The Army Black Knights returned to Independent scheduling in 2005 after a brief stint in Conference USA. Rich Ellerson took over as head coach last season and incorporated his triple option offense. The Black Knights ended up winning five games and upset Vanderbilt as a 10 point underdog. This season could be the first time in 14 years that Army reaches bowl play. They have 16 returning starters and a true option style quarterback. View the full conference breakdown in our 2010 Independent conference predictions article.
An option style offense is based on assignments, discipline and decision making. Something the academy itself teaches everyday. True freshman Trent Steelman was thrown into the mix immediately after winning the starting position in the month long camp that takes place prior to the start of the season. Steelman battled injury issues throughout the first half of the season, but still ended up leading the team in rushing with 706 yards and five touchdowns. It takes a certain type of mentality to know as a quarterback you are going to run the ball 90% of the time, but Ellerson believes he has a good one at Army for the next couple of years. A variety of running backs are used in this system, but the most important might be the FB position. Used on the dive plays in the option, the fullback is also asked to be the lead blocker a majority of the time. The coaches are high on Air Force transfer Jared Hassin this year. He gives them a physical presence that was lacking in 09'. Pat rick Mealy will also occupy the backfield and gained 673 yards last season. The Black Knights rarely pass, but when they did a year ago it went in the direction of 6'10 Ali Villanueva the majority of the time. His eligibility expired as the receiving core looks like it has some holes to fill. The offensive line is a veteran group that should pave the way for a 1000 yard rusher.
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With such a ball control offense, Army's defense is on the field less and the numbers last year definitely reflected that. Teams averaged 305 yards of total offense and the pass/run ratio was nearly identical. Ellerson actually improved this side of the ball also and held opponents to 21 points/game. Safety Donovan Travis is the heart and soul of the defense. He calls the plays relayed from the sideline and had a team high four interceptions as a junior. All three linebackers return and this trio finished 1-2-3 in total tackles last season. Andrew Rodriguez led with 85 stops, but Stephen Anderson and Steve Erzinger were not far behind with 83 and 71 tackles respectively. The defensive line is an area of conference with only one defensive tackle the coaching staff really feels comfortable putting out there. They installed a bandit position in spring practice to cover up this weakness. DE Josh McNary recorded 12.5 sacks last year, but missed all of spring practice recovering from shoulder surgery. I think this unit will be above average and keep Army close in most games.
Six wins is the magic number for the Black Knights in 2010. Two of their first three games will be played on home turf against Hawaii and North Texas, but only three of the next nine are at home. Army does get the luxury of playing neutral site affairs vs. Rutgers and Notre Dame in unique venues. Yankee Stadium will host the Notre Dame game and new Meadowlands Stadium is the site of the Rutgers match-up. They host Air Force on November 6th and round out the Armed Forces schedule with Navy on December 11th looking for their first win in the past eight years against the Midshipmen. I will call for a 6-6 year and a bowl invite.
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