White. Total, blinding white. If you were sitting in the stands at Lincoln Financial Field on December 9, 2017, you basically couldn't see the yard lines. By the second quarter, the 2017 Army Navy football game looked less like a sporting event and more like a scene from a holiday movie where everything goes wrong but somehow ends up perfect. It was beautiful. It was chaotic. Honestly, it was the kind of game that makes you remember why college football is better than the pros.
Most people remember the snow. You've probably seen the clips of the players disappearing into the powder. But what gets lost in the highlight reels is just how high the stakes were for these two programs at that specific moment in time. This wasn't just another chapter in a 118-year-old rivalry; it was a shift in the tectonic plates of service academy football. Army hadn't won the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy outright since 1996. One year prior, in 2016, they finally broke Navy’s soul-crushing 14-game winning streak. The 2017 game was the proof of concept. Was Jeff Monken’s revival of the Black Knights a fluke, or was the balance of power actually moving north to West Point?
The Weather Was the MVP
Let’s talk about the snow because it dictated every single thing that happened on that field. It started as a light dust and turned into a heavy, wet blanket that stayed on the turf. You saw the grounds crew out there with shovels trying to clear the lines every time there was a timeout, which felt sorta futile.
Snow changes the triple option. People think it helps the running game, but that’s only half true. It wrecks the timing. The pitch man is slipping, the quarterback’s hands are freezing, and the ball feels like a slick brick of ice. Malcolm Perry, the Navy quarterback who was basically a human lightning bolt, struggled with the footing early on. On the other side, Ahmad Bradshaw—Army’s gritty, no-nonsense senior QB—seemed like he was built for this weather. He didn't need to be fast. He just needed to be strong.
The statistics from that day are hilarious if you like old-school football. Army threw the ball exactly one time. One. It was incomplete. Navy threw twice. One completion for two yards. That is it. In an era where everyone is obsessed with the "Air Raid" and 500-yard passing games, these two teams combined for 2 passing yards. It was glorious. It was 1940s football played in the 21st century.
Malcolm Perry vs. The Army Defense
Navy came into this game with a bit of a chip on their shoulder. They’d lost the year before, and they were starting Malcolm Perry at quarterback, a guy who was technically a slotback but had "game-breaker" written all over him. He was electric. Early in the game, Perry took off on a 68-yard touchdown run that made the Army secondary look like they were running in sand. He finished the game with 250 rushing yards on 30 carries. Think about that. In a game where everyone knew he was getting the ball, and on a field that was basically a skating rink, he still put up 250.
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But Army's defense, led by guys like James Nachtigal and Alex Aukerman, didn't break. They bent a lot. They let Perry get his yards, but they tightened up when the field got short. It was a classic "bend but don't break" performance that kept the score within reach even when Navy seemed to be moving the ball at will.
The Turning Point
The game came down to a few inches and a lot of heart. Army was trailing 10-7 in the fourth quarter. They needed a drive. Not a flashy, quick-strike drive, but a classic Army drive. They went 65 yards in 13 plays. It took nearly eight minutes off the clock. It was brutal.
Ahmad Bradshaw finally punched it in from the 1-yard line with about five minutes left. 14-13 Army. The stadium was vibrating. You could feel the tension through the TV screen. But because this is Army-Navy, it couldn't be that simple. Navy got the ball back. They moved it. Malcolm Perry found some room, and suddenly, Navy was in field goal range.
Bennett Moehring and the Kick That Wasn't
Everything came down to a 48-yard field goal attempt by Navy’s Bennett Moehring. Under normal conditions, a 48-yarder is a toss-up in college. In a blizzard? On a field covered in slush? It’s a miracle if you even get the snap back cleanly.
Moehring stepped up. The kick was long enough. It had the distance. But as the ball sailed through the falling snow, it stayed just a hair to the left. Wide left. By maybe a yard.
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The image of Moehring standing there, head down, as the Army players sprinted past him into the white abyss of the field is one of the most iconic images in the history of this rivalry. You felt for the kid. You really did. He’d done everything right, but the elements and the pressure are a cruel combination. Army won 14-13.
Why 2017 Changed Everything
If Army loses that game, maybe 2016 looks like a one-off. But by winning in 2017, Jeff Monken proved that West Point was back. They secured the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy for the first time in over two decades. They finished the season 10-3. It wasn't just a win; it was a declaration.
It also highlighted the sheer brilliance of the triple option in its purest form. When the weather gets bad, the team that can execute the fundamentals under center usually wins. Army’s offensive line that year was veteran, mean, and incredibly disciplined. They didn't commit a single penalty the entire game. In a blizzard. That is the kind of detail that wins championships.
Misconceptions About the 2017 Game
A lot of casual fans think Navy dominated this game because of Malcolm Perry’s stats. It's easy to look at 250 yards rushing and think, "How did they lose?" But Navy was killed by penalties. They had five penalties for 40 yards, and in a game with limited possessions because of the running clock, those are drives-killers. Army played "clean" football. They didn't beat themselves.
Another misconception is that the snow was the only reason the score was low. Honestly, both these defenses were legit. Army’s defensive coordinator at the time, Jay Bateman, had built a unit that was top-tier in the nation at stopping the run. They knew what was coming, and they had the discipline to stay in their lanes even when Perry was dancing around in the backfield.
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How to Study This Game Today
If you’re a coach or a serious student of the game, there are a few things you should actually go back and watch from the 2017 Army Navy football game:
- Watch the Footwork: Look at how the Army offensive linemen "chip" and move to the second level. They aren't trying to run fast; they are keeping their base wide to avoid slipping. It's a masterclass in playing in the mud.
- The Fullback Dive: Army’s Darnell Woolfolk was a hammer. His ability to get 3-4 yards when the defense knew he was getting the ball is why the play-action (even if they didn't throw) and the outside pitches eventually worked.
- Clock Management: Notice how Jeff Monken handles the final drive. There was zero panic. They shortened the game, which is the ultimate weapon when you’re playing a team with an explosive player like Perry.
The 2017 Army Navy football game wasn't just a game; it was a weather event that happened to have a football game inside of it. It remains the gold standard for what this rivalry represents: toughness, discipline, and the ability to perform when the world is literally freezing around you.
For Army fans, it was the moment they knew the "dark ages" were officially over. For Navy, it was a heartbreaker that showed just how thin the margins are between a hero and a heartbreak. If you haven't seen the full condensed broadcast, go find it. It's a reminder that sometimes, the best way to move forward is to put your head down and drive for one yard at a time.
To truly understand the legacy of this game, look at the coaching trajectories that followed. Monken became a legend at West Point, and the triple option evolved to meet new NCAA blocking rules, but the DNA of that 2017 squad—the "Sing Second" mentality—became the blueprint for the most successful era of Army football in the modern age.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Analysts:
- Analyze the "Slobber-knocker" Stats: Go beyond the box score. Look at "Success Rate" per carry rather than total yardage. Army won because they were more consistent on 3rd-and-short, not because they were more explosive.
- Study the Triple Option Evolution: Compare the 2017 tape to current Army/Navy schemes. You'll see how the "under center" look has shifted to "shotgun" variations to deal with new cut-blocking rules, making the 2017 game one of the last "pure" versions of the old-school attack.
- Visit the Venues: If you ever get the chance to see this game in Philadelphia or East Rutherford, go. The atmosphere in 2017 proved that the location matters less than the intensity of the corps of cadets and the midshipmen.