Author: Max McClean
It's one of the biggest and most prestigious rivalries in all of sports. This year, for the 125th time, as the lone game on the last Saturday to conclude the college football regular season, the No. 22 Army Black Knights will meet the Navy Midshipmen to compete for the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy. The series has been historically won by Navy, 62-55-7. However, the Black Knights have won six of the last eight meetings and are looking for their seventh.
The No. 22 Black Knights (11-1) have thrived in their inaugural season in the AAC, securing the conference championship with a 35-14 win over Tulane last week, something Navy has yet to accomplish since joining the conference back in 2015. The Midshipmen (8-3) are having a strong season as well, and are hoping to reclaim the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy for the first time since 2019 with a win on Saturday. Army is looking to shut down those hopes and make it three wins in a row to reclaim the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy.
Army (11-1, 8-0 AAC)
With any service academy, you can expect that Army will not be throwing the ball a lot. Army quarterback Bryson Daily has only thrown for 877 yards in 12 games, averaging 73 yards per game. In half of their games this year, Daily threw for less than 60 yards. This was the story for Daily and Army last year as well, with only 913 yards and an abysmal 50% completion rate. This year, he has improved his completion percentage to 57%, but it still ranks at the bottom of the AAC.
If Army wants to win this game, they need to leverage their strength: the No. 1 rushing offense in the country, averaging over 300 yards per game. Quarterback Bryson Daily leads the way with 1,480 yards and 29 touchdowns, tying him with Heisman hopeful Ashton Jeanty for the most rushing scores in the nation. Daily is accompanied by running back Kanye Udoh, who is closely behind Daily with 1,064 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns.
Somewhat ironically, Army is incredibly disciplined with the ball, having only turned it over five times this season, the fewest in college football. The Black Knights also hold opponents to just 15 points per game, ranking in the top 10 alongside powerhouses like Tennessee, Ohio State, and Texas.
If Army wants to win this game, they need to leverage their strength: the No. 1 rushing offense in the country. They must also stay disciplined and play strong defense, if they can do this the Black Knights are well-positioned to secure a victory.
Navy (11-1, 6-2 AAC)
Navy started the season 6-0, led by dual-threat QB Blake Horvath, a standout by service academy standards. He's thrown for 1,154 yards, the most for a Navy quarterback since 2019. Like Army, he also leads his team in rushing yards, with 895, while running back Alex Tecza leads the backfield with 501 yards, with several other players sitting in the 250-500 yard range. This success comes from running a lot of option handoffs and QB keepers.
A key benefit for both teams in their game plan will be focusing primarily on the run. For Navy, getting back to the strong defense that fueled their 6-0 start will be crucial. However, in recent weeks, their defense has wavered, allowing 20+ points in five of their last six games. Navy does get to the quarterback at a decent rate, averaging two sacks per game, ranking 58th in the nation.
For Navy to succeed, they’ll need to regain the defensive form that propelled their early-season success, and get to Army QB Bryson Daily. If they can tighten up defensively and stop the run, they’ll be in a strong position to challenge Army’s powerful ground game.
Prediction
Army’s strong rushing attack and disciplined play on both sides of the ball will give them the upper hand. Quarterback Bryson Daily and running back Kanye Udoh give Army the ability to dominate possession and wear down Navy's defense. Although. Army’s ability to limit turnovers and control the tempo of the game, combined with their solid defense, and run option play will allow them to handle Navy.