Army Presses On

Quickly looking back, Airforce recaps abound.

If you watched the game... detailed recaps aren't necessary.

Army’s offense drove the ball into Air Force’s red zone (inside the 20) once on the game’s final drive in the last seconds.

Army’s deepest penetration sans its final drive was Air Force’s 39 twice.

Army’s lone touchdown came on a 42-yard run by QB Trent Steelman.

Army failed to take advantage of some pretty good field position. It started six drives at its own 40-yard line or better.

The offense is running out of excuses with three games left in the season. It’s impossible to win games when your offense scores one touchdown, like Army has in the last six games.

Some bad news on the injury front, as Stephen Anderson will miss the rest of the season after tearing his ACL in the game vs. Air Force.

That loss is as big as they get, with the senior captain leading the team in tackles with 83.
Also noted was that backup QB Chip Bowden also tore an ACL on punt coverage - it's tough to lose these kind of leaders. Anderson has been unreal making plays all year long, and Bowden who changed his expectations a bit by backing up Trent Steelman and playing a special teams role - just so he can get on the field. Those are my favorite type of players, and Anderson and Bowden are two of my favorite current Army players. The team has to continue on without their efforts, and it will be a bit of a challenge to fill the roles that these two juniors play on this team.


Co-Defensive Coordinator Payam Saadat said they're trying some different personnel at linebacker.

Freshman Kyler Martin, who has seen the majority of his action on special teams, is listed on the first-team depth chart.
But Saadat said no decision had been made as of Monday night on who will start at middle linebacker.
“We are throwing it around seeing what’s best for this week,” Saadat said. “What’s best to play VMI. That’s our first focus. We need to win that game and it might be week-to-week depending on our opponent.”

Again it will be tough without Anderson and Bowden, but the show must go on. I can only hope the dedication of those two guys rubs off on their replacements, but the insipration is there... and there are a lot of plays to be made in the next three games.

Interdonato has the post game quotes from the players.

Looking ahead... VMI lost 54-14 at D1-AA #16 Liberty and while the scoreline looks like VMI was dominated in that game - the game was a lot more competitive than the final score implies.

The eight turnovers were a season-high for the Keydets, as the six fumbles and two interceptions led to 30 Liberty points. VMI's Byron Allen and Trae Watkins had career-high tackle numbers for VMI in the loss, as Allen had 17 stops while Watkins had 11. The 17 stops were the most in a single game by a player in the Big South this season. The Keydets also outgained Liberty in total yards, 335-334.

If you're looking for a reason to take VMI seriously, read the whole article.