FOXBOROUGH — Early in the first quarter of the Army-Navy game, the crowd camera providing images to Gillette Stadium’s giant video board paused on a section of cadets sitting in the lower bowl seats just off of the south end zone.
For a split second, in their spotless dress gray coats and hats, they were the picture of sharp uniformity. Exactly the stock image most people have of a West Point student. That was until they realized they were on the scoreboard. Then they smiled, shouted and gestured gleefully enjoying their seconds of extremely localized fame until the camera moved on to someone else. The same script played out nearly identically on the other side of the stands moments later among the Midshipmen fans.
The moments were a perfect encapsulation of the young men and women from the United States Military and Naval Academies, in the stands and on the field. They are ordinary people preparing to live extraordinary lives.
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There are a lot of things that make the Army-Navy football game special and unique. Among the most compelling is that these aren’t college football’s most physically gifted athletes but they are extremely impressive people, some of whom happen to be very good at football.
For just the third time in 124 games, the rivalry left the Mid-Atlantic. The 65,878 fans who did get their hands on one of the toughest tickets in Gillette Stadium history learned first-hand that Bill Belichick is right. There are a lot of big games in college and professional football, but Army-Navy is special.
It is one of those bucket list sporting events that has no peers. It is concurrently an event and a game. It’s often a great game befitting the rivalry, but it doesn’t have to be for Army-Navy to be a great event.
Tailgating began more than six hours before the game. As the fans left the unpaved lots to cross Route 1 toward Gillette, fan after fan in uniform paused to wipe the dirt and mud from their footwear. Even football games are no place for unshined shoes in the military.
Inside Patriots Place, each fan base had a restaurant serving as their headquarters. Splitsville housed the “Beat Navy Tailgate!” In the back parking lots, ESPN’s Gameday was hopping. The desk crew of media celebrities showed clear reverence for the many members of the military brass that made guest appearances.
In the crowd, the messages on signs are on brand both for a standard Gameday crowd as well as the schools that are represented.
“If Maverick had gone to West Point, Goose would still be alive” and “Army swims in the shallow end.”
In addition to the March On, where the students from both schools parade onto the field in formation, the annual prisoner exchange returns is a pregame staple. A small group of students from each academy attend the other for a semester before being “returned” to their rightful school before the game. Eight Midshipmen each wore a letter of “N-U-K-E A-R-M-Y’ on the back of their jackets while their West Point counterparts responded with “E-A-T S-Q-U-I-D.” Once officially freed they ran back to student seating, where Rob Gronkowski, a former Patriots legend and current USAA had just been posing for pictures.
After skydivers from both military branches followed, there were flyovers by jets and military helicopters.
While the atmosphere was reliably memorable, the game delivered an exciting ending to a slow-starting football game. Army defended the goal line, stopping Navy twice inside the 2-yard line to seal the 17-11 win. While many of the Cadets stormed the field, the Navy players and their fans watched in disconsolate silence.
After a few minutes, the two teams came together to sing “Navy Blue and Gold” in front of the Midshipmen fans and then the “West Point Alma Mater” in front of the Cadets.
It’s a moving tradition. After a hard-fought game, the two rivals come together. They each understand the hardships and sacrifices the other faces better than anyone, who has never been where they’re standing. They’re adversaries for an afternoon but will be teammates moving forward. It would sound almost hokey, but the entire Army-Navy experience makes it hard to be cynical.
It’s impossible to truly comprehend what awaits the players on the field and their classmates in the stands. The seniors on both sides already have their active duty assignments. Fittingly Army cornerback Cameron Jones moves to “air defense artillery” from air defense on wide receivers. Navy starting guard Josh Pena will change his focus from quarterback protection to “surface warfare (nuclear).”
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With all of that in mind, Navy coach Brian Newberry had the game in proper perspective.
“I would say that the people who came to the game were entertained and hopefully proud of what they saw. This game, in the grand scheme of things, is about more than football,” he said. “It’s about celebrating some of the finest young men in the country on the field and then celebrating and recognizing all those that have dedicated their life to service, that have served and are serving your country. Shining a light on them, celebrating them and showing gratitude for their sacrifice and their commitment. That’s what it’s all about. I think, at the end of the day, whoever was in the stands was proud of what they saw these young men do, as far as their fight and their grit and their toughness and their resolve.”
Follow MassLive sports columnist Matt Vautour on Twitter at @MattVautour424.
