for Navy as they have woeful Washington State on the schedule for this week at the Alamodome. Of course, the Irish remember their loss last year to Syracuse so they will play hard in this game. The Irish do not have a particularly easy November, with road trips to Pittsburgh and Stanford (both 4-0 at home) wrapped around home games against Navy and Connecticut. They need to roll over the Cougars big or fall out of the rankings again. And this contest may be the final chance to give the young subs some meaningful playing time. This is especially true for QB Dayne Crist, who would take over next year if QB Jimmy Clausen turns pro.
Why the love for the Commodores? Because the hard-charging group of young cadets of Army (3-5) knocked them off earlier this season and those kids deserve to say that they beat the team that beat someone. I am sure they could care less, of course. Should they win two more games this season they will reach the five victory mark for the first time since the 1996 squad won a whopping 10 games. That seems like ages ago, but this squad is making progress under new coach Rich Ellerson. I was able to see the Black Knights play last Friday—it was my first night game at Michie Stadium—and they held their own for long stretches of time against a superior Rutgers team. I know “holding your own against Rutgers” does not sound like much, but you have to walk before you can run and the Cadets are strolling quite comfortably. They still have games against Air Force and Navy, who combined to beat Army 50-7 last season—and it will be good to chart their progress against their biggest rivals.
Navy (6-2) is playing at such a high level that they will be tough to beat for Army or for that matter Notre Dame on November 7. The team’s only two losses were against Ohio State and Pittsburgh and they proved the last two weeks that they can win in different styles. Two games ago they knocked off an improved SMU squad on the road in OT, 38-35. Last week they went up against an underachieving yet still solid Wake Forest team. And they had to beat them in the rain and without injured QB Ricky Dobbs, who has made a name for himself this year with his brilliant play. So the Midshipmen won a defensive struggle, 13-10, with soph QB Kriss Proctor celebrating his first-ever start by scoring the eventual winning TD on a 40y run in the 3rd Q. Navy and Wake have now split the four games they have played in the past three seasons, including the Deamon Deacons’ 27-17 win in the EagleBank Bowl last December.
Notre Dame (5-2) can begin preparing for Navy as they have woeful Washington State on the schedule for this week at the Alamodome. Of course, the Irish remember their loss last year to Syracuse so they will play hard in this game. The Irish do not have a particularly easy November, with road trips to Pittsburgh and Stanford (both 4-0 at home) wrapped around home games against Navy and Connecticut. They need to roll over the Cougars big or fall out of the rankings again. And this contest may be the final chance to give the young subs some meaningful playing time. This is especially true for QB Dayne Crist, who would take over next year if QB Jimmy Clausen turns pro.
I, too, coincidentally was at the Army-Rutgers barnburner (washout) last Friday night, and enjoyed seeing Army make a game of it in the second half, pulling to within seven at 17-10. It was a shame, however, to see the Black Knights continually kill themselves with inopportune turnovers. A series of miscues throughout, but especially at the critical juncture of getting back in the game down only a touchdown, made the Battle of Knights hard to watch at times (as well as the deluge of water falling from the sky). Army's chances vanished as a bigger, faster Scarlet Knights team made them pay for a lack of fundamentals.
ReplyDeleteNonetheless, I will say it was a joy to see a team run the ball as much as Army did from beginning to end. I know that strategy is implemented greatly due to the lack of a skilled passing game, but no matter it was good to see a ballclub rush the ball as more than just a token gesture. As a fan of the old wishbone, wing-T, and quarterback, halfback and triple option formations, I felt a little nostalgic watching the home team take it right to the D. Football in the trenches - call me a sentimentalist, but that's what it's all about.
Wasn't Rutgers supposed to be on the verge of becoming a football powerhouse? Whatever happened to that? I guess the experts crowning Schiano a genius proved to be a little premature. Right about now he's wishing he had returned to Miami. It just goes to show that college football is desperate for a Northeast team (i.e. New York region)to finally step up, but it's not going to happen anytime soon.
ReplyDeleteMaybe the Fordham Rams will pick up the slack. I hear that the seven blocks of granite all have grandsons that are willing to play at Rose Hill and return the Rams to pre-War glory.
ReplyDeleteAnd don't forget, scholarships start next year!