Army West Point Athletics
Photo by: Danny Wild-USA TODAY Sports
Feinstein's Findings: Hollywood Ending Along the Hudson
December 21, 2020 | Football
             A guy walks into a Hollywood movie studio for a pitch meeting with an idea for a football movie. He sits down with the decision-makers and says, "Picture this: In the midst of Covid-19, a team has to play its arch-rival one week and THEN has to play its other arch-rival just a week later; entire season on the line.
            "Team comes into the game down two key players in the backfield and a bunch more out because of covid. Then, the starting quarterback gets knocked out of the game in the second quarter by a helmet-to-helmet hit. Starting fullback, team captain and emotional team leader, is also knocked out by injury.
            "The opponent's quarterback, who spent the first half looking as if he was a lefty trying to throw righty, suddenly becomes Patrick Mahomes late in the third quarter, completing five passes to take his team 87 yards for a 7-3 lead. Offense for the good guys is stalling repeatedly. Opponent QB completes a 22-yard pass on third-and-18 and moves to good guys 40-yard-line. Clock starting to run down. Then—an interception in the end zone. One last chance for the good guys. They face a fourth-and-seven—and convert. Only healthy fullback is limping. It comes down to fourth down from the one-yard line, a little over a minute left. Fullback scores! Good guys win 10-7, win the trophy they covet.Â
            "Hollywood ending!"
            The studio big-shots look at the guy and shake their heads. "Come on, you've got to come up with something more realistic than that."
            Guy says: "I know. You're right. Except it's a true story."
            Yes it is. It's the story of Army's extraordinary 10-7 victory Saturday over Air Force in a game that had to be seen, experienced and FELT to be truly appreciated. The weather was—predictably—frigid, especially after CBS insisted on a 3 o'clock kickoff even though that meant the sun would be down by halftime. The low temperature for the day inside Michie Stadium: 10 degrees.
            But this was one of those days and games where the weather had to be shrugged off on both sidelines. The stadium was close to empty because the 4,300 cadets who had been allowed into Army's seven previous home games had gone home for a much-deserved holiday break. A 'crowd,' officially listed as 1,403 very brave people—staff, faculty, families, the Army band—sat in a stadium that seats about 38,000 on non-covid Saturdays.
            Air Force came east rested, having not played since a rout of Utah State on December 3rd. The Falcons—like a lot of college football teams—had been through a very strange season. At one point, when the Mountain West Conference decided not to play football, they had two games on their schedule: Navy in October; Army in November. Then, the Mountain West relented and decided to play, beginning in late October.
            None of that mattered in the season-opener against Navy. The Falcons routed the Mids, 40-7. Then came two games against very good Mountain West teams—San Jose State and Boise State. The two teams combined to finish 12-2, Boise's two losses being to Brigham Young and this past Saturday to the Spartans in the MWC title game.
            The week after the loss to Boise, Air Force was supposed to come east to play Army—the teams' traditional date to play being the first Saturday in November. But the game was postponed late in the week after Air Force reported covid issues within the program. Army coach Jeff Monken was clearly skeptical about Air Force's decision, even offering publicly to have his team fly to Colorado Springs to play the game.
            Instead, it was postponed to the Saturday AFTER the Army-Navy game, a first—and everyone hopes a last--in the history of the rivalry.
            Air Force routed two bad teams—New Mexico and Utah State (combined score 63-7) and came to Michie to play on 16 days rest.
            Army beat Navy 15-0 in what will forever be known as The Fog Bowl, to lift its record to 8-2, meaning Saturday's game would decide the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy, which sat on the sideline throughout the game waiting for someone to claim it.
            Air Force hadn't won the CIC since 2016—a long drought, given that the Falcons have won it 20 times—more than Navy with 16 and Army, which came into the game with eight—two of them recent in 2017 and 2018. Navy had won it back last season but, having lost to both Air Force and Army this fall, had to give it up.
              Everyone expected a defensive struggle—and that's exactly what everyone got. It wasn't like the Navy game; the offenses did move the football. It was just when they got into scoring territory that things seemed to bog down.
            Air Force had the first real chance after Army quarterback Tyhier Tyler fumbled during a botched exchange of the football. Air Force's Will Trawick fell on it at the Army 40. From there, the Falcons moved to the 15, where they had a fourth-and-one. Touchdowns were clearly going to gold in this game but Air Force Coach Troy Calhoun went for the conservative play—put ANY points on the board—and sent in field goal kicker Tevye Schuettpelz-Rohr for what looked like a simple 32-yarder.
            Schuettpelz-Rohr had four field goals against Navy, but that had been at 6,035 feet of altitude in the thin air of Colorado Springs. Now, at 161 feet of altitude, in the icy-cold, Schuettpelz-Rohr pulled the kick left and Calhoun's decision yielded zero points rather than three.
            Army then pieced together a classic Army drive, keeping the ball for 10:02 while running 20 plays. There was just one problem: the last play of the drive was a just-missed Tyler to Cam Cameron pass in the end zone, with an Air Force defender just tipping the ball enough to keep Cameron from making the catch. That was on third-and-goal from the seven. Freshman Quinn Maretski, now four-of-five on field goal attempts, came in and drilled the ball through the uprights from the 24 and, early in the second quarter, Army led 3-0.
            Air Force drove to the Army 40 but stalled and punter Joseph Carlson pinned the Black Knights on their own nine. On the first play of the drive fullback Jakobi Buchanan unpinned them, blasting 16 yards to the 26. But as he handed the ball to Buchanan, Tyler turning away from the ball, was hammered by 6-foot-5-inch 240 pound Air Force linebacker Brian Gooding. They went helmet to helmet—although Gooding didn't hit Tyler on the crown of the helmet.
            Tyler was done for the day—had to be after that kind of hit to the head. On came Christian Anderson, who had been the starter on opening day, but had been injured by a clean hit in the Abilene Christian game. That had started the musical chairs game at the quarterback position that had finally landed on Tyler in the Georgia Southern game—three games ago.
            Monken stuck with Tyler that day even after three first half fumbles and it paid off, with Army rallying to a 28-27 win. The coaches liked his speed, his ability to turn a short-yardage play into a big-yardage play with his ability to dart through the smallest of holes.
            Now, Anderson was back after not playing for more than a month. He got his team to a fourth-and-two at the Air Force 41 but was stopped for a loss of one. The Falcons took over and Brian Roberts—who rushed for 83 yards on 11 carries—promptly picked up 30 yards to get the Falcons into scoring position.
            Air Force had three time-outs left, but Calhoun let the clock run down as his team moved to a fourth-and-two at the Army 20. Rather than try to pick up the fourth down, Calhoun AGAIN decided to go with Schuettpelz-Rohr, running the clock to five seconds and sending his field goal kicker in once more, this time to try from 37-yards. The result was identical: the kick went left and Army ran to the locker room thrilled to be up 3-0.
            The Black Knights started the second half by picking up three first downs before stalling. An exchange of punts left Air Force starting at its own 13 with the clock ticking down in the third quarter.
            Up until that point, Daniels hadn't come close to hitting one of his receivers. The only pass he'd complete had been to Army's Cameron Jones early in the first quarter. Now, suddenly, he found the range—and then some. The Falcons drove 87-yards in 10 plays, 85 of those yards on five laser-like Daniels completions.
            He lofted a perfect pass into the arms of tight end Kyle Patterson, streaking down the right sideline to set up first-and-goal at the Army nine. But then a motion penalty—by Patterson—set the Falcons back five yards and they went on to face third-and-goal from the 10. It appeared the Army defense was about to come up with a huge stop the way it had in the third quarter of the Navy game. A field goal certainly wasn't a lock if Air Force had to attempt one on fourth down.
            It never came to that. Daniels, still doing his best Patrick Mahomes imitation, fitted a perfect pass into Patterson two-yards into the end zone. Suddenly, it was 7-3 Air Force. It was the first score of any kind Army had given up since the third quarter of the Georgia Southern game.
            By now, the sky was black and things were beginning to look dark for the Black Knights.
            They had to punt early in the fourth quarter and Daniels picked up where had left off. He scrambled for 20-yards to get Air Force out of a hole. Then, after back-to-back motion calls created a third-and-18, he threw another perfect pass, this one to Ben Peterson, picking up the first down at the Army 48. Roberts picked up eight to the 40 and, with the clock ticking under nine minutes, the black sky looked even bleaker.
            But then Air Force offensive coordinator Mike Thiessen—a former Falcons quarterback— sent Daniel Morris to the end zone and had Daniels loft the ball in his direction, going for the kill. But Jabari Moore, who had already scored on a fumble recovery and an interception this season, was right there with Morris and made the interception that gave Army a chance with 8:24 left in the game.
            Army had to have a touchdown and, chances were good, this would be their last chance. The Black Knights went into grind mode: three Buchanan runs (21 carries for 86 yards on the day) picked up a first down at the 30. Tyrell Robinson finally got outside and picked up 16 to the 46. But then, Army's first penalty of the day moved the ball back five yards. No problem. Anderson promptly picked up 16 to the Air Force 43.
            This was where Army had bogged down all day. But Buchanan ripped off 14-yards to the 29—but came up limping. Anthony Adkins and Cade Barnard hadn't even dressed for the game. Sandon McCoy, the team's spiritual leader in so many ways, had gone down in the second quarter. Army's deepest position had suddenly become its most vulnerable. Buchanan had to come out for a play. Three snaps later, it was fourth-and-four at the Air Force 23 with the clock now ticking towards three minutes.
            Do or die. Army did—Anderson taking off right on a bootleg and picking up seven yards to the 16 for the first down.
            Gimpy or not, Buchanan was back on the field. Anderson picked up six; Buchanan five for a first-and-goal at the five. Buchanan had to come out again. Tyson Riley the FIFTH string fullback, who had carried the ball 11 times all season and had been moved back to fullback from tight end for this game just in case, came in and managed to pick up two yards. By now, Calhoun was using his timeouts.
            Buchanan picked up one. Third down from the two. Time out number two—Air Force. Buchanan picked up one more. Fourth down from the one. Last time out Air Force. Game clock at 1:23.
            And then, finally, Buchanan, running behind an offensive line that included two plebes, plowed into the end zone with 1:13 left. No cannons—the cadets weren't there to shoot them off—but an explosion of emotion on the Army sideline. Maretski's extra point made it 10-7.
            The game wasn't over. Air Force still had one last chance. Not for long. On first down, as Daniels tried to throw over the middle Kwabena Bonsu—who couldn't play against Navy—leaped high and deflected the ball. It wobbled into the grateful arms of linebacker Arik Smith. Two kneel-downs later, it was over.
            For the third time in four years, the CIC is back at Army. A stat worth noting: from 2002 to 2015, Army's record against Army and Navy was a combined 2-26. Since 2016, Monken's third season, the record is 7-3, one loss coming to Air Force in 2016, the other two last season.
            That's quite a turnaround. This is now a program in the midst of a golden era: 43-20 the last five seasons; three CICs; four bowl bids and four wins in five years against Navy.
            And yet, Saturday's win might have been the most remarkable moment yet. There's potentially one more game to play but you can cue the fade-out music for the movie now. It doesn't get any better—or more dramatic—than this.
Â
            "Team comes into the game down two key players in the backfield and a bunch more out because of covid. Then, the starting quarterback gets knocked out of the game in the second quarter by a helmet-to-helmet hit. Starting fullback, team captain and emotional team leader, is also knocked out by injury.
            "The opponent's quarterback, who spent the first half looking as if he was a lefty trying to throw righty, suddenly becomes Patrick Mahomes late in the third quarter, completing five passes to take his team 87 yards for a 7-3 lead. Offense for the good guys is stalling repeatedly. Opponent QB completes a 22-yard pass on third-and-18 and moves to good guys 40-yard-line. Clock starting to run down. Then—an interception in the end zone. One last chance for the good guys. They face a fourth-and-seven—and convert. Only healthy fullback is limping. It comes down to fourth down from the one-yard line, a little over a minute left. Fullback scores! Good guys win 10-7, win the trophy they covet.Â
            "Hollywood ending!"
            The studio big-shots look at the guy and shake their heads. "Come on, you've got to come up with something more realistic than that."
            Guy says: "I know. You're right. Except it's a true story."
            Yes it is. It's the story of Army's extraordinary 10-7 victory Saturday over Air Force in a game that had to be seen, experienced and FELT to be truly appreciated. The weather was—predictably—frigid, especially after CBS insisted on a 3 o'clock kickoff even though that meant the sun would be down by halftime. The low temperature for the day inside Michie Stadium: 10 degrees.
            But this was one of those days and games where the weather had to be shrugged off on both sidelines. The stadium was close to empty because the 4,300 cadets who had been allowed into Army's seven previous home games had gone home for a much-deserved holiday break. A 'crowd,' officially listed as 1,403 very brave people—staff, faculty, families, the Army band—sat in a stadium that seats about 38,000 on non-covid Saturdays.
            Air Force came east rested, having not played since a rout of Utah State on December 3rd. The Falcons—like a lot of college football teams—had been through a very strange season. At one point, when the Mountain West Conference decided not to play football, they had two games on their schedule: Navy in October; Army in November. Then, the Mountain West relented and decided to play, beginning in late October.
            None of that mattered in the season-opener against Navy. The Falcons routed the Mids, 40-7. Then came two games against very good Mountain West teams—San Jose State and Boise State. The two teams combined to finish 12-2, Boise's two losses being to Brigham Young and this past Saturday to the Spartans in the MWC title game.
            The week after the loss to Boise, Air Force was supposed to come east to play Army—the teams' traditional date to play being the first Saturday in November. But the game was postponed late in the week after Air Force reported covid issues within the program. Army coach Jeff Monken was clearly skeptical about Air Force's decision, even offering publicly to have his team fly to Colorado Springs to play the game.
            Instead, it was postponed to the Saturday AFTER the Army-Navy game, a first—and everyone hopes a last--in the history of the rivalry.
            Air Force routed two bad teams—New Mexico and Utah State (combined score 63-7) and came to Michie to play on 16 days rest.
            Army beat Navy 15-0 in what will forever be known as The Fog Bowl, to lift its record to 8-2, meaning Saturday's game would decide the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy, which sat on the sideline throughout the game waiting for someone to claim it.
            Air Force hadn't won the CIC since 2016—a long drought, given that the Falcons have won it 20 times—more than Navy with 16 and Army, which came into the game with eight—two of them recent in 2017 and 2018. Navy had won it back last season but, having lost to both Air Force and Army this fall, had to give it up.
              Everyone expected a defensive struggle—and that's exactly what everyone got. It wasn't like the Navy game; the offenses did move the football. It was just when they got into scoring territory that things seemed to bog down.
            Air Force had the first real chance after Army quarterback Tyhier Tyler fumbled during a botched exchange of the football. Air Force's Will Trawick fell on it at the Army 40. From there, the Falcons moved to the 15, where they had a fourth-and-one. Touchdowns were clearly going to gold in this game but Air Force Coach Troy Calhoun went for the conservative play—put ANY points on the board—and sent in field goal kicker Tevye Schuettpelz-Rohr for what looked like a simple 32-yarder.
            Schuettpelz-Rohr had four field goals against Navy, but that had been at 6,035 feet of altitude in the thin air of Colorado Springs. Now, at 161 feet of altitude, in the icy-cold, Schuettpelz-Rohr pulled the kick left and Calhoun's decision yielded zero points rather than three.
            Army then pieced together a classic Army drive, keeping the ball for 10:02 while running 20 plays. There was just one problem: the last play of the drive was a just-missed Tyler to Cam Cameron pass in the end zone, with an Air Force defender just tipping the ball enough to keep Cameron from making the catch. That was on third-and-goal from the seven. Freshman Quinn Maretski, now four-of-five on field goal attempts, came in and drilled the ball through the uprights from the 24 and, early in the second quarter, Army led 3-0.
            Air Force drove to the Army 40 but stalled and punter Joseph Carlson pinned the Black Knights on their own nine. On the first play of the drive fullback Jakobi Buchanan unpinned them, blasting 16 yards to the 26. But as he handed the ball to Buchanan, Tyler turning away from the ball, was hammered by 6-foot-5-inch 240 pound Air Force linebacker Brian Gooding. They went helmet to helmet—although Gooding didn't hit Tyler on the crown of the helmet.
            Tyler was done for the day—had to be after that kind of hit to the head. On came Christian Anderson, who had been the starter on opening day, but had been injured by a clean hit in the Abilene Christian game. That had started the musical chairs game at the quarterback position that had finally landed on Tyler in the Georgia Southern game—three games ago.
            Monken stuck with Tyler that day even after three first half fumbles and it paid off, with Army rallying to a 28-27 win. The coaches liked his speed, his ability to turn a short-yardage play into a big-yardage play with his ability to dart through the smallest of holes.
            Now, Anderson was back after not playing for more than a month. He got his team to a fourth-and-two at the Air Force 41 but was stopped for a loss of one. The Falcons took over and Brian Roberts—who rushed for 83 yards on 11 carries—promptly picked up 30 yards to get the Falcons into scoring position.
            Air Force had three time-outs left, but Calhoun let the clock run down as his team moved to a fourth-and-two at the Army 20. Rather than try to pick up the fourth down, Calhoun AGAIN decided to go with Schuettpelz-Rohr, running the clock to five seconds and sending his field goal kicker in once more, this time to try from 37-yards. The result was identical: the kick went left and Army ran to the locker room thrilled to be up 3-0.
            The Black Knights started the second half by picking up three first downs before stalling. An exchange of punts left Air Force starting at its own 13 with the clock ticking down in the third quarter.
            Up until that point, Daniels hadn't come close to hitting one of his receivers. The only pass he'd complete had been to Army's Cameron Jones early in the first quarter. Now, suddenly, he found the range—and then some. The Falcons drove 87-yards in 10 plays, 85 of those yards on five laser-like Daniels completions.
            He lofted a perfect pass into the arms of tight end Kyle Patterson, streaking down the right sideline to set up first-and-goal at the Army nine. But then a motion penalty—by Patterson—set the Falcons back five yards and they went on to face third-and-goal from the 10. It appeared the Army defense was about to come up with a huge stop the way it had in the third quarter of the Navy game. A field goal certainly wasn't a lock if Air Force had to attempt one on fourth down.
            It never came to that. Daniels, still doing his best Patrick Mahomes imitation, fitted a perfect pass into Patterson two-yards into the end zone. Suddenly, it was 7-3 Air Force. It was the first score of any kind Army had given up since the third quarter of the Georgia Southern game.
            By now, the sky was black and things were beginning to look dark for the Black Knights.
            They had to punt early in the fourth quarter and Daniels picked up where had left off. He scrambled for 20-yards to get Air Force out of a hole. Then, after back-to-back motion calls created a third-and-18, he threw another perfect pass, this one to Ben Peterson, picking up the first down at the Army 48. Roberts picked up eight to the 40 and, with the clock ticking under nine minutes, the black sky looked even bleaker.
            But then Air Force offensive coordinator Mike Thiessen—a former Falcons quarterback— sent Daniel Morris to the end zone and had Daniels loft the ball in his direction, going for the kill. But Jabari Moore, who had already scored on a fumble recovery and an interception this season, was right there with Morris and made the interception that gave Army a chance with 8:24 left in the game.
            Army had to have a touchdown and, chances were good, this would be their last chance. The Black Knights went into grind mode: three Buchanan runs (21 carries for 86 yards on the day) picked up a first down at the 30. Tyrell Robinson finally got outside and picked up 16 to the 46. But then, Army's first penalty of the day moved the ball back five yards. No problem. Anderson promptly picked up 16 to the Air Force 43.
            This was where Army had bogged down all day. But Buchanan ripped off 14-yards to the 29—but came up limping. Anthony Adkins and Cade Barnard hadn't even dressed for the game. Sandon McCoy, the team's spiritual leader in so many ways, had gone down in the second quarter. Army's deepest position had suddenly become its most vulnerable. Buchanan had to come out for a play. Three snaps later, it was fourth-and-four at the Air Force 23 with the clock now ticking towards three minutes.
            Do or die. Army did—Anderson taking off right on a bootleg and picking up seven yards to the 16 for the first down.
            Gimpy or not, Buchanan was back on the field. Anderson picked up six; Buchanan five for a first-and-goal at the five. Buchanan had to come out again. Tyson Riley the FIFTH string fullback, who had carried the ball 11 times all season and had been moved back to fullback from tight end for this game just in case, came in and managed to pick up two yards. By now, Calhoun was using his timeouts.
            Buchanan picked up one. Third down from the two. Time out number two—Air Force. Buchanan picked up one more. Fourth down from the one. Last time out Air Force. Game clock at 1:23.
            And then, finally, Buchanan, running behind an offensive line that included two plebes, plowed into the end zone with 1:13 left. No cannons—the cadets weren't there to shoot them off—but an explosion of emotion on the Army sideline. Maretski's extra point made it 10-7.
            The game wasn't over. Air Force still had one last chance. Not for long. On first down, as Daniels tried to throw over the middle Kwabena Bonsu—who couldn't play against Navy—leaped high and deflected the ball. It wobbled into the grateful arms of linebacker Arik Smith. Two kneel-downs later, it was over.
            For the third time in four years, the CIC is back at Army. A stat worth noting: from 2002 to 2015, Army's record against Army and Navy was a combined 2-26. Since 2016, Monken's third season, the record is 7-3, one loss coming to Air Force in 2016, the other two last season.
            That's quite a turnaround. This is now a program in the midst of a golden era: 43-20 the last five seasons; three CICs; four bowl bids and four wins in five years against Navy.
            And yet, Saturday's win might have been the most remarkable moment yet. There's potentially one more game to play but you can cue the fade-out music for the movie now. It doesn't get any better—or more dramatic—than this.
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Players Mentioned
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QB
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