2016 Marks Best Start in Six Decades for Service Academy Football

2016 marks the first time since 1958 that all three service academies started the season undefeated. What unifies and differentiates these programs?

Back in 1958, Earl “Red” Blaik concluded an 18-year coaching career at Army with his last unbeaten team. The independent team from West Point won its first four games against South Carolina, Penn State, Notre Dame, and Virginia before enduring a 14-14 tie by Pittsburgh. Army won its final four games. The 8-0-1 finish sent their longtime coach off with the sixth and final top-five finish of his Army tenure. Though they didn’t go bowling, the Black Knights finished the season ranked third behind LSU and Iowa in the polls.

1958 also marked the second full season of college football at the U.S. Air Force Academy. The school, established four years earlier, moved into its permanent facilities in Colorado Springs that August. The Falcons went unbeaten as well, equalling Army’s feat by going 9-0-2. Their only tie in the regular season came on the road against an Iowa team that finished the year ranked second. Unlike Army, though, Air Force went to a bowl game. There they remained unbeaten after a scoreless draw against Southwest Conference champion TCU in the Cotton Bowl.

Navy couldn’t quite equal the record of excellence that their fellow service academies mustered that season, but they did open the year with wins over William & Mary, Boston University, and Michigan before falling in their fourth game to Tulane in Norfolk, Virginia. A year after they had gone 9-1-1 with a win over Rice in the Cotton Bowl, the Midshipmen missed out on a bowl game. They still finished 6-3, a record that would have earned them a postseason berth in the modern landscape.

All three teams rely on their own versions of run-heavy option offenses. Since 2008 Navy, Army, and Air Force have all ranked among the top 16 in rushing offense. More often than not all three occupy space in the top 10 of the charts. Academies must recruit players who can meet military specifications. As a result service academy teams tend to be undersized compared to modern FBS programs. The option offense allows teams that can execute the offense the ability to create mismatches that are not predicated on size and strength.

That talent gap only gets wider as modern football seeks out bigger, stronger, and faster players at every level. Looking at the 247Sports composite rankings for the past several years shows just how big that gap is becoming. Navy’s 87th-ranked recruiting class in 2016 was the first time a service academy had featured inside the top 100 since Air Force in 2012. More often than not, these three schools are relying on players that are rejected by most Group of Five squads and which rarely come near the radar of Power Five programs.

Even relying on the option to provide offensive opportunities, though, the service academies have had a shaky history of success. When one school is riding high, it is rare that the other two will also be successful. There is only so much high-school talent that can meet the physical and motivational requirements of playing service academy football. That is what makes 2016 all the more astounding.

A combined .845 winning percentage will probably never occur again among these three teams over a whole season. It is rare when even two of the three service academy teams finish with eight or more wins. What none realized in 1958, though, was that it would be the last time for nearly six decades that all three teams would start the season unbeaten through the first three games.

Through Week 4, Army, Air Force, and Navy are a combined 9-1 on the season. If ties were still instituted rather than overtime, we’d have three unbeaten teams in the mix.

From 1996 through last season, Army had only reached two bowl games in two decades. The Black Knights were an afterthought at the FBS level. This year didn’t look any more promising for the last remaining independent among the service academies. Jeff Monken’s team upset Temple 28-13 in the season opener this year. and followed up with a win over Rice. Brandon Jackson tragically died in a crash a few weeks into the season, and the Black Knights honored his memory in a win over UTEP. They faltered on their trip to face Buffalo, coughing up a 20-6 lead in the fourth quarter to eventually lose in overtime.

Air Force has had far more recent luck, going bowling in eight of the past nine seasons. Last year Air Force won the MWC Mountain and played San Diego State for the Mountain West title. With Troy Calhoun at the helm, then, consistency has been the buzzword in Colorado Springs. This year the Falcons opened up their season with an easy win over FCS Abilene Christian. They followed up by trouncing visiting Georgia State 48-14. The team is now 1-0 in MWC play this season after knocking off Utah State in Week 4, pulling away in the second half for a 27-20 win.

Navy has been the most consistently successful of the three service academy teams during the 21st century. Interestingly, they have looked perhaps less dominant than their military rivals. Without record-setting quarterback Keenan Reynolds in the backfield, the Midshipmen have gone through several signal callers in an injury-marred start to the year. Nevertheless Ken Niumatalolo’s team has started 3-0 as well, demolishing FCS Fordham in their opener before opening AAC play 2-0 with close wins over Connecticut and Tulane.

What does the future hold for these teams? This year could be the biggest battle yet for the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy.

After decades as independent programs, only Army remains outside a conference affiliation. The Black Knights still have three Power Five opponents on their schedule in 2016. Monken will take his team to face Duke and Wake Forest on the road. Notre Dame will also come to Michie Stadium at West Point. While they are likely going to sustain a few more losses along the way, a bowl berth is within reach.

More from Saturday Blitz

• Michigan State vs. Maryland: Location, time, prediction, and more
• ACC Power Rankings: Can #4 FSU overthrow Clemson at Death Valley East?
• Most heartwarming social media reactions to Nick Chubb’s injury
• Ranking college football’s top 10 quarterbacks after Week 3
• Things are going to get much darker for the Houston Cougars

Navy has an uphill battle, given they are in the same division as top-10 team Houston. After the Midshipmen face Air Force next weekend, we’ll get the chance to see them play the Cougars in Annapolis. If Navy can win against Houston, they’ll have the inside track to the AAC title game. From there, Navy could challenge for the Access Bowl slot into one of the New Year’s Six bowls for Group of Five teams.

Air Force is probably best positioned to continue finding success in 2016. The Falcons are a defending division champion that won 10 games the season before in 2014. The November 25 showdown with Boise State at Maverik Stadium will likely decide which school will play in the Mountain West championship game.

Regardless of what happens from here, though, the three service academy football programs have distinguished themselves this season. For the first time in history, the trio went 9-0 to begin the year. For the young men of the nation’s academies, a relic of an offense has allowed them to remain competitive against any and all competition. While the first loss of the season has been suffered, there is sure to be more success to come in 2016.