Game Notes: Black Knights Open Under the Lights

WEST POINT, N.Y. – The Army West Point football team kicks off its 2017 campaign on Friday night under the lights at Michie Stadium.

FRIDAY NIGHT UNDER THE LIGHTS
• Army enters the 2017 season after its most successful campaign in over two decades, in 2016, and hosts Fordham at Michie Stadium on Friday night.
• The contest will air live on CBS Sports Network; the game can also be heard on the Army Sports Network through the TuneIn app or goarmywestpoint.com.

HOW TO FOLLOW
TELEVISION • CBS Sports Network
RADIO • Army Sports Network
GAME NOTES • Army Notes • Fordham Notes
LIVE STATS • GoArmyWestPoint.com
TWITTER • @ArmyWP_Football
TICKETS • Buy Now
GAMEDAY INFORMATION • ArmyGameday.com

THE OPENING KICKOFF
• The Black Knights are coming off an 8-5 season a year ago, which was the highest win total for an Army team since the 1996 season.
• Army defeated its arch-rival Navy for the first time since 2001 in a thrilling Army-Navy Game, presented by USAA, and downed North Texas in the Zaxby's Heart of Dallas Bowl.
• Head Coach Jeff Monken begins his fourth season at the helm and is looking for his third season opening win leading the Black Knights.
• Monken is 2-1 in openers with the victory coming in his first game as Army's head coach in 2014 against Buffalo.
• Army is 96-28-3 all-time when kicking off a season and has won three of its last four openers.
• The Black Knights last opened at home against Fordham in 2015 and the Rams defeated Army in a shootout, 37-35.
• Army returns most of its offensive unit with quarterback Ahmad Bradshaw back for his final year.

ARMY-FORDHAM SERIES HISTORY
• This will be the sixth all-time meeting between Army and Fordham and the first since the 2015 season opener at Michie Stadium.
• The Black Knights hold a 4-1 series advantage since the first meeting in 1891.
• In the last meeting, the Rams won their first game versus the Black Knights with a 37-35 win at Michie Stadium in the season opener in 2015.

ABOUT THE RAMS
• Fordham enters the 2017 season after an 8-3 season a year ago.
• The Rams have two familiar faces that were on the field in 2015 in running back Chase Edmonds and quarterback Kevin Anderson.
• Edmonds comes into the season as a consensus first team All-American in 2016.
• Edmonds has rushed for over 1,600 yards in each of his past three seasons and ran for 126 yards and three touchdowns in the 2015 meeting with Army at Michie Stadium.
• Anderson completed 15 passes for 322 yards in that same game and has thrown for 59 touchdowns in his career.
• Austin Longi was the leading receiver in 2016 with 774 yards on 59 catches. He is back for his junior season.

2018 SCHEDULE ANNOUNCED
• Army announced its 2018 schedule last week.
• The schedule features six home games at Michie Stadium and six away from West Point, highlighted by a Sept. 22 matchup at Oklahoma.
• It will be the first meeting between Army and the Sooners since 1961.

Sept. 1    at Duke
       8    Liberty
       15   Hawai'i
       22   at Oklahoma
       29   at Buffalo
Oct.   13   at San Jose State
       20   Miami (OH)
       27   at Eastern Mich.
Nov.   3    Air Force
       10   Lafayette
       17   Colgate
Dec.   8    Navy in Philadelphia

CLASS OF 2021
• Almost 1,300 cadet candidates, including 302 women, 469 minorities, 13 international cadets and 7 combat veterans reported to West Point on Reception Day.
• The incoming class was selected from a pool of nearly 13,000 applicants.
• There are 302 women, who comprise 24 percent of the class.
• Minority enrollment, roughly 37 percent, includes 208 African-Americans, 119 Hispanic Americans; 105 Asian-Americans and 14 Native Americans.
• The Class of 2021 includes cadets from every state in the nation and 13 international cadets entering under the sponsorship of their respective countries.
• The countries represented include Moldova, Romania, Liberia, Mongolia, Poland, Taiwan, South Korea, Malaysia, Cameroon, Bangladesh, Thailand and Bulgaria.
• Upon graduation, these cadets will return to their respective countries as officers in their armed forces.

Army West Point Athletics

Game Notes: Black Knights Open Under the Lights

Players Mentioned

Ahmad Bradshaw

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