Knightfall

Rich Ellerson's presser quotes are up.


Phil Steele looks at the Army/Rutgers matchup.

#24 Rutgers vs Army

RU has now won 7 in a row vs Army. Last year in Yankee Stadium, Army was off a tough loss to Air Force and QB Steelman was out with an injury. RU only led 13-12 when they blocked a P for a td with 6:36 left and then on 3&7 when a FD might have let them run out the clock, they got a 56 yard td run by Jamison. Both teams played Kent St this year and both lost despite outgaining the Golden Flashes. Army now has a shot to win its 1st Commander In Chief’s Trophy since ‘96 after last week’s 41-21 win over AF snapping the Knights 13 game losing streak vs their service academy rivals. Steelman ran and threw for 100 yards and they benefitted from +5 TO’s. RU is fresh off a bye off its loss to Kent while Army plays for a 10th straight week and RU has extra time to prep for the bone with a large D edge (#18-117).
PHIL’S FORECAST: RUTGERS 34 ARMY 13

Here's a Rutgers/Army preview. I don't envision a 35-14 final score.


and another preview.

FACTS & FIGURES: Army has played in Piscataway three times since 1972 and has lost all three. ...The Black Knights have an 11-game losing streak in games played away from West Point, and they have lost 14 straight vs. Big East competition. ...Army hasn't beaten a ranked team since knocking off Air Force in 1972. ...Rutgers leads the Big East and is 10th nationally with 13 interceptions. DBs Brandon Jones and Logan Ryan have four picks apiece. With a win, Rutgers would have its best start since 2006 (9-0). ...The Scarlet Knights are shooting for eight wins for the sixth time in seven seasons.

One thing that stands out in my mind in regard to Rutgers is that Army is due and overdue to beat the Scarlet Knights. In regard to Rutgers I've probably it before and felt pretty confident in an Army win, but that doesn't change the fact that Rutgers is due to lose to Army and due to take a head-scratching mid-season loss as well.





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Army 2-7

Trent Steelman was money with his 101 yards. That's 3 straight games with 100+ yards for #8.

Steelman was injured and did not play against Air Force last season in a 24-14 road loss. He more than made up for that absence on this day in a contest featuring the top two rushing teams in the nation.

"It's a feeling I had never experienced before," the senior quarterback said after his first career victory over the Falcons. "It's a feeling I wouldn't change for the world. It's a big win for our program, but we have to turn around and go right back to work."

Steelman, who moved past the great Glenn Davis into third place all-time in rushing at West Point with 2,983 yards, passed for 100 yards and guided an attack that netted 314 yards rushing and held the ball for 36 minutes.

Trent wasn't the only guy dialed in on Saturday; Danny Wild certainly was, with a field-level view of the action and some great celebration shots of the team. Stellar stuff again from Danny.


It was difficult for me to even think about college ball until today after Pitt's seemingly annual collapse against Notre Dame. Army still being alive for the CIC trophy takes a little of the sting away but anyway that's why I'm so late getting this write-up out.



Here's the Air Force Army Story and Stats.



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