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Army Football: Jeff Monken has turned Black Knights around

By Patrick Mayhorn

PHILADELPHIA, PA - DECEMBER 09: Emmanuel Ukhueligbe #95 of the Army Black Knights and the rest of his teammates run out on the field before the game against the Navy Midshipmen on December 9, 2017 at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA - DECEMBER 09: Emmanuel Ukhueligbe #95 of the Army Black Knights and the rest of his teammates run out on the field before the game against the Navy Midshipmen on December 9, 2017 at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /
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(Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
(Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /

Defense

There may not be a better bend-don’t-break defense in college football that at Army. It’s a direct reflection of their ball control heavy offense, as both systems focus on playing smart rather than overpowering the opponent. Army will never have the defensive line of Clemson or the defensive backs of Ohio State, but they’ll always have 11 guys working in unison.

Under Monken, Army has gotten better on defense just about every year, as they continue to recruit well, develop talent, and return talent. that’s no different this year, and just like in 2017, Army should be very tough on defense this year. This year is slightly different though. While this group is very talented, there’s a lack of veteran leadership. it’ll be up to new guys to take that spot.

Starting up front, Army needs to find a replacement for end John Voit. Chandler Rameriz should be able to help with that. The senior was solid at linebacker in years past and should be a decent replacement, though he probably won’t be great. The rest of the line is far more solid. Wunmi Oyetuga and Raymond Wright have both shown flashes of greatness and will hold the group together.

Behind them, three of the four linebackers return, but unfortunately, the best linebacker from last year is gone. Alex Aukerman won’t be easy to replace, but Army has the talent to soften the blow. Kenneth Brinson, Cole Christiansen and James Nachtigal should all be awesome, and Jake Ellington looks the part in that fourth spot. I have little worries about the linebackers.

The defensive backfield is in a pretty decent place. Rhyan England, when healthy, was excellent last year, and they’ll need to replace his production at safety. Having James Gibson back there will help a ton, and the experience Max Regan got last year filling in for England makes this backfield a lot better.

The corners should be solid as well. Mike Reynolds was great last year and should be even better this year. The second corner position seems to be a battle between Elijah Riley and Jaylon McClinton, but I don’t think you can go wrong either way. Army has three good corners, two good safeties, and what seems to be some solid depth. That’s a huge deal in a bend-don’t-break defense.

Can the Black Knights find new leadership?

As I mentioned earlier, the losses of Voit and Aukerman are important for more than just production reasons. Those two were the obvious leaders of the defense last year, and replacing that is often easier said than done. Luckily, Army has a ton of experience and upperclassmen on this defense.

They’ll likely need one of their three returning linebackers (my guess is Nachtigal), a lineman and either Reynolds or Gibson to step up and lead this group. On-field leadership is a huge part of Army’s program, and I’m sure the staff is working hard to identify leaders. That’ll be a huge part of their defensive success in 2018.

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