Coaching for Pizza: EPIC East Coast Football Adventure, Day II

Saturday, October 7, 2023

Finally it was . . .

. . . the reason for our trip!

The game would be played in the United States Military Academy's Michie Stadium with a fantastic view of the Hudson River Valley complete with the beauty of the leaves changing color in Fall.

As for our combatants, we were going to see two of the Northeast's traditional college powers duke it out for 60 minutes.

Boston College Eagles

Atlantic Coast Conference

2-3 overall, 1-2 ACC

Army Black Knights

Independent

2 Wins - 2 Losses

Despite the exhaustion from yesterday's forced field march through New York City, we were up early to take the 30 minute drive from our hotel in Fishkill to West Point.

The reason for our early morning activity was to get to West Point in time to see the Parade of Cadets on The Plain that was due to start at 9:00 a.m., weather permitting.

It was still overcast and it had rained during the night but it was not raining now. The forecast said that the expected rain would hold off until about 10:30 a.m.

We kept our fingers crossed.

Entering West Point

Jacob with an on-duty soldier

We had randomly been selected to have our car thoroughly searched before being allowed to proceed.

We passed inspection quickly and were on our way.

Though this field was soggy, it

was still where we directed to park

Still pristine at about 8:15 a.m., it was badly torn up when we left at about 4:oo p.m.

Our car being securely parked

on the fringe of the campus, we now

needed to board a bus to get to the

Parade Grounds, a.k.a., The Plains

We passed a lonely female Cadet

practicing her Hammer Throw

technique on a dreary Saturday morning

What price glory?

You can see the queue of busses in the background ready to take us to The Plains.

Just before boarding, we got the following message on our phone.

DAMN!

No Parade of Cadets today was a disappointment but we carried on.

The Field House was still closed

at this early hour

Yes, Jacob,

we are all at West Point

Jacob is fittingly wearing

a Civil War cap on our visit

Jacob's first view of Michie Stadium

It was way too early to enter the stadium but we were still able to see it from fairly close up as our bus driver dropped us off.

The excitement is building

Jacob wanted to check our

all of the pre-game activities on

Black Knights Alley

A better view of the Home Side

of Michie Stadium

The home of Army football since 1924, it opened 99 years ago and can currently accommodate 38,000 fans.

This was the first of several freebies

that we would get this morning in the

forms of swag and nourishment

While I was getting my free pennant, bucket hat and see through fanny pack complete with Black Knights' logo, I had momentarily lost track of my traveling companions.

I found them locked in mortal combat

They were aiming at these "receivers"

in a duel to see who could hit them the

most in a 20 second contest

Hitting one farther away scored

more points than hitting a nearer one

That makes sense to me.

BOMBS AWAY!

The boys with one of their

favorite WR targets

I believe that Jacob won the duel.

At least Michael didn't die as a result of any dueling wounds.

One of two helmets being given away

if you simply filled out a slip of paper

Unfortunately, we did not win either one.

After getting our swag and letting Jacob enjoy a few other Black Knight Alley games and displays, we headed off to explore the gorgeous West Point campus.

There were some truly serene

spots along our trek

Near the Army football recruiting

building and practice field

It was here that we met Army's

Freshman QB Mitch Bolden

#14, 6-0, 208 lbs.

from West Chester, Ohio

He was great with Jacob and patiently answered all of his questions.

Checking out some of Army's

alternate uniforms

Yes, BEAT NAVY is a common theme on this campus.

We were thankfully parked

far from this tailgater

A boy and his military

grade Humvee

The small meeting area in the

Academy's Gift Shop Building

We were told by one of the official hosts that we could have a complimentary breakfast in this room, so we did.

Simple but hardy fare, the

sausages were OUTSTANDING!

Our tax dollars at work for the good of the common man!

But the hospitality did not end with just free swag and simple nourishment for the body.

We were further informed that the local Orange County Distillery, based in the nearby village of New Hampton, was giving away free shots of their best whiskey.

So they added a shot of smooth

whiskey to my coffee

It was nourishment for the soon to be drenched soul.

A chance encounter with

the Army Mule

The Mule is an alternate mascot for the Black Knights.

With Trophy Point in the background

The wonderful view of the

Hudson River Valley from Trophy Point

when people are not in the way

"Firing" a cannon at a British ship

during a Revolutionary War re-ennactment

With the statue of Class of 1837

West Point graduate Major General

John Sedgwick

Sedgwick was killed by a sharpshooter's bullet during the May 9, 1864, Civil War Battle of Spotsylvania Court House in Virginia.

His famous last words just before being hit were, "They couldn't hit an elephant at this distance."

Sedgwick is one of four Major Generals killed during the Civil War, the highest Union rank that lost their lives in that conflict.

On The Plains sans the

Parade of Cadets

Still no rain, but that would not last much longer.

Such a majestic campus

With the statue of Class of 1915

West Point graduate Five Star

General of the Army

Dwight David Eisenhower

"Ike" was the Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionary Force in Europe during World war II

He also served two terms as our nation's 34th President from 1953 to 1961.

With the statue of Class of 1909

West Point graduate Four Star General

George S. Patton

"Old Blood and Guts"

A great but highly controversial American general who also served to free Europe of Fascist and Nazi rule during World War II.

The Core of Cadet Culture

This building looked interesting

and was open

The history buffs were in action again

The West Point emblem

is a good one

As we left Thayer Hall, the expected rain started falling.

We sought refuge in this small

dining area inside Grant Hall

We donned our ponchos and

proceeded our walk back towards

Michie Stadium

The interesting story of West Point's

Class of 1861 whose members fought

on both sides of the American Civil War

Too risky for us on this

now rainy day

There is that powerful

West Point emblem again

It was getting close to the scheduled Noon Kickoff time so we headed to cozy Michie Stadium.

We made it easily through the stadium's security checkpoint.

It was now time for Jacob to try to get a bit closer to the action as the Black Knights entered the field.

Here they come!

Jacob about to get a "Five" . . .

. . . from #15, Army WR Noah Short

Sophomore, 6-0, 190 lbs.

from San José, California

Part of Army's storied gridiron

history on display in the bowels

of Michie Stadium

16:15 before the Kickoff and the

rain was coming down steadily

Fans in colorful ponchos were still

mostly huddled in the stadium's

hallways to stay as dry as possible

Not us, we wanted the full

BC-Army game day experience

Three soon to be drowned rats

Boston College Eagles

in white and on Offense

While we had a constant rain all during the First Half, the deluge that started about five minutes before the intermission was extremely intense and lasted for a good 15 minutes. It actually hurt when it hit any of my exposed skin.

It was the last straw for many of the drenched fans who opted to leave the stadium to get dry and warm at a favored location of their choice.

Boston College had controlled the action during the first 30 minutes of the game and led 13-3 as people were filing out of stadium for the day.

We had no such thought of leaving

the game because of just a little

inclement weather

We did join the remaining masses in the dryer tunnels under the stands during Half Time to stay a tad dryer and safer from the killer squall.

Here Jacob proudly displays the game used Army player towel that he liberated from the BC sideline.

The Third Period started in a much

less crowded Michie Stadium

In the upper right corner of this photo you can see people lined up for the busses to take them back to their cars.

Seriously, you just have to be tougher than this. It is an Army game after all!

We surveyed the stands and decided to relocate ourselves to new seats.

We were now on the Home Side

closer to the action with the

Corps of Cadets across the way

It was hard to see the Corps in

their camouflage uniforms

We spent the First Half in those

now empty seats to the right

We were on top of the action as Army

fought their way back into the game,

but BC was still ahead at the end of the

Third Quarter 21-17

The rain abated so Jacob donned

his Camarillo Stingers #99 jersey . . .

. . . Army Black Knights #99,

Senior Defensive Lineman, Chris Frey

6-5, 265 lbs., fron Canyon Lake, California,

had his jersey on the whole game come

rain or shine

The next, professional photos were downloaded from the Army Black Knights Facebook page.

GREAT flag!

Black Knights swarming on Defense

Why is BC's #11 not eyeballing

this Black Knights ball carrier?

Good Army tackling technique

Army's STUD QB

#13 Bryson Daily

Junior, 6-0, 215 lbs.

from Abernathy, Texas

On the day he completed ten of his 13 pass attempts, good for 105 yards, one TD and no Interceptions.

On this rain soaked day, Daily was also the Black Knights leading rusher gaining 99 yards on 14 carries with no TDs.

Strangely, if you know the traditional Offensive M.O.s of these two DI schools, the team statistics were opposite of what you would have expected.

Army passed for more yards, 105-51, while BC rushed for more yards, 321-161.

Go figure . . .

It should be noted that the Eagles QB, Thomas Castellanos, just like Army's QB Bryson Daily, also led his team in passing and rushing.

In the rain, Castellanos only threw nine passes, completing four that gained a mere 51 yards. He had no TD passes and did throw one Interception.

Castellanos ability to run the ball was the key to the BC Offense as he ran the rock a whopping 31 times, good for 142 yards and four TDs.

It was a close, competitive game

that came down to the wire

The rain finally abated in the late

part of the Fourth Quarter

A key Fourth Down stop by the

Army Defense with the crowd,

mostly Jacob, going wild

By the way, the older gentleman giving high fives to the fans on the lower right portion at the end of this video is Four Star General Darryl A. Williams, West Point Class of 1983.

General Williams is the current Commander of the U.S. Army Forces in Europe and Africa. He was previously the 60th Superintendent of West Point.

Once a Black Knight . . .

It was a fun, but admittedly wet, game that came down to the very end.

Final Score

Boston College (3-3) - 27

Army (2-3) - 24

The football series between these two excellent universities started in 1917 with an Army 13-7 victory at West Point. Boston College now leads the 39 game series with 26 victories compared to Army's 13 wins.

The official paid attendance today was 34,017 people. There was a mere fraction of those damp souls left in Michie Stadium by the Fourth Quarter.

BEAT NAVY!

On the drive back to Fishkill, we entered the village of Newburgh, New York where we saw a sign directing us to another historical site.

Why not, how much more wet could we get?

George Washington Slept Here

A Statue of a Minuteman

The Minutemen, self-trained, mobile companies of state militias, played key supporting roles in the Continental Army's drive to victory in the Revolutionary War.