Army defeated Navy in America’s Game on Saturday afternoon in Foxborough, Massachusetts. The Black Knights made a crucial, game-winning stop at the goal line with under a minute left.
The Midshipmen really couldn’t have come much closer to punching it in for six!
Although the two service academies were enemies on the field for sixty minutes, they will join together as brothers and sisters for the rest of their lives. It means everything to both sides.
While there is always a bittersweet element to a college athlete’s final game, none are more emotional than the Army/Navy game. When a regular college football player plays his last game, he will either enter the NFL Draft, try to play professionally in a smaller league, or begin a career in insurance or business or whatever they might choose.
That is not the case for the Midshipmen or Black Knights.
As soon as the clock hits zero on the first Saturday in December, they go from student-athletes with a future in the military to future servicemen. Their football careers are behind them. Their armed forces careers are set to begin.
A powerful video from this past weekend in New England really puts civilian life in perspective.
The game was over. Army sang second. Fans had left the stadium and the stands were empty.
Meanwhile, down on the field, a few of the players (including senior running back Jakobi Buchanan) got in their last-ever reps together. They will soon trade their helmet and shoulder pads for fatigues.
America’s Game is a tradition unlike any other in sports. It pits two close allies against one another as enemies for one single day each year. 365 days are focused on one thing — beating Army or Navy.
And then, after four years, the seniors put their football careers in the past. Their focus shifts toward the next chapter of life, where they are willing to put their lives on the line for our country.
To see how much those final moments on the field meant to those players is a fantastic reminder of how good we have it. Those servicemen and women deserve the utmost admiration!