It is unavoidable to work at West Point and overlook the great history of Army football.
The championship ring at Michie Stadium recognizes the great Army teams of the past, including the national championship teams of 1944, 1945 and 1946, as well as saluting three Heisman Trophy winners: Glenn Davis, Doc Blanchard and Pete Dawkins.
Jeff Monken, currently the second-winningest coach in Army program history, would not call himself a college football historian, but even he realizes the significance of the famed rivalry between Army and Notre Dame, ahead of the 52nd all-time meeting.
“I see all the history here,” he said, “and the pictures of the great Army teams of old, playing great Notre Dame teams of old. It’s pretty iconic, and they played those games in Yankee Stadium and the Polo Grounds – that’s back when I think Army was New York City’s team, when Army would play in New York City. I mean, it packed the house, and then when Notre Dame would come into town … I mean, Notre Dame’s got fans everywhere. It doesn’t matter where they play … they’re going to bring a crowd and pack the house.”
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That’s exactly what the metropolitan fans can expect on Saturday at Yankee Stadium (NBC, 7 p.m. ET), in the most significant Army-Notre Dame clash in over a half-century. Notre Dame (9-1) is ranked No. 6 in the nation and unbeaten Army (9-0) is No. 18, fighting for a berth in the inaugural 12-team College Football Playoff.
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“It’s pretty neat to be part of a big game like this and the history of it,” Monken said. “But the problem is they’re really good and really talented and they’re going to be really hard to beat. So we got our hands full and we’ll have to do a great job of preparing and then we’re going to have to play really, really well.”
Monken said he doesn’t want to get caught up in the hype, more than it will be a challenge to get his team ready for its toughest opponent of the season.
“Our thoughts are try to get better at the things that we can control and that’s blocking and destroying blocks; it’s tackling and defeating tackles; it’s taking care of the ball on offense and taking it away; it’s doing a great job covering kicks, playing with good pad level,” he said. “That’s what I think we’ve got to do to give ourselves a chance.”
“If I’m telling our guys, ‘This is the biggest game (against Notre Dame) since 1946, I mean, how does that help our team win? Does it?” Monken posed. “It just puts undue pressure on them.”
Army hasn’t beaten Notre Dame since a 14-2 win at South Bend, Ind., on Oct. 11, 1958, the season which Dawkins won the Heisman. Since then, Notre Dame has rolled off 15 consecutive times (11 as a ranked team). The Fighting Irish beat the Black Knights, 27-3, at Yankee Stadium in Nov. 2010, and prevailed, 44-6, at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas, on Nov. 12, 2016, the last time the schools met.
kmcmillan@th-record.com
X / Twitter: @KenMcMillanTHR
This article originally appeared on Times Herald-Record: Army Notre Dame football to clash at Yankee Stadium
