Being a Navy man (29+ years so far), it is amazing the emails I get every year around the time leading up to the Army - Navy game in support for the Navy and sometimes very much against the Navy... it is all in good fun of course. So, that being stated, I wanted to share a few recent emails as well the history of the game itself.
PLEASE SHARE YOUR STORIES, HISTORY OF THE GAME, and THE COLLECTIBLES!!!!
*** Email from my only friend that is a Michigan fan (the only time we see eye to eye about football) that he sent last year:
"The real big game is Saturday. I will be decked out in my Navy shirt rooting for the middies.
I had the pleasure of seeing Navy play in Ann Arbor several times. The first visit to Ann Arbor that I remember was 1948. I was 12 years old and lived near the stadium. All game day morning there were groups of Navy men in uniform roaming through our neighborhood. My older brother and I were charged with parking cars in our yard so we were outside all morning. As the day unfolded we found that the cadets were assembling about 100 yards west of our house at Ferry Field. There were thousands that gathered for the march to the stadium. I was very impressed. I was able to see that a total of 13 times. I saw Joe Belino and Roger Staubach (twice).
Army was no stranger to us either. I saw them play 6 times. I had the pleasure of watching Blanchard, Davis and Dawkins kick our butts, and then go on to win the National Championship. Although the system has changed so much as to pretty much rule them out of the National Championship they have the Presidents Cup which I’m sure if you asked the players, is bigger than the National Championship."
*** Email from a retired Army friend of mine:
"Army trounce Navy!!!! You should have gone Army, what's with all that blue uniform stuff anyway - fall in the water and no one can see you, only in the Navy. Army blends for a reason as to not get shot, you blend to never be found again."
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49 Army wins
53 Navy wins
7 ties
Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy: Another proud tradition of the academy football season is the competition for the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy, awarded to the academy (Army, Navy or Air Force) with the best record after playing their two counterparts. The award is given to the prior year’s winner in the case of a tie.
The trophy has been awarded to Air Force 16 times, Navy 11 times, and Army 6 times, with 4 ties. The President of the United States often awards the trophy himself, and President George W. Bush has held ceremonies at the White House for its presentation each of the last few years. Navy currently holds the trophy (winning the last six years); Army’s last win was in 1996. The 2.5-foot-tall, 170-pound trophy is topped with three footballs that rise above figurines of the mascots of the three academies.
Wonderful video about the rivalry:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e34gb8_TLaI
GO NAVY, BEAT ARMY!
