Feinstein's Findings: In All, A Good Day

It wasn't at all surprising that Army football coach Jeff Monken had steam coming out of his ears Saturday afternoon at Michie Stadium when he stopped for his halftime talk with Tony Morino, the sideline reporter for the Army radio network.

"It's a good thing there aren't any cameras or microphones in our locker room," was Monken's opening line. He was unhappy with his defense; upset with his offense and furious with his punter. "One of the most bonehead plays I've ever seen," he fumed. Then he relented for a moment, not wanting to throw Nick Schrage completely under the bus. "The kid was just trying to make a play," he added. "We will fix this, RIGHT NOW."

With that, he was off to fix it.

At that moment, Army was leading Lafayette, 35-7.

Fair to say, Monken wasn't looking around at the beautiful day, the sellout crowd or the changing leaves.

He wasn't even thinking about the second half. He was thinking of the next five weeks when, to a large degree, the fate of this season will be decided.

Lafayette was the perfect homecoming opponent, especially for a team that was coming off two extremely frustrating losses. The Leopards hadn't played an FBS opponent since a 1997 loss to Army and they were 1-5, coming off a loss to Fordham in which they gave up 516 yards rushing. After failing to move the ball in the monsoon at Duke a week earlier, Lafayette's defense should have been the perfect tonic for the Black Knights.

Of course SHOULD may be the most dangerous word in the jock vernacular. Coaches run from the room when they hear someone say, 'your team SHOULD…'

Monken could certainly attest to that. His team SHOULD have won at Yale in 2014; it SHOULD have beaten Fordham in the season opener in 2015 and it SHOULD have dominated Bucknell—like Lafayette, a Patriot League team—last October. Instead, the Cadets lost to Yale, lost to Fordham and had to rally in the fourth quarter to beat Bucknell.

Which is why Saturday's 62-7 win, which raised Army's record to 4-2, shouldn't simply be shrugged off as a predictable result against a weak opponent. When you are building a program, not every step is Neil Armstrong-like. Army did just about everything it SHOULD have done on Saturday: it took control from the beginning, Ahmad Bradshaw racing 60-yards down the sideline on the fourth play from scrimmage for a quick 7-0 lead. It scored touchdowns the first five times it had the ball. It gave up almost nothing on the ground to the Leopards—one first down all day—and it didn't let up at all once Monken got done, 'fixing things,' in the locker room.

In all, a good day.

So why was Monken so upset at the break?

Several reasons.

1. He didn't like the defense letting down with a 35-0 lead and surrendering Lafayette's one touchdown of the day on a 75- yard drive that allowed the Leopards to get on the scoreboard.
2. He wasn't at all pleased that the offense had TWO penalties on one play during the next series, leading to a 2nd-and-44 (seriously) forcing Army's only punt of the game.
3. He was furious with Schrage for taking so much time to get off that punt that the Lafayette defense got to him, forcing him to try to run. Ultimately, he fumbled and the Leopards took over on the 11-yard-line, which didn't lead to another touchdown in large part because of an offensive pass interference that left the Lafayette coaches apopleptic.
4. The Black Knights, who were virtually penalty-free the first three games, have taken far too many penalties the last three weeks. Six penalties for 64 yards won't hurt you against Lafayette. They will against tougher opponents.

In a sense, the Keystone Kops routine of the last few minutes of the half were a boon to Monken—even though he didn't view it that way in the moment. It gave him a legitimate reason to jump on his players for being sloppy and un-focused. You can bet minutes 26 to 30 of this game will be discussed in the coming week a lot more than the joyride of the game's other 56 minutes.

Good coaches rarely focus for very long on impressive stats—which Army had plenty of on Saturday. Monken and his players know that 538 yards rushing and 671 yards in total offense—including two pretty touchdown passes thrown by Chris Carter—make for a fun day for the homecoming crowd and a justifiably enjoyable Saturday night for all the cadets.

But none of the points or yards roll over to next Saturday when North Texas comes to town—or to the three weeks after that—when the schedule says, at Wake Forest; Air Force; Notre Dame in San Antonio.

Monken also has to, all of a sudden, be concerned with the fullback position. Andy Davidson and Darnell Woolfolk both performed wonderfully in the three season-opening wins, but Woolfolk has missed the last two games with an ankle injury and Davidson came out after one carry (for 11 yards) on Saturday with what appeared to be a leg injury. Cole Macek filled in admirably, rushing for 111 yards and a touchdown, but the quality of the defense has to be factored in when analyzing his play.

Monken said after the game he didn't know how serious Davidson's injury was but that he hoped he'd be able to play against North Texas.

The Cadets need their fullbacks healthy. They are already without their best wide receiver, Edgar Poe, whose absence was felt in both the Buffalo and Duke games, and hope he will be back in time for the Air Force game. Every football team suffers injuries, but there are certain players a team that doesn't line up with 15 NFL players—like Alabama or Ohio State—can't afford to lose. As of this moment, Army is without its two best fullbacks and its best wide receiver. Not to mention Brandon Jackson, whose number "28," was emblazoned on both 28-yard-lines on Saturday, a reminder of his tragic absence.

When the season began, North Texas—like Lafayette—was a game that SHOULD be won. It still is, but the Mean Green are considerably improved after going 1-11 a year ago. They have a new coach, Seth Littrell, and will come to Michie Stadium with a 3-3 record. They haven't exactly had a Murderer's Row schedule: beating an FCS team, Bethune-Cookman; an 0-6 team—Rice--and a 2-4 Marshall team. That schedule isn't THAT different than Army's: The Cadets have beaten an FCS team—Lafayette; that same Rice team; a 1-5 UTEP team and, in their best win of the season, Temple in a game that feels more like six months ago than six weeks ago.

Monken doesn't want to hear that Army SHOULD beat North Texas. So, let's put it this way: it NEEDS to beat North Texas to stay on track for a possible bowl bid. The Lafayette win does not count towards the six wins Army needs because Army plays two FCS teams this season and only one can count. That will be the Morgan State game on November 19th team.

Which is why, for those of us just watching, Saturday was a glorious fall afternoon filled with lots to cheer about. It was all those things for Monken, his coaches and his players too. It was certainly a lot better feeling than after those games against Yale, Fordham or Bucknell. Progress, for sure.

But it was, to put it mildly, not what any of them will be dwelling on going forward. Nor should it be.

Army West Point Athletics

Feinstein's Findings: In All, A Good Day

Players Mentioned

Ahmad Bradshaw

Chris Carter

Andy Davidson

Brandon Jackson

Cole Macek

Edgar Poe

Nick Schrage

Darnell Woolfolk

Related Videos