If you don’t know what time it is, then you need to turn in your Army football paraphernalia immediately.
You see on Saturday, the Army Black Knights will host the Midshipmen of Navy, where the contest itself will not be in a neutral setting, but in the surreal, yet real time of 2020 …. The game will be played at Michie Stadium on the historic grounds of the United States Military Academy at West Point
This will be the 121st meeting between the two senior service academies since Army played it first football game ever in 1890.
Throughout the week, GoBlackKnights.com will feature several former/notable Army players, to get their perspective of the Army-Navy rival.
Our first former player featured is Gary Steele.
Steele became Army's first African American to earn a varsity letter in football at West Point. Steele hauled in 25 passes for 346 yards and two scores during his first season at Army in 1966 and then registered 14 receptions for 269 yards and a pair of touchdowns the next year. His best season statistically was 1968 when he posted 27 catches for 496 yards and three touchdowns. During that year, he registered eight receptions for 156 yards against Penn State, shattering the single-game record previously held by the legendary "Lonely End," Bill Carpenter.
Steele closed his career with 66 receptions for 1,111 yards and seven touchdowns. He helped Army to a pair of football victories over arch-rival Navy. A second team Newspaper Enterprise Association All-American as a tight end, Steele was a 17th round draft choice of the National Football League's Detroit Lions.
Steele also earned four varsity letters in track and field, two indoors and two outdoors. He established the Academy record in the high jump with a leap of 6-feet, 9-inches opposite Navy, a mark broken later that season.
So, GoBlackKnights.com asked the Army West Point trailblazer what does the Army-Navy game means to him, along with his fondest memory of the rivalry?
“It’s a reminder of my youth, it’s a reminder of the brotherhood shared with my classmates, it’s a reminder of the biggest game I played in during my time at West Point,” said the debonaire academy alumni.
“My fondest memories are tied to two things. As a Plebe, we tied Navy. I remember standing next to another cadet on the Plebe football team and promising each other that there would NOT be a tie next year and there wasn’t … we beat Navy.”
“The other memory was at the end of the final Army-Navy football game. The game was played at the now demolished JFK Stadium that seated over 100,000 fans,” added Steele. “After our victory I just stood there taking in the fans, the noise and the smoke from our cannons as it drifted in front of the stadium lights. I wanted to embrace that moment so I could remember it forever. Well, I don’t know about forever, but today, over 50 years later, I remember it as if it happened just this past weekend.”
So if there were no COVID-19 and if Steele had an opportunity to be in the Army Black Knights' locker room before the game, what would he say to the players ... especially the seniors?
“Charles, things have changed since we played,” he explained. “There is now a chance for the very best Army players to have a chance at the NFL. I think this is what I’d say.”
“I know that each one of you believes you have played your hardest every game. I will tell you that there is still a little more in you for this game. Think about it ... every play you must squeeze out EVERYTHING you have within you. There is a feeling you will experience like none other. You will find strength and speed as never before because you know that this is the LAST time you will ever compete with THESE brothers. Go within yourself and find it. IT IS THERE!!”
“Perhaps a bit drawn out, but, these are my feelings,” declared the transparent Steele, whose comments were followed by his daughter Sage, who had her own proud/special memory of an Army-Navy game.
“2017 was such a special year because my dad and I were able to share the Army-Navy experience with my son, Nicholas for the first time,” declared the ESPN Co-Host. “He was 13 years old and had always heard all about it, but when he walked into Lincoln Financial Field that day and stood next to my dad during the March-On before the game … Nicholas got it. He was in awe.”
“As a mother, to see him standing there next to my father during such a special moment for Dad, was unforgettable. Needless to say, a few hours later, I cried watching them celebrate together after Navy missed a last-second field goal attempt and Army won by one point. #GoArmyBeatNavy”
Next Up: Former Captain & MLB, Cole Christiansen
**To chat with other Army fans about this article and more, please visit The 12th Knight message board**
