Army Lays 70 on Houston; Our Nation's in Good Hands

What a season for those Black Knights of the Hudson:

• Winning 11 games for the first time in their history,
• Ringing up double-digit wins for a second straight season,
• Finishing the season on a nine-game winning streak, including a third straight over Navy, and now,
• Winning three straight bowl games for the first time in their history.

Quite the list.

 

Indeed.

The Houston Cougars got off to a strong start this season before hitting tough terrain that seemed to coincide with monster DE Ed Oliver's knee injury and team garb choices.

The last team dudes needed to see was one with a flexbone offense like Army.

 

As The Citadel showed against Alabama, even the best of the best programs have trouble getting a scout team to replicate it.

In the Armed Forces Bowl, it was painstakingly clear that The Citadel wasn't as polished as the Black Knights and Houston definitely wasn't the Crimson Tide, as Army's 70-14 demolition of the Cougars showed:

 

It's been quite a turnaround for a program that was one in name only until 2016.

Since then, cadet whisperer Jeff Monken has capitalized on something Army has in abundance: discipline.

 

It's a gift that keeps on giving, and it provided a lot in the Armed Forces Bowl:

• Army’s 70 points tied West Virginia's in the Orange Bowl in 2011, when they vapor-trailed Clemson, 70-33;
• Army's 56-point margin of victory tied Tulsa's blowout of Bowling Green in the 2008 GMAC Bowl for largest ever in a holiday game; and don't forget,
• Not that we're big on rankings around here, but according to the AP, Army is actually checking in at No 22.

Shades of the days of Mr Inside and Mr Outside ...

 

No service academy's gonna approach that level again unless the FBS money machine dries up somehow, but that doesn't mean dudes aren't fun to watch.

And knowing what can be involved in their next assignment, what those dudes do will always be appreciated.