December 4, 2004 -- <!--start bodytext-->PHILADELPHIA — Beat Navy, the letters and e-mails pouring in from Iraq and Afghanistan implore Bobby Ross. The words are at the Superintendent's home, on the ceiling of the swimming pool and roof of buildings. Beat Army, they plead in Annapolis; do it for the sailors scattered around the world, far from home.
Most college football games don't get a cameo appearance from the President. Most don't have one team playing for the memory of former teammates recently lost in combat, or to inspire 200 others still fighting. But most college football games aren't Army-Navy. As a matter of fact, none are.
"That's what college football is all about," Ross said. "I love this."
Who doesn't? Emerald Bowl-bound Navy (8-2) will host Army (2-8) in the 105th edition of football's greatest rivalry today (2:30 p.m. on CBS) at sold-out Lincoln Financial Field. And it is an affair unlike any other.
The players live under the specter of war. The Army Chief of Staff, Gen. Peter Schoomaker, visited Ross, as did one of the soldiers who caught Saddam Hussein. Navy is still mourning the loss of two former players: quarterback James Blecksmith, a 24-year-old Marine 2nd Lt. killed in Fallujah on Veterans Day, and offensive tackle Ron Winchester, 25, a Marine 1st Lt. from Rockville Centre, killed in Al Anbar Province in September.
Under the 67-year old Ross, who likens today's game to coaching in the 1994 Super Bowl with San Diego, the Black Knights are already far better than last year's team that became the first in I-A history to go 0-13. Running back Charlton Jones has rushed for 1,171 yards despite a leg injury, already the third-best season in Army history.
Army is emulating the Midshipmen's successful plan.
When Chet Gladchuk took over as Navy's AD in 2001, he hired as coach energetic Paul Johnson, whose Georgia Southern teams won two I-AA championships, downgraded the schedule and upgraded the stadium and facilities, to the tune of over $40 million. The results? Johnson inherited an 0-10 team and has them in their second straight bowl behind quarterback Aaron Polanco and fullback Kyle Eckel, who have run for a combined 1,645 yards and 22 TDs.
Last December, after the worst campaign in major-college history, Army bought instant credibility with Ross. The Cadets had already completed renovations to Michie Stadium and built the Kimsey Athletic Center, and now they've bolted Conference USA to return to independent status. Today, they're looking to avenge consecutive losses to Navy by a combined 92-18. "It's unique. Even though we're on the field battling each other, we both know that down the road we'll be serving our county together," said Army linebacker Greg Washington. "Every game is important, but this one is special".
Most college football games don't get a cameo appearance from the President. Most don't have one team playing for the memory of former teammates recently lost in combat, or to inspire 200 others still fighting. But most college football games aren't Army-Navy. As a matter of fact, none are.
"That's what college football is all about," Ross said. "I love this."
Who doesn't? Emerald Bowl-bound Navy (8-2) will host Army (2-8) in the 105th edition of football's greatest rivalry today (2:30 p.m. on CBS) at sold-out Lincoln Financial Field. And it is an affair unlike any other.
The players live under the specter of war. The Army Chief of Staff, Gen. Peter Schoomaker, visited Ross, as did one of the soldiers who caught Saddam Hussein. Navy is still mourning the loss of two former players: quarterback James Blecksmith, a 24-year-old Marine 2nd Lt. killed in Fallujah on Veterans Day, and offensive tackle Ron Winchester, 25, a Marine 1st Lt. from Rockville Centre, killed in Al Anbar Province in September.
Under the 67-year old Ross, who likens today's game to coaching in the 1994 Super Bowl with San Diego, the Black Knights are already far better than last year's team that became the first in I-A history to go 0-13. Running back Charlton Jones has rushed for 1,171 yards despite a leg injury, already the third-best season in Army history.
Army is emulating the Midshipmen's successful plan.
When Chet Gladchuk took over as Navy's AD in 2001, he hired as coach energetic Paul Johnson, whose Georgia Southern teams won two I-AA championships, downgraded the schedule and upgraded the stadium and facilities, to the tune of over $40 million. The results? Johnson inherited an 0-10 team and has them in their second straight bowl behind quarterback Aaron Polanco and fullback Kyle Eckel, who have run for a combined 1,645 yards and 22 TDs.
Last December, after the worst campaign in major-college history, Army bought instant credibility with Ross. The Cadets had already completed renovations to Michie Stadium and built the Kimsey Athletic Center, and now they've bolted Conference USA to return to independent status. Today, they're looking to avenge consecutive losses to Navy by a combined 92-18. "It's unique. Even though we're on the field battling each other, we both know that down the road we'll be serving our county together," said Army linebacker Greg Washington. "Every game is important, but this one is special".
