Army Navy, A Tradition You Cannot Miss

Army vs. Navy, 3:00 ET

College Football didn't have any news this week, did it? Now that the College Football Playoff is set, and everyone was unanimous about the teams involved, we can focus on the games. Okay, so a lot of people were pissed off about the four teams chosen for the playoffs. I get it, but at this point, we all need to move forward and think about how we are going to play these games. Today, we have an annual showdown between the Army and Navy.

Army comes into this game with a 5-6 record and has taken four of the last six games in the series. The goal of this game, just like all of the others is going to be to run the ball as effectively as possible. On the season, Army has thrown the ball 150 times in comparison to running it 527 times. Their quarterback, Bryson Daily, only has 859 yards passing for the season, but he has almost as many on the ground as he has been their best running back all season. If they want to get wild and throw off the Navy, they could make at least a few pass attempts. Last year, they went 2-for-10 in passing attempts for a total of 28 yards, but I do think Daily can get a few more completions. We know Army will run the ball regularly and so will Navy. Army is not as good with their rush defense as the Navy team. We also can expect a lot of special teams action in this one. The punters will be on the field often as most of the rest of the team in this game. To win, Army will need to get a push up front and I think that Daily has to create some movement with play action. The only issue there is they need to be willing to throw in order to make the play action effective.

Navy also has a 5-6 record, but they are the underdog in this game. Personally, I don't really understand why they are. They've thrown the ball 170 times this year and have a 50% completion percentage. They've produced nine passing touchdowns as well. So if the key for Army is to win using the pass, and these two teams are very similar, then it would be prudent for Navy to throw as well. Navy also should be able to get some movement against the Army defensive front has allowed almost five yards per carry to opponents this season. On defense, Navy is better against the run, and I think they can slow down the rushing attack. I mentioned special teams before, and based on stats, Navy seems like they will be better at punting which isn't something I usually care about, but in a game like this, field position matters. They also are fine with field goals, so I think that bodes well for them.

This isn't going to be the most exciting game of the season, but this game means something to the players. It means something to all the brave men and women who served the nation in these branches. It also is something that is fun to watch. I think Navy is likely to win this game, but in such a tight game I'll take the three points. It is very possible this is an under 27.5 which isn't a sentence I'd write often, but this game isn't like the rest. Play Navy +3 and consider a sprinkle on the under.

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