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Post by sader1970 on Dec 9, 2023 19:33:25 GMT -5
What a finish and Navy ends up losing to Army by more than us, 17-11 on the conceded 2 point safety. .
I want to try to put the West Point and BC games out of my memory but the Army-Navy game brought it all back. HC could have beaten either team today. Interestingly, the strip fumble TD was the big game winner for Army just like in our game with the blocked punt and return TD.
And Matt's unforced out of bounds play for a sure TD hurts like heck to remember. Ugh!
I do wonder how we would have fared had we gotten into the playoffs.
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Post by timholycross on Dec 10, 2023 9:07:22 GMT -5
The way Navy moved the ball via the air when they had no choice but to throw; makes me wonder whether HC had the best plan for that game. However, it can be argued that Matt's injury contributed mightily to the plan.
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Post by gks on Dec 10, 2023 9:30:22 GMT -5
Army/Navy is one of the best events in this country. Hopefully it will find it's way back to Foxborough soon.
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Post by cruskater31 on Dec 10, 2023 10:16:55 GMT -5
The way Navy moved the ball via the air when they had no choice but to throw; makes me wonder whether HC had the best plan for that game. However, it can be argued that Matt's injury contributed mightily to the plan. agree 100%. before the Army game, I watched a bunch of their previous games and could see the secondary getting torched by Coker and Shorter. I may have made a comment on the bus going from the parking lot that I hoped for a QB rotation to see Joe P air it out. |
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Post by hc87 on Dec 10, 2023 11:26:24 GMT -5
It will be interesting how both Army and Navy fare in this atmosphere of transfer portal/NIL world of FBS football. I don't think it bodes well....it wouldn't be much of a stretch to say that they could have been the third and fourth best teams in the PL even this year Navy has really fallen off the cliff imo....they were a shell of the team they were under Johnson and Coach N (not even going to try and spell it  ) this season. |
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Post by Non Alum Dave on Dec 10, 2023 11:55:48 GMT -5
Army/Navy is one of the best events in this country. Hopefully it will find it's way back to Foxborough soon. Just when the state of college sports starts to make me sick, the Army-Navy game comes along. Just a great event, always. If Army is ever going to get to the NCAA tournament in hoops, I hope it's by beating Navy in the PL final. Probably would set the attendance record for the league. |
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Post by hc87 on Dec 10, 2023 12:03:13 GMT -5
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Post by ndgradbuthcfan on Dec 10, 2023 13:54:25 GMT -5
My Dad and 3 Uncles are Army (1 KIA; 1 POW); I and 3 Uncles are Navy (1 1st team AA at ND); one Uncle Air Force (Korea). Always look forward to the game.
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Post by joutsHC77 on Dec 10, 2023 14:23:37 GMT -5
Thanks for your family's service nd! Always a game that fosters patriotism.
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Post by cruskater31 on Dec 10, 2023 16:35:24 GMT -5
My Dad and 3 Uncles are Army (1 KIA; 1 POW); I and 3 Uncles are Navy (1 1st team AA at ND); one Uncle Air Force (Korea). Always look forward to the game. My family is split as well but only 1 distant Navy (great uncle) while we have 2 USMC, 3 Army (including a 101 airborne who parachuted behind enemy lines in Italy). Usually lean Army a little bit. Interesting story, my great uncle was a sailor in the Navy who transported my grandfather, a Marine, out to Pearl Harbor before being deployed in the Pacific. They didn't know each other and never met on the ship but after the war my grandfather married that sailor's sister! |
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Post by timholycross on Dec 10, 2023 18:40:58 GMT -5
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Post by 78purple on Dec 10, 2023 19:23:53 GMT -5
I was there.....my first live sports event.......it had been postponed a week because of the JFK assassination, and the game was only played because the Kennedy family insisted the game be played. On another thread, 2010 stated that the Navy team we played a few years ago was one of the their best 3 or 4 teams of the century, but man, those Bellino and Staubach teams were incredibly good |
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Post by hc87 on Dec 10, 2023 20:58:46 GMT -5
I was there.....my first live sports event.......it had been postponed a week because of the JFK assassination, and the game was only played because the Kennedy family insisted the game be played. On another thread, 2010 stated that the Navy team we played a few years ago was one of the their best 3 or 4 teams of the century, but man, those Bellino and Staubach teams were incredibly goodPicking a nit but I he think meant Navy teams of the 21st Century. The service academies (particularly Army and Navy) have had an interesting history.....national powers probably into the early/mid 1960s.....a drop off during much of the 1970s into the early 1980s....some renaissance at both places during the later 1980s.....Navy got it going in the 21st C under Paul Johnson, Army a decade or so later under Monken. I think they are both are at a pivotal juncture today....it will be interesting how they navigate the changing landscape of FBS football moving forward. |
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Post by 78purple on Dec 11, 2023 6:38:30 GMT -5
I was there.....my first live sports event.......it had been postponed a week because of the JFK assassination, and the game was only played because the Kennedy family insisted the game be played. On another thread, 2010 stated that the Navy team we played a few years ago was one of the their best 3 or 4 teams of the century, but man, those Bellino and Staubach teams were incredibly goodPicking a nit but I he think meant Navy teams of the 21st Century. The service academies (particularly Army and Navy) have had an interesting history.....national powers probably into the early/mid 1960s.....a drop off during much of the 1970s into the early 1980s....some renaissance at both places during the later 1980s.....Navy got it going in the 21st C under Paul Johnson, Army a decade or so later under Monken. I think they are both are at a pivotal juncture today....it will be interesting how they navigate the changing landscape of FBS football moving forward. Excellent points......the academies were powers in those years because, in large part, they were able to keep their athletes in school during WWII, while the other powers of those eras lost their athletes in droves.......As stated, that era ended with Vietnam, and had a resurgence when that war ended.......Agree, the next 10 years will be interesting |
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Post by gks on Dec 11, 2023 7:06:15 GMT -5
Army and Navy will be just fine. They know their place in the world of college football.
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Post by sader1970 on Dec 11, 2023 7:09:09 GMT -5
AS DO WE!!! (OK, discuss . . . )
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Post by mm67 on Dec 11, 2023 8:57:59 GMT -5
"AS DO WE!!! I'll take the bait on a rainy morning.
Is there a "WE"? What is HC's place? Is there general agreement ? HC administration? HC students? Alums?
I thought competing in the PL answered any questions about our place in the world of athletics. Evidently, this is not the case.
PL competition is not enough for some, probably a small group. Some have demands of national prominence in football, an established FCS national power. If over the years HC successfully competed in the PL but was not a national power some would be extremely dissatisfied and demand the firing of the head coach.
National prominence is more than a goal, similar to wanting to win every game. It is a demand, an expectation. The mantra, "There is no reason HC can't compete with the best" does not go far enough. For some HC has every reason it can annually dominate the PL and successfully compete with any FCS team. in the nation every year.
HC teams competing on a national level is an expectation. a demand. For some a level playing field refers not merely to other PL teams, but to national powers. Thus, the demand for non-med redshirts, 5-6 year players, larger rosters, reduced academic standards for athletes, etc. to level the playing field with other national powers, SDSU, Villanova, etc. Some demand HC pull out of the PL and move to a higher level conference to help pave the way for national prominence. (Applies to basketball, too. HC in the BE, etc.)
Whereas others would be content w/a successful PL program, competing for PL championships most years but not every year and an occasional high national ranking.
I do expect the administration will act in the best overall interests of the college.
One thing for sure: There is no unanimity of opinion among various stakeholders. "WE"? HA! Peace.
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Post by sader1970 on Dec 11, 2023 11:29:14 GMT -5
"WE" is Holy Cross and, as we all know, because we were educated by Jesuits, we are never going to have unanimity here but rather consensus. Life (and athletics) is not black & white (maybe, purple?). The minority voices here, who I respect, who believe we should ditch the Patriot League don't decide what league we play in. I can't alone decide that alma mater stay in the PL any more than other alums can decide that we leave it. Vince Rougeau and the Board of Trustees (with a lot of alums on it) decide. That's the "WE" of which I speak.
They are tasked with seeing the bigger picture that is our College. Athletics is not a stand-alone project but rather an important facet within the larger academic organization. It serves an extremely useful purpose to get the College's name out, not just regionally, but nationally. It serves to help round out our students' lives and gives our alums and local fans an avenue to stay in touch with and, dare I say, a potential source of pride that can generate donations to support the academics.
It's all interconnected.
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Post by mm67 on Dec 11, 2023 13:05:18 GMT -5
"WE" is Holy Cross and, as we all know, because we were educated by Jesuits, we are never going to have unanimity here but rather consensus. Life (and athletics) is not black & white (maybe, purple?). The minority voices here, who I respect, who believe we should ditch the Patriot League don't decide what league we play in. I can't alone decide that alma mater stay in the PL any more than other alums can decide that we leave it. Vince Rougeau and the Board of Trustees (with a lot of alums on it) decide. That's the "WE" of which I speak. They are tasked with seeing the bigger picture that is our College. Athletics is not a stand-alone project but rather an important facet within the larger academic organization. It serves an extremely useful purpose to get the College's name out, not just regionally, but nationally. It serves to help round out our students' lives and gives our alums and local fans an avenue to stay in touch with and, dare I say, a potential source of pride that can generate donations to support the academics. It's all interconnected. As I wrote ... expect the administration (which in my view extends to the BofT including alums) to act in the best overall interests of the college, Knew we saw eye to eye. It will be interesting to read the reactions on this board. whichever direction the program takes in the near future. |
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) this season.