Beat Army, Beat Navy, Play For Country

Keenan Reynolds felt relieved after Navy pulled out a 17-13 win over Army in the 2012 encounter between the academies. The quarterback, a freshman at the time, led the Midshipmen on an 80-yard scoring drive, which he capped with an eight-yard touchdown run with less than five minutes to play.

Navy’s win that afternoon in Philadelphia was its 11^th straight over the Black Knights. Reynolds would not experience what it was like to sing first. He was a perfect 4-for-4 in his career against Army as the streak grew to 14 games, the longest in a rivalry that dates to 1890.

It was that 2012 game, though, that stands out. After all, since arriving in Annapolis that summer “Beat Army” became a way of life.

“It was almost like a giant weight had been lifted because we won, the streak lives, and it was such a relief,” recalled Reynolds, whose 4,559 career rushing yards are the most by a Football Bowl Subdivision quarterback and his 88 career rushing touchdowns are the most in all of Division 1, FBS and FCS, by a quarterback. “Coming into the academy, to beat Army is like the first thing you learn. You’re a plebe, you’re walking down the halls and every time you make a right or left turn, you’re screaming, ‘Beat Army.’”

Joe Gerena knows the feeling from the other side of college football’s greatest rivalry. An Army quarterback from 1997 to 2000, Gerena’s first appearance against Navy was the 1998 game in Philly. He came on for the Black Knights’ third series and ultimately helped lead a second-half comeback in a 34-30 win. Victory formation was never sweeter.

“I knew how special that moment was,” said Gerena, who, after kneeling down refused to let go of the football, which is in a display case in his Tampa home. “The joy and excitement of celebrating with my teammates and my brothers was remarkable. To stand behind Navy as they had to sing first, and then to pivot and run over to the corps is something that is hard to put into words what it truly feels like because you have so many emotions running through your mind. Beat Navy. It is truly something you live and breathe.”

There is something he cherished more, though, and that was seeing his son take the field against the Midshipmen last year. Brett Gerena played in only two games for Army in 2021, and one of them was against Navy in the New Jersey Meadowlands. A 17-13 Army loss was a mere footnote in the overall scheme of things for the Gerena family.

“It definitely gave me chills seeing him take the field,” said the elder Gerena. “Obviously, we didn’t get the outcome we wanted, but it was a special day, for sure. I will get those same goosebumps again at this year’s game.”

This year’s game, the 123rd between the academies, will be in Philadelphia on Saturday afternoon.

The chills, the excitement are what players feel when representing not only the Corps of Cadets and Brigade of Midshipmen, but something much larger.

“It’s for America,” said Kip Frankland, Navy’s senior offensive tackle. “We do it for America and it is really cool to see guys about to go out and serve our nation. People can root for that.”

Because the game is America’s Game, which Navy leads 62-53-7, there is a feeling of responsibility among those battling on the gridiron.

“You want to play hard for all the people that are watching,” said Reynolds. “Everybody is watching. The country, the armed services, people overseas. It is a tremendous honor and a lot of responsibility to participate in the game.”

That is how the younger Gerena felt before taking the field last year.

“It’s very special with millions of fans watching around the world,” he said. “It really takes your breath away. In that moment, you don’t think about anything but the mission at hand, and that’s beating Navy.”

Gerena often wore his father’s jersey to elementary school. Growing up in Tampa, he was surrounded by fans of the many college football teams in the Sunshine State. Hence, he stuck out when it came to his allegiance, wearing the West Point colors while wanting to follow in his father’s footsteps.

“I always had that as a goal, growing up and playing football,” he said. “I would be in the backyard pretending to play for Army. Growing up in Florida, you have fans of Florida State, Florida, UCF, USF and Miami. Everybody had their team and I kind of stood out. But look at that kid now, playing for the Army team.”

That kid, now a sophomore linebacker, will be part of an event, not just a game, that builds during the week and is on display through the singing of the alma maters after the final play. Everything about Army/Navy drips with pageantry and history.

“As a player, you try to convince yourself it’s just noise, and focus on the game and what happens between the lines,” said Reynolds. “The reality is that you should try to soak it all up. As much as I say that I was only focused on the game, running out (of the tunnel) and into that atmosphere, you have to soak it up and really enjoy the moment.”

It is an awesome sight to see the entire Corps of Cadets and the entire Brigade of Midshipmen cheering on their teams, and all the fun between them that plays out of the video boards during breaks in the action.

“It’s probably the most fun game that I have ever played in,” said senior kicker Bijan Nichols, believed to be the first placekicker in Navy history to be named a team captain. “I don’t think anything can really compare to it. To see the brigade and the corps is really cool.”

Like Frankland, Nichols noted that the game is also about what comes next, what happens tomorrow.

“What the game represents,” he said, “is a lot about service to our nation and what we are going to do after (we leave the academy).”

That is what the elder Gerena always thought was so special about the game. Two teams, yet one group of young men ready to serve together.

“It is the only game where everybody on that field is willing to lay down their life for everybody watching it,” he said. “Each and every one of those players on both sides of the ball has chosen to put in the required work to prepare themselves to make the ultimate sacrifice in defending our country and defending our values.”

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The 123rd playing of Army/Navy will be Saturday at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia. It will be broadcast on CBS starting at 3 p.m. It will be the 90th meeting in Philadelphia and first since 2019. Next year’s game will be played at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass. as part of the festivities surrounding the 250th anniversary of the Boston Tea Party and the 225th anniversary of the USS Constitution. It will be 2027 before the game returns to Philadelphia.

2024: Fed Ex Stadium, Landover, Md.

2025: M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore

2026: MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, N.J.

2027: Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia