Navy vs Air Force and Army at BC Games May Be Cancelled
The federal government is shut down. This is a great thing in this day and age when the government is a money-wasting, freedom stripping, citizen-crushing, socialist monstrosity. While they are shut down, who will spend money we do not have? Who will come for our guns, trample on our Constitution, sick the IRS on us, or tell us if, when and where we can go to the doctor? Yes, the government shutdown can go on forever and it would not be long enough. That is unless of course you are in the military.
The one thing the feds do that is worth doing is the military. Part of this is their military academies where young men train to become officers. Like most colleges across the nation, these academies field a football team. This week, two games involving the service academies, the Navy Midshipmen hosting the Air Force Falcons and the Army Cadets at the Boston College Eagles, may be cancelled because of the shutdown.
The Navy-Air Force game is part of the “Commander in Chief’s” Trophy series between the Falcons, Cadets and Midshipmen. If one team wins both of their games in the series, they take home the trophy. Normally the winner of Air Force-Navy decides this one. If the game is cancelled it is unclear f it will be made up. Making it up at the end of the season is not an option because typically the game between Army and Navy is played a week after everyone else’s regular season is finished.
To make up the games, thee would have to be a week where both teams have a bye week. Also, what happens if the shutdown goes on for two, three, or four weeks? This could really have a major impact on the college football season. Think about how many teams depend on a win over a service academy to get enough wins for bowl eligibility. Teams that could lose a game include the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, Duke Blue Devils, Pittsburgh Panthers, Wake Forest Demon Deacons, Western Kentucky Hilltoppers, Colorado State Rams and San Diego State Aztecs. Some of these teams are sure to end up a game short of bowl eligible if they don’t get to play their service academy game. Are those games a guaranteed win? No. But they are certainly not a sue loss either.
BC and Notre Dame stand to lose two games if their games are cancelled. BC is supposed to play both Army and Navy while the Irish have Navy and Air Force on their schedule.
College football season without the Army-Navy game just won’t seem right. If there is a bigger rivalry in sports, it is hard to imagine. Both these schools really have an 11 game preseason to get ready for that game. Earlier in the season while watching the Stanford Cardinal play at West Point, when it showed the scoreboard there was a huge banner on it that said “Beat Navy.” That kind of says it all. They don’t have a “Beat Ohio State” permanent banner on the scoreboard at the Big House in Michigan.
So while the federal government shutdown is overall a good thing, let’s hope they can figure out a way to let the service academies play ball the rest of the season.
