Army vs Navy Line

Written by Steve Janus

This Saturday the Army Black Knights and Navy Midshipmen will conclude the college football regular season with one of the biggest rivalries in the nation. Kickoff is set f0r 2:30 ET at FedEx Field (home of the Washington Redskins) and will be televised nationally on CBS. The Midshipmen have completely dominated this series over the last decade. Navy has won nine straight, including a 31-17 beating of the Black Knights last year. The closest Army has been to a win since beating Navy 26-17 in 2001, is a 14-26 loss in 2006. That could change this time around, as the two teams have combined for just seven wins.

Taking a look at the college football odds for this matchup, oddsmakers currently have Navy favored by 7-points over Army with the total set at 56 points.

Army:

It has been a disappointing season for the Midshipmen, who are just 3-8 heading into their final game. Army had an impressive win over Northwestern early in the season, but come into this game having lost three straight and five of their last six overall. While they suffered a couple of close losses against San Diego State and Miami(OH), most of their games haven’t even been close. In their last game they were dominated 42-15 at Temple.

There is no secret to what the Black Knights plan on doing when they have the football. Army leads the nation with 350.9 rushing yards per game, but are dead last in passing at 48.0 ypg. All that rushing hasn’t exactly led to many points. Army averages just over 25 ppg. Points have been even harder to come by of late, as the Black Knights haven’t scored more than 14 points in each of their last three games.

The offense could get a spark against the Midshipmen, as junior starting quarterback Trent Steelman is expected to start after missing most of the last four games. Steelman returned to action against Temple after sitting out three straight games with an ankle injury, but was knocked out of the game with a leg injury on the second offensive play. Steelman is still the team leader with 11 rushing touchdowns and second in rushing yards at 583. Not only will he give the Black Knights a boost in the ground game, but he will at least give them a threat to throw the ball. Steelman has thrown for just 347 yards and two touchdowns on the season, but has completed 20 of 39 attempts. To give you an idea of just how bad the passing game is without Steelman, backups Max Jenkins and Angel Santiago are a combined 13 for 52 for 181 yards with two touchdowns.

Navy:

The 2011 season hasn’t been a whole lot better for the Midshipmen. After going 9-4 last season, Navy enters their final game with a 4-7 record. They opened up the year with back-to-back wins over Delaware and Western Kentucky, but would go on to lose their next six games before beating Troy and Southern Methodist in consecutive weeks. They lost 24-27 at San Jose State the last time they took the field. The 3-point loss was their fifth loss this season by a field goal or less, which includes a 21-24 loss at then No. 10 South Carolina, a 34-35 overtime loss against Air Force, and a 20-21 loss at Rutgers.

The Midshipmen have a very similar offensive attack to that of Army. Navy is 4th in the nation in rushing, averaging 313.7 ypg, but are second to last in passing at 92.4 ypg. Their offense is also dependent on the play of their starting quarterback. Senior Kriss Proctor leads the team with 817 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns, while also throwing for 774 yards and seven scores. Senior running back Alexander Teich is the other player that you have to watch out for when Navy has the football. Teich may have just three touchdowns on the season, but has carried it 168 times for 790 yards.

While Navy actually had more passing yards than rushing yards in last year’s game against the Black Knights, theyshould have no trouble moving the ball with their rushing attack this time around. Army comes into the game ranked 87th against the run, allowing 185.7 ypg on the ground.

The key to this game will be whether or not Navy’s defense can keep the Black Knights top ranked rushing attack in check. Navy is allowing just over 176 rushing yards a game, but figure to give up a lot more than that in this game. Army rushed 209 yards last year, but were able to manage just 17 points.

Betting Trends:

Army is 9-20-1 ATS in their last 30 games as an underdog of 3.5-10.0.

Navy is 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games as a favorite of 3.5-10.0.

Be sure to stop back and check out who Steve Janus has picked to win this week in college football.

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