As Army prepares for its 110th game against the Naval Academy, one can't help be reminded of the history of the game and the memorable players and moments that have come in all the years before. Army-Navy as a rivalry is the best in college football and one reason is because of the many stories that are scripted and retold year after year. Today we catch up with Lynn Moore, who played in four Army-Navy games and captained the 1969 team.

Moore was considered by his teammates to be a quiet professional. He captained the 1969 Army team, and set the Army single game rushing attempts recorded with 40 (resulting in 206 yards) against Navy his senior season in an Army win. He played in the College All-Star game and East-West Shrine game in recognition of his performance. He ran for over 125 yards in a game five times in 1969 against stiff competition. And he made the Corps pretty happy as well. His efforts, along with those of the rest of the team, against Navy and the Army win allowed the Corps to "fall out" until holiday break.

Moore's first experience of Army-Navy came in 1966. That day will forever be etched into Moore's brain. "Wow, army/navy. As a plebe, leading up to the game, it was always 'Go Army, Beat Navy.' I went into the game thinking it was going to be like Oklahoma versus Oklahoma State, back where i grew up. I was totally wrong. There was anger in the stadium, from the time the "crabs" came in till we were all gone."

That first season's game, also former head coach Tom Cahill's first Army-Navy game, was a win for Army. But the experience for Moore would set the tone for years to come.

1967 brought Army to JFK stadium carrying only one loss. Army was determined to end the season on a high note, but Navy had other plans. "The team came into the Navy game at 8 and 1 with an invitation to the sugar bowl," begins Moore. "The year had been magic, and we were determined to destroy Navy enroute to a national ranking. There was no looking past them. Then the bomb dropped."

Army lost to Navy 19-14. "For me as a sophomore, there was always next year, another chance for a bowl bid on a team that looked to be even stronger in '68. It was not the same for the seniors. They had seen the 8-2 effort in '66 go unrecognized. Navy, I think, became "just another game". Anything even close to that attitude in an Army-Navy game has very predictable results. It was a valuable lesson learned for those coming back the following year, but a hateful memory for the seniors who I am sure revisit it on a daily basis."

1968 saw Army put together another successful season. The Black Knights were 6-3 coming into the Navy game, with tough losses decided by four points or less to Vanderbilt, Missouri, and Penn State. "We were out for revenge. Nobody, I said nobody, beats Army twice in a row. Charlie Jarvis, who fumbled the year before, personally guaranteed it. After close losses to Missouri and Penn State, there is only one acceptable end to the season. The tension in the locker room and during warm ups was incredible and the Corps of Cadets had gone silent. There was not a peep from them, and eventually the Brigade of Midshipmen got quiet aas well. Absolutely no one on the team had a clue about what was going on. We talked very quietly about it, but knew something was up with them. We came out onto the field for the game and hear it came, the sound of air horns exploding with the incredible noise of 4000 angry cadets out for revenge, each of them sporting black and white number 12 jerseys. We could have beaten Green Bay that day."

Charlie Jarvis would be right. Army atoned for the previous year's loss with a 21-14 defeat of the Middies. The Corps, air horns and all, had something to celebrate.

The 1969 season was a disappointment for Army. The Black Knights came in 3-5-1, including a 13-6 loss to Air Force. For Moore, this would be his final game wearing the Black and Gold with his teammates. "The season had fallen apart, for both teams. This was truly the situation where the Army-Navy game becomes 'The Second Season'. Our only claim to fame, our only great memory for an entire year, would be a victory over Navy," explains Moore.

"To add a personal twist to it, the captain of the Navy team was my best friend. He lived a block away from me until I was 10 years old, growing up in El Reno, Oklahoma. We beat them 27-0. Our coach, Tom Cahill, called a time out late in the fourth quarter to put the first team defense back on the field for a goal line stand against Navy, who had a first down on the four-yard line. That stand, by a no name defense, is absolutely and without doubt my finest memory in all of football."

Moore would end his career against Navy with a 4-1 record, and while he won't talk at all about his personal accomplishments in those games, his play will always be remembered by those who saw it.

Moore sums it up quite eloquently. "If anyone asks me, did you play football? Yes. Was army any good back then? We shut out Navy in '69. Were you any good? I helped shut out Navy in 69. Did you do anything else? I didn't have to."