| Army Black Knights football | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| |||
 | |||
| First season | 1890; 135 years ago | ||
| Athletic director | Tom Theodorakis | ||
| Head coach | Jeff Monken 12th season, 87–62 (.584) | ||
| Stadium | Michie Stadium (capacity: 36,000) | ||
| Year built | 1924 | ||
| Location | West Point, New York | ||
| NCAA division | Division I FBS | ||
| Conference | The American | ||
| All-time record | 740–548–51 (.572) | ||
| Bowl record | 8–3 (.727) | ||
| Claimed national titles | |||
| 1914,1916,1944,1945,1946[1] | |||
| National finalist | |||
| 1944,1945 | |||
| Conference titles | |||
| American:2024 | |||
| Heisman winners | Doc Blanchard – 1945 Glenn Davis – 1946 Pete Dawkins – 1958 | ||
| Consensus All-Americans | 37 | ||
| Rivalries | Air Force (CiCT) Navy (rivalry,CiCT) Notre Dame (rivalry) | ||
| Current uniform | |||
 | |||
| Colors | Black, gold, and gray[2] | ||
| Fight song | On, Brave Old Army Team | ||
| Mascot | Army Mules | ||
| Marching band | United States Military Academy Band | ||
| Outfitter | Nike | ||
| Website | GoArmyWestPoint.com | ||
TheArmy Black Knights football team, historically known as theArmy Cadets, represents theUnited States Military Academy incollege football. The Black Knights team competes in theFootball Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of theNational Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) as a member of theAmerican Conference. The Black Knights play home games inMichie Stadium with a capacity of 36,000 on the Academy grounds inWest Point, New York. The Black Knights are coached byJeff Monken, who has held the position since 2014.
Army claims fivenational championships, including twoAP Trophies in1944 and1945.[1] Army has produced 24 players and four coaches in theCollege Football Hall of Fame, 37 consensus All-Americans, and threeHeisman Trophy winners:Doc Blanchard (1945),Glenn Davis (1946), andPete Dawkins (1958).[3]
With the exception of seven seasons (1998–2004) when the team was a member ofConference USA, Army competed as anindependent, meaning that they had no affiliation with any conference. They started to compete in the American Athletic Conference, now known as the American Conference, as a football-only member in 2024. For all other sports Army is primarily a member of thePatriot League.
Army competes with their historic rivalsNavy in theArmy–Navy Game, traditionally the final game of the college football regular season. The three major service academies—Army, Navy, andAir Force—compete for theCommander-in-Chief's Trophy; Army has won the award ten times, most recently in 2023.
Army'sfootball program began on November 29, 1890, whenNavy challenged the cadets to a game of the relatively new sport. Navy defeated Army at West Point that year, but Army avenged the loss inAnnapolis the following year.[4] The academies still clash every December in what is traditionally the last regular-season Division I college-football game.
Army's football team reached its pinnacle of success during the Second World War under coachEarl Blaik when Army won three consecutive national championships in 1944, 1945 and 1946, and produced twoHeisman Trophy winners:Doc Blanchard (1945),Glenn Davis (1946). From 1944 to 1950, the Cadets had 57 wins, 3 losses and 4 ties. During this time span, Army won three national championships.[5] Army produced a third Heisman trophy winner in 1958 whenPete Dawkins took the honors.[6]
Past NFL coachesVince Lombardi[7] andBill Parcells[8] were Army assistant coaches early in their careers.
The football team plays its home games atMichie Stadium, where the playing field is named after Earl Blaik. Cadets' attendance is mandatory at football games and the Corps stands for the duration of the game. At all home games, one of the four regiments marches onto the field in formation before the team takes the field and leads the crowd in traditional Army cheers. Two of the regiments are tasked with performing the morning parade while the last regiment is tasked with ancillary stadium duties.[9]
For many years, Army teams were known as the "Cadets." In the 1940s, several papers called the football team "the Black Knights of the Hudson." From then on, "Cadets" and "Black Knights" were used interchangeably until 1999, when the team was officially nicknamed the Black Knights. Individual cadets as well as groups of cadets to include the entire team are still often referred to as "Cadet" or "The Cadets" with regard to athletic events.
Between the 1998 and 2004 seasons, Army's football program was a member ofConference USA, but starting with the 2005 season Army reverted to its former independent status.[10] Army competes with Navy andAir Force for theCommander-in-Chief's Trophy. In 2024, Army began competing in the American Athletic Conference, renamed in 2025 to American Conference. While Air Force plays in theMountain West Conference, Navy has been a football member of the American since 2015. The regular season matchup between Army and Navy is contested as a non-conference matchup after the conference championship game and therefore does not affect conference standings.
Army has won five national championships from NCAA-designated major selectors, including twice (1944,1945) from theAP Poll.[11]: 108–115 [1]
| Year | Coach | Selectors | Record | Final AP | Final Coaches |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1914 | Charles Daly | Helms, Parke Davis, Houlgate, National Championship Foundation[11]: 111 | 9–0 | – | – |
| 1916 | Parke Davis[11]: 111 | 9–0 | – | – | |
| 1944 | Earl Blaik | AP, Berryman, Billingsley, Boand, DeVold, Dunkel, Football Research, Helms, Houlgate, Litkenhous, National Championship Foundation, Poling, Sagarin, Williamson[11]: 111 | 9–0 | No. 1 | – |
| 1945 | AP, Berryman, Billingsley MOV, Boand, DeVold, Dunkel, Football Research, Helms, Houlgate, Litkenhous, National Championship Foundation, Poling, Sagarin, Sagarin (ELOChess), Williamson[11]: 112 | 9–0 | – | ||
| 1946 | Billingsley, Boand, Football Research, Helms, Houlgate, Poling[11]: 112 | 9–0–1 | No. 2 | – |
| Season | Conference | Coach | Conference record | Overall record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | American Athletic Conference | Jeff Monken | 8–0 | 11–2 |
TheLambert-Meadowlands Trophy (known as theLambert Trophy), established in 1936, is an annual award given to the best team in theEast in Division IFBS (formerly I-A)college football and is presented by the Metropolitan New York Football Writers. Army has won the Lambert Trophy nine times; seven times under head coach Earl "Red" Blaik in the 1940s and 1950s, and twice under head coach Jeff Monken in 2018 and 2020.[12][13]
| Year | Coach | Record | Final AP rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1944 | Earl Blaik | 9–0 | #1 |
| 1945 | Earl Blaik | 9–0 | #1 |
| 1946 | Earl Blaik | 9–0–1 | #2 |
| 1948 | Earl Blaik | 8–0–1 | #6 |
| 1949 | Earl Blaik | 9–0 | #4 |
| 1953 | Earl Blaik | 7–1–1 | #14 |
| 1958 | Earl Blaik | 8–0–1 | #3 |
| 2018 | Jeff Monken | 11–2 | #19 |
| 2020 | Jeff Monken | 9–3 | NR |
Army has played in 11 bowl games. They have a record of 8–3.
| Season | Coach | Bowl | Date | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | Jim Young | Cherry Bowl | December 22, 1984 | Michigan State | W 10–6 |
| 1985 | Peach Bowl | December 31, 1985 | Illinois | W 31–29 | |
| 1988 | Sun Bowl | December 24, 1988 | Alabama | L 28–29 | |
| 1996 | Bob Sutton | Independence Bowl | December 31, 1996 | Auburn | L 29–32 |
| 2010 | Rich Ellerson | Armed Forces Bowl | December 30, 2010 | SMU | W 16–14 |
| 2016 | Jeff Monken | Heart of Dallas Bowl | December 27, 2016 | North Texas | W 38–31OT |
| 2017 | Armed Forces Bowl | December 23, 2017 | San Diego State | W 42–35 | |
| 2018 | Armed Forces Bowl | December 22, 2018 | Houston | W 70–14 | |
| 2020 | Liberty Bowl | December 31, 2020 | West Virginia | L 21–24 | |
| 2021 | Armed Forces Bowl | December 22, 2021 | Missouri | W 24–22 | |
| 2024 | Independence Bowl | December 28, 2024 | Louisiana Tech | W 27–6 |
The NCAA's football oversight committee determined the number of primary bowl tie-ins for each FBS conference and FBS independent for the 2020–2025 bowl cycle using eligibility data from the 2014–2017 seasons.[14] The Black Knights received one guaranteed tie-in per year. On October 24, 2019, the West Point Athletic Department announced that they had agreed to a contract that placed their team, if eligible, in theIndependence Bowl for three of the six years, with the remaining years being contracted to anESPN Events-owned bowl.[15][16]
The contract includes a clause that allows Army the ability to accept a bid from a different bowl game once during the three-year agreement with the Independence Bowl and once during the three-year agreement with ESPN Events. Aligning with this, on November 5 Army announced that it had agreed to a secondary contractual tie-in with theDuke's Mayo Bowl.[17] It agreed that it would serve as the primary backup for the bowl and would have the opportunity to accept an invitation to the game twice during the six-year cycle. The Duke's Mayo Bowl's primary tie-ins for the 2020–2025 cycle are theACC (all years), theSEC (odd years), and theBig Ten (even years); if any of those conferences were unable to place a team into the bowl during any of those years, Army would be extended an invitation to fill their place. The opponent conferences for the Independence Bowl were announced to be thePac-12 and theAmerican on January 30, 2020.[18][19]
| Season | Bowl | Opponent |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Independence Bowl | Pac-12 |
| 2021 | ESPN Owned and Operated Bowl | – |
| 2022 | Independence Bowl | American |
| 2023 | ESPN Owned and Operated Bowl | – |
| 2024 | Independence Bowl | Pac-12 |
| 2025 | ESPN Owned and Operated Bowl | – |
TheDuke's Mayo Bowl can extend an invitation to Army once during the even years (2020, 2022, 2026) and once during the odd years (2021, 2023, 2025) to fill a vacancy as part of a secondary tie-in.
ESPN Events operates the following 16 bowls that Army could be invited to during odd years of the cycle:
| Coach | Years | Seasons | Games | Record | Pct. | Bowl Games |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dennis Michie† | 1890, 1892 | 1 | 6 | 3–2–1 | .583 | |
| Henry L. Williams | 1891 | 1 | 7 | 5–1–1 | .786 | |
| Laurie Bliss | 1893 | 1 | 9 | 4–5 | .444 | |
| Harmon S. Graves | 1894–1895 | 2 | 14 | 10–4 | .714 | |
| George P. Dyer | 1896 | 1 | 6 | 3–2–1 | .583 | |
| Herman Koehler | 1897–1900 | 4 | 33 | 19–11–3 | .621 | |
| Leon Kromer | 1901 | 1 | 8 | 5–1–2 | .750 | |
| Dennis E. Nolan | 1902 | 1 | 8 | 6–1–1 | .813 | |
| Edward Leonard King | 1903 | 1 | 9 | 6–2–1 | .722 | |
| Robert Boyers | 1904–1905 | 2 | 18 | 11–6–1 | .639 | |
| Henry Smither | 1906–1907 | 2 | 10 | 7–2–1 | .750 | |
| Ernest Graves, Sr. | 1906, 1912 | 2 | 16 | 7–8–1 | .469 | |
| Harry Nelly | 1908–1910 | 3 | 22 | 15–5–2 | .727 | |
| Joseph Beacham | 1911 | 1 | 8 | 6–1–1 | .813 | |
| Charles Dudley Daly | 1913–1916, 1919–1922 | 8 | 74 | 58–13–3 | .804 | |
| Geoffrey Keyes | 1917 | 1 | 8 | 7–1 | .875 | |
| Hugh Mitchell | 1918 | 1 | 1 | 1–0 | 1.000 | |
| John McEwan | 1923–1925 | 3 | 26 | 18–5–3 | .750 | |
| Biff Jones | 1926–1929 | 4 | 40 | 30–8–2 | .775 | |
| Ralph Sasse | 1930–1932 | 3 | 32 | 25–5–2 | .813 | |
| Garrison H. Davidson | 1933–1937 | 5 | 47 | 35–11–1 | .755 | |
| William H. Wood | 1938–1940 | 3 | 28 | 12–13–1 | .481 | |
| Earl Blaik | 1941–1958 | 18 | 164 | 121–33–10 | .768 | |
| Dale Hall | 1959–1961 | 3 | 29 | 16–11–2 | .586 | |
| Paul Dietzel | 1962–1965 | 4 | 40 | 21–18–1 | .538 | |
| Tom Cahill | 1966–1973 | 8 | 81 | 40–39–2 | .506 | |
| Homer Smith | 1974–1978 | 5 | 55 | 21–33–1 | .391 | |
| Lou Saban | 1979 | 1 | 11 | 2–8–1 | .227 | |
| Ed Cavanaugh | 1980–1982 | 3 | 33 | 10–21–2 | .333 | |
| Jim Young | 1983–1990 | 8 | 91 | 51–39–1 | .566 | 3 |
| Bob Sutton | 1991–1999 | 9 | 100 | 44–55–1 | .445 | 1 |
| Todd Berry | 2000–2003 | 4 | 41 | 5–36 | .122 | |
| John Mumford | 2003 | 1 | 6 | 0–6 | .000 | |
| Bobby Ross | 2004–2006 | 3 | 34 | 9–25 | .265 | |
| Stan Brock | 2007–2008 | 2 | 24 | 6–18 | .250 | |
| Rich Ellerson | 2009–2013 | 5 | 61 | 20–41 | .328 | 1 |
| Jeff Monken | 2014–present | 11 | 141 | 83–58 | .589 | 6 |
† Dennis Michie coached 1 game in 1890, and then coached a full season in 1892.
Air Force, Army, and Navy have played each other every year since 1972 for the Commander-in Chief's Trophy. Air Force leads the FBS service academies with 21 victories, Navy has 16 victories, and Army has 10 victories, with the trophy being shared 5 times. Navy is the current holder of the trophy.
Air Force and Army meet annually and vie for the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy. Air Force leads Army 38–19–1 through the 2023 season.[20] In a shocking upset Army defeated Air Force on November 4, 2023, in Denver at Empower Field. Air Force was nationally ranked and undefeated going into the game. Army prevailed 23–3.[21]
After the Navy–Notre Dame game was canceled in 2020, the Army–Air Force game became the longest uninterrupted intersectional rivalry in college football.
Army andNavy play each other annually in the Army–Navy game, which is also a part of the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy. This series is one of the NCAA's oldest and most traditional rivalries. They first met in 1890, and have played each other annually since 1930. The games are generally played at a neutral site. Navy leads the series 63–55–7 through the 2024 season.[22]
Notre Dame is a rivalry which some feel[according to whom?] has fallen into obscurity. In much of the early 20th century, Army and Notre Dame were considered football powerhouses, and met 34 times between 1913 and 1947. Though the rivalry has slowed down, they last met in 2024, with Notre Dame winning 49-14. Many media members considered the1946 contest to be the "Game of the Century".[23] Notre Dame leads the series 39–8–4 through the 2018 season.[24]
Michie Stadium, which opened in 1924, is the home stadium of theArmy Black Knights inWest Point, New York. The stadium is named after the first Army football head coach,Dennis Michie. In 1999, the field was renamed Blaik Field at Michie Stadium in honor of former coachEarl Blaik.
In 1999,Sports Illustrated ranked Michie Stadium the third-best sports venue of the 20th century.[25]
Songs
Alma Mater is the Army's school song. Army's fight song is "On, Brave Old Army Team". Army also plays other organized cheers; Army Rocket Yell, Black, Gold, and Gray, and USMA Cheer.[26]
Mascot
Army's mascots are theArmy Mules. While dating back to 1899, they were officially adopted as mascots by West Point in 1936.[27]
The following four individuals have been inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame as coaches.
| Name | Position | Years at Army | Inducted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Biff Jones | HC | 1926–1929 | 1954 |
| Earl "Red" Blaik | HC | 1941–1958 | 1964 |
| Jim Young | HC | 1983–1999 | 1999 |
| Henry L. Williams | HC | 1891 | 1951 |
The following 24 individuals have been inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame as players. Daly and McEwan also served as Army's head coach.
| Name | Position | Years at Army | Inducted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Charlie Daly | QB | 1901–1902 | 1951 |
| Chris Cagle | HB | 1926–1929 | 1954 |
| Ed Garbisch | C/OG | 1921–1924 | 1954 |
| Elmer Oliphant | FB | 1916–1917 | 1955 |
| Glenn Davis | HB | 1943–1946 | 1961 |
| John McEwan | C | 1913–1916 | 1962 |
| Doc Blanchard | FB | 1944–1946 | 1964 |
| Paul Bunker | HB/OT | 1901–1902 | 1969 |
| Harry Wilson | HB | 1924 | 1973 |
| Barney Poole | TE/DE | 1944–1946 | 1974 |
| Alex Weyand | OT | 1914–1915 | 1974 |
| Pete Dawkins | HB | 1956–1958 | 1975 |
| Harvey Jablonsky | OG | 1931–1933 | 1978 |
| Bud Sprague | OT | 1926–1927 | 1979 |
| Bill Carpenter | TE | 1957–1959 | 1982 |
| Arnold Galiffa | QB | 1947–1949 | 1983 |
| Doug Kenna | QB | 1942–1944 | 1984 |
| Don Holleder | End/QB | 1953–1955 | 1985 |
| Robin Olds | T | 1941–1942 | 1985 |
| Joe Steffy | OG | 1945–1947 | 1987 |
| John Green | OG | 1943–1945 | 1989 |
| Frank Merritt | OT | 1942–1943 | 1996 |
| Bob Anderson | HB | 1957–1959 | 2004 |
| Arnold Tucker | QB | 1945–1946 | 2008 |
President of the United States and General of the ArmyDwight D. Eisenhower and General of the ArmyOmar Bradley were on the 1912 Army football team. Eisenhower was injured and his football career was over by 1913, when the two future generals were juniors. Bradley, a star of the Army baseball team for four years, was on the field in 1913 when Notre Dame upset Army in a historic college football game in which the forward pass was used for the first time. Bradley played end opposite the legendaryKnute Rockne, the Notre Dame end who later coached the Irish to national championships before dying in a plane crash near Bazaar, Kansas, on Easter Friday in 1931.
| Army Black Knights retired numbers | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Player | Pos. | Tenure | No. ret. | Ref. |
| 24 | Pete Dawkins | HB | 1956–1958 | 2008 | [28][29] |
| 35 | Doc Blanchard | FB | 1944–1946 | 2009 | [28][29] |
| 41 | Glenn Davis | HB | 1943–1946 | 2005 | [29][28] |
| 61 | Joe Steffy | G | 1945–1947 | 2009 | [29][28] |
Schedules as of September 4, 2025.[40]
| 2025 | 2026 | 2027 | 2028 | 2029 | 2030 | 2031 | 2032 | 2033 | 2034 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tarleton State(FCS) | atBoston College | The Citadel | atOld Dominion | atMiddle Tennessee | Old Dominion | ||||
| atKansas State | Air Force | atAir Force | atMissouri | Eastern Michigan | Cincinnati | atUMass | atTroy | ||
| atAir Force | atWake Forest | atUConn | Air Force | atAir Force | Air Force | atAir Force | Air Force | atAir Force | Air Force |
| vs.Navy1 | vs.Navy2 | vs.Navy3 | vs.Navy4 | vs.Navy4 | vs.Navy4 | vs.Navy4 | vs.Navy4 | vs.Navy4 | vs.Navy4 |
Radio rights are held byLearfield through Army West Point Sports Properties, ajoint venture with the USMA, and arebranded on-air as the "Army Sports Network from Learfield".Pamal Broadcasting-ownedWGHQ inKingston, New York serves as the network's flagship station.
3 National Championships (1944, 1945, & 1946)
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