A cold and empty display case stands somewhere in Clune Arena and in Annapolis Maryland. For years it housed the Commander In Chiefs Trophy, emblematic of college football supremacy among Air Force, Army and Navy. The Falcons have not had that trophy since 2016, Navy since 2015. The Falcons have won the trophy 20 times in the annual service academy round robin. Will this be the year they recapture it? Many hardcore Air Force fans say this is the #1 priority the program should have. Others feel more emphasis should be placed on chasing after division titles and conference championships. For Air Force players, it depends on who you talk to. One told me this game, along with Army, and this year, CU, has been circled on the calendar. Heck, one year, after the Falcons beat Navy and went to West Point and knocked off Army to reclaim the title, they re-directed their equipment truck down to Annapolis to grab the trophy and bring it to Colorado Springs. 3 days later Head Coach Troy Calhoun had it placed in a golf cart and drove it on to the practice field, and stopped practice so his players could come over and relish the victory. In an era of rankings and college football playoffs and division crowns, this trophy means something to 3 schools and to its many fans. Some teams will actually bring that empty display case into the locker room so the players will be constantly reminded of the goal. Now that Army Football has started winning again, the competition for this piece of hardware is as fierce as ever. So when another near record crowd shows up at Navy Marine Corp Memorial Stadium Saturday (5 of the 7 largest crowds in Annapolis have been for the Air Force Game) you’ll understand, if you don’t already, that this trophy means something. Neither team has it now, it’s up at West Point. For Saturday’s winner, it’s a chance to bring the hardware home with a win later in the year over Army. For the loser, there’s still more games to play, and titles to contend for, and maybe a bowl berth at the end of the year. But it also means an empty display case for another year.
Air Force and Navy Saturday October 5th. Kickoff at 1:30pm on 740 KVOR.
