…The Irish once again rode into Yankee Stadium. Two games away from their ultimate end goal of a College Football Playoff berth. Two hard tests, for very different reasons. Let’s dive into the first one taking place tomorrow night.
Army vs Notre Dame (-14.5)
Yankee Stadium
The Bronx, NY
Date: Saturday, November 23, 2024
Time: 7 PM ET
TV: NBC (and also Peacock)
Vegas Corner
The line has been pretty much steady around fourteen and a half for the Irish. I have to imagine that line is mostly due to the idea that Army, who owns the highest average time of possession in FBS, will limit possessions for the Irish offense if they can find success. The over under is 44.5, so the power brokers in Sin City seemed to project this at a 28-17 kind of game for the Irish.
Weather Report
Looking at the weather as I write this on Thursday afternoon, it appears that it will be a slightly chilly evening in the Bronx. It looks like it will be in the mid 40s and dropping slightly as the game progresses, with some slight wind conditions. For those who were there for the 2010 game the conditions will be fairly similar based on current projections.
Series History
As the rollout for the Shamrock Series uniforms have shown, this game is a celebration of the one hundredth anniversary of the famous Grantland Rice piece in the New York Herald Tribune. That 13-7 win, combined with the piece by Rice that created more fame after the above picture had been taken, was essentially the catalyst of the Notre Dame brand we know today. The 1924 team won the program’s first National Championship after its 1924 Rose Bowl win over Stanford.
The other famous Notre Dame-Army game, and one that actually took place at Yankee Stadium (version 1.0) was the 1946 Game of the Century. While the game finished in a 0-0 tie, the perception of Notre Dame stopping the Army juggernaut of the day to no points was enough to catapult the previously second ranked Irish over the top ranked Army squad (back when a) ties happened and b) sportswriters actually decided National Championships).
Overall, Notre Dame leads the series overall 39-8-4, with Army’s last win coming in 1958 in South Bend. The last three games, all this century, have a combined score of 112-18 in favor of the Irish.
Fun Fact
Famously, the Irish stopped playing Army as often as they play their military brethren Navy, and the reason why is intriguing. After the famous Game of the Century in 1946, the president of Notre Dame at the time with the Major General who ran West Point put out a statement noting that Notre Dame and Army playing was not “conducive to wholesome intercollegiate sport.” (h/t Split Zone Duo). Essentially, the leaders were worried about gambling on the games. As a reminder the famous CCNY Men’s Basketball point shaving scandal was not too far away from rocking the collegiate world at the time. It’s also funny how things can come full circle and how history repeats itself as we are bombarded with sports gambling ads seemingly everywhere as its legality continues to spike.
Coaching Staff
Head Coach Jeff Monken is in his 11th season at West Point. He has gotten the Black Knights from also-ran independent (and a team that would consistently lose its biggest game of the year in Navy), to now a potential CFP contender with a couple of breaks and winning out. Monken comes Georgia Southern (prior to their FBS transition) where he lead the Eagles to three consecutive FCS Semifinal appearances. His final game was the infamous win in Gainesville where Georgia Southern knocked off Florida despite never completing a pass. His name has come up for coaching searches but has fallen short mostly due to the Service Academy Handicap of the offense that is usually run. However, he is still one of the best in the game and deserves all the flowers for the job he has done in West Point
Monken’s offensive coordinator is first year at the title, but not first year in the program. The OC is Cody Worley, whose job title also includes Quarterbacks Coach and Run Game Coordinator (Insert Joke that he already ran the offense here). Worley has been under Monken’s staff since the 2020 season. He has been developing the man under center Bryson Daily since he arrived on campus at West Point. After a year prior where Monken attempted a more hybrid option, Worley has gotten things more to a basic wishbone style with athletes that Worley developed. Worley’s last stop before this was Quarterbacks Coach at Kennesaw State, where he saw success for the Owls running a similar offense.
Nate Woody leads the defense for the Cadets. Woody was previously DC at his alma mater Wofford since 2000 before jumping to App State in 2013. After a couple years as DC in Boone, Woody spent a critical season at Georgia Tech. His lone season there was 2018, which was the final of noted thorn in the Irish side Paul Johnson. After Johnson’s retirement and clearing of new HC Geoff Collins’ staff, Woody went to Michigan for a year before also getting a job in 2020 under Monken.
Top Men
QB Bryson Daily: As hinted at talking about the OC Worley, the senior captain is in his second full season under center for Army. He averages 6.7 yards a carry and leads the Black Knights with 21 TDs. He also adds the big play passing offense, with seven passing TDs on 50 attempts. Much like with Navy, nullifying Daily will be crucial to success for the Irish defense.
RB Kanye Udoh: The halfback in the Army offense, Udoh has become a good battery mate for Daily. The true sophomore has 856 rushing yards in the year, also averaging about 6 yards a carry with 9 TDs. His six foot 215 pounds frame will be difficult to take down, but important to shut down the Army offense.
OLB Elo Modozie: The athlete from St Augustine, FL is currently leading the Army defense with 4.5 sacks. The former sprinter and long jumper has an athletic background and could be the one athlete that is trying to keep Riley Leonard at bay throughout the night.
S Max DiDomenico: In the secondary, this senior leader at safety is the one to be on the lookout for. The former HS Texas QB, DiMomencio has made a name for himself on the other side of the ball, leading the team in passes defended. He also has a INT for a TD in the Air Force game, putting that game away.
Matchup to Watch
Army OL vs Notre Dame DL
Army’s offensive line boasts many accolades in this season so far. The entire unit is a Joe Moore Award semi-finalist, and C Brady Small is high on the watchlist for the Rimington Trophy (which awards specifically center play). This will be the toughest unit the Army will have faced all season. It may be a cliche, even more so in a game that involves a triple option, but this game will be won in the trenches. If Army, beyond its scripted drives, can get the push against the rotating Irish front line, then those three yards can become six yards, which become more time off the clock for the Irish offense to respond.
Prediction
I do not want to take Army lightly, much like most Notre Dame fans do when they see a triple option offense. It has been obviously beneficial to have someone like Jack Kiser, Xavier Watts, and others who have seen the option both this season, and in seasons past. Army will almost certainly have some tricks up their sleeves, and potentially a trick play or two to try and catch the Irish defense off guard. The endgame is still as simple as it is at the beginning of the season, just win the game. Here, that means getting the defense off the field, getting the offense to score touchdowns. Army has one of the best red zone offenses and defenses in the country. The lights may be bright underneath the dark November sky, but the Irish have been playing up to the bright lights since the NIU loss, so I think this will be a semi-close Irish victory with a front door cover.
Such a blessing that they are ranked highly. Really minimizes the likelihood that the team overlooks them before what should be a difficult test, away in LA.
I would be more worried if this was a frisky, one- or two-loss Army team that a Freeman-led team can trip over.
I think we cover the spread. It will be more of a grind than the Navy game, which had so many turnovers that it was over pretty early, but still one where there isn’t too much doubt in the fourth quarter.