The Sports Xchange
NCAAF Team Report – Army – INSIDE SLANT
Black Knights fall at No. 23 Rutgers
The Army defense more than answered the bell Saturday, but it was mistakes by the offense and special teams that allowed No. 23 Rutgers to beat the Black Knights 28-7.
Army (2-8) held Rutgers to 14 first downs, but had two field goal attempts blocked, twice fumbled the ball away inside the Rutgers 15 and had a punt snap misfire before recovering at its own 1 and turning the ball over on downs. Finally, Army had a pitch picked off and returned 73 yards for a touchdown.
This was a 7-7 game until the fourth quarter, when Rutgers scored twice in a 2:21 span before adding the final touchdown, on defense, with time running out.
“It turned into a little bit of a clown act but we battled ourselves into the fourth quarter,” coach Rich Ellerson said after the game. “It’s not just finishing. It’s just finishing drives. It’s just finishing kicks. It’s just finishing blocks, catches. There’s a finishing edge that has to be in place.”
Even at 2-8, the Black Knights have something to play for, because the win over Air Force Nov. 3 made the Army-Navy game a winner-take-all event for a Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy that Army hasn’t won since 1996.
So, in the grand scheme of things, the Rutgers game and this week’s home finale against Temple really doesn’t mean much. But that doesn’t make the Black Knights feel any better after the mistakes cost them a chance at beating a Top 25 team for the first time in 40 years.
Quarterback Trent Steelman ran for 102 yards and an opening touchdown but also coughed the ball up at the Rutgers 9.
———————————————–
NCAAF Team Report – Army – NOTES, QUOTES
WHAT’S AHEAD: The Black Knights host Temple this week in the home finale, a game that starts the long break before the Dec. 8 showdown with Navy as Army tries to win the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy for the first time since 1996. Temple is 3-6, 2-4 in its first year back in the Big East.
–Army lost its ninth straight game to Rutgers, falling 28-7 to the Scarlet Knights on Saturday. The Black Knights are 0-4 against Rutgers at Piscataway, N.J., since 1972.
–The Knights have not scored a win over a ranked team since beating Air Force in 1972. They are 0-13 against teams from the AP top 25 since 1995.
–Army has lost 12 straight games away from West Point.
–The Black Knights are 4-21 since 2009 when losing the turnover battle. They fumbled the ball away three times Saturday and had one takeaway, on an interception.
–The Knights saw their streak of 300-yard rushing games snapped at five.
KEEP AN EYE ON: Army knows the game against Navy is waiting down the road, but the Knights have their home finale against Temple this week, so this game is huge for the players; especially the seniors.
LOOKING GOOD: The Army defense battled, battled and battled some more in keeping the team in the game until late. Rutgers is hardly an offensive juggernaut, but the Black Knights came up big despite the troubles of the offense and special teams. Rutgers had just 14 first downs.
STILL NEEDS WORK: When you get two field goals blocked, the special teams unit needs help. The offense has been plagued for so much of the season by turnovers, and after a clean game against Air Force, the turnovers came back again Saturday. “Four times in the plus 20 (red zone) and no points,” said coach Rich Ellerson. “Some real opportunities there. Obviously, the kicking game was a disaster. The opportunities missed.”
QUOTE TO NOTE: “We pride ourselves every time we get the ball (in finishing) and we didn’t get it done today. Hats off to our defense. I think they played outstanding. We didn’t give them what they deserved.” — QB Trent Steelman, who fumbled at the Rutgers 9, one of three Army turnovers on a sloppy day.
———————————————–
NCAAF Team Report – Army – STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL
PLAYER NOTES
–QB Trent Steelman ran for 102 yards and a touchdown that put Army ahead 7-0, but also fumbled the ball away at the Rutgers 9, one of many Army mistakes in a 28-7 loss to No. 23 Rutgers. He became the third Army player to reach 3,000 career rushing yards and the 100-yard game was the 11th of his career, tied for second on the program’s all-time list. He has 1,013 yards on the ground this season, 66 yards away from Army’s all-time record. But the fumble will haunt him and his team.
–FB Larry Dixon ran for 81 yards on six carries in the loss, including a long of 26 yards.
–FS Brandon Fusilier-Jeffires tied LB Geoffrey Bacon for the team lead with 12 tackles, had five solos, compared to one for Bacon.
ROSTER REPORT
–RB Raymond Maples ran for 58 yards on 13 carries and needs 35 yards to give Army two 1,000-yard rushers for only the second time in program history.
–NT Richard Glover and OT Ben Jebb missed the game with ankle injuries, Jebb dressing but not playing.
–LB Geoffrey Bacon is fifth in the country with 112 tackles and 11.2 per game.
–DEs Holt Zalneraitis and Zach Watts were both named to the Capitol One academic all-District team.
–DB Josh Jackson had a 34-yard punt return, Army’s longest since he had a 37-yarder in 2010.
–Freshman K Dan Grochowski had two field goals blocked.
–WR Chevaughn Lawrence caught three passes, his eighth straight game with a catch, no easy task on a running team.
–CB Marques Avery returned after missing a game with an injury.
–DE James Kelly made his second start.
–RB Terry Baggett, who ran for 100 yards in the opening loss at San Diego State and was hurt in Game 2, remained out with a broken kneecap.
=========
———————————————–
