Army Black Knights Enter Offseason After 'Exciting' Debut in AAC

The Army Black Knights enter the offseason after an exciting debut in the AAC.
Dec 28, 2024; Shreveport, LA, USA; The Army Black Knights celebrate defeating the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs to win the 2024 Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl at Independence Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Danny Wild-Imagn Images
Dec 28, 2024; Shreveport, LA, USA; The Army Black Knights celebrate defeating the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs to win the 2024 Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl at Independence Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Danny Wild-Imagn Images / Danny Wild-Imagn Images

The Army Black Knights just played through one of the best seasons in the history of their football program - at least this century.

It was the program's first year in the American Athletic Conference after being one of the few Independent schools since 2005, and they turned around and won the whole thing.

11th-year head coach Jeff Monken authored the third double-digit victory campaign of his tenure at the helm and brought home his first conference championship since his time with the Georgia Southern Eagles.

In a recent article for Bleacher Report, David Kenyon gave each top 25 team one word to describe their season, and for the Black Knights, that word was "exciting."

"Considering the institution's mission," he writes, "change is particularly inevitable at West Point. However, the football team has never been more attractive in the modern era. Army finished 12-2 and secured an AAC title during its debut season as a member of the conference."

While it has been hard to be consistently successful on the football field for Army over the better part of the last 50 years, Monken has shown he is capable of developing the players he has into star athletes who can help win games.

The coach has authored an 82-57 record during his tenure with the Black Knights and is the first coach for the team to have more than one campaign of .500 or better football since Bob Sutton roamed the sidelines from 1991 through 1999.

Monken has been widely overlooked across the college football landscape for his talent of developing players and leading men to victory, but has remained faithful to Army as shown by his 11 seasons as head coach. He's the longest-tenured head coach for the Black Knights since Earl Blaik held the position from 1941 through 1958.

It is an exciting time for the Army football program with their new conference and tenured leader, and after winning the American Athletic Conference in their first attempt, the sky is the limit in 2025 with a College Football Playoff berth potentially within reach.


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