Ricky Dobbs threw the longest touchdown pass in the 111-year history of the Army-Navy game, Wyatt Middleton had the longest fumble return in Navy history, and the Midshipmen (9-3) extended their winning streak against the Black Knights (6-6) to nine straight with a 31-17 victory Saturday in Philadelphia. Associated Press, December 10, 2010.
Six or seven years back on a Saturday morning, we talked briefly on the phone cross country from Oregon with our son in the Army in northern Virginia and asked, "What are you doing this morning?" "Polishing my boots," he replied. That wasn't out of the ordinary, at the time he was training to be a sentinel at the Tomb of the Unknowns. "I am going to the Army Navy football game today." We thought that was pretty good deal, and felt bad when Army was beaten later on. That our youngest son would be at the Naval Academy a few years later wasn't in any stretch of our imaginations - not on our radar back then. Army was the team to rout for.
But times changed. Our youngest decided he wanted to go to the Naval Academy and was admitted - we switched alliances and bought Navy Football season tickets the four years while he was there. We passed on our option this year, but I caught several of the game on television, and watched the entire event yesterday. It was fun to see the Midshipmen win their ninth game in a row against Army, especially after loosing earlier in the season to Air Force, and giving up the Commander-and-Chief's trophy. But once Navy locked up the game towards the end, and seeing the different Division patches on the Army uniforms, I couldn't help but feel some sadness for the Cadets and the soldiers at the game and those elsewhere routing for them, especially when I caught a glimpse of the 101st Airborne patch. It has been a tough year for the 101st in Afghanistan. Some friends of ours' son is deployed now - last time in Iraq, this time Afghanistan. No doubt about routing for Army there, regardless of football game outcomes. Go Army!
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