PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) - Saturday afternoon in Philadelphia will be the 120th meeting between Army and Navy on the football field.
Bill Wagner covers Navy Athletics for The Capital Gazette in Annapolis and joined Kevin Gorman to preview the game.
Everything about this game means more than football and it all starts with the relationship between the two head coaches.
"Ken Niumatalolo and Jeff Monkin were the lead grad assistants,Ken doing offense and Jeff doing defense for Hawaii," said Wagner. "That was where their bond forged and having really started in this business of coaching in college football together."
The Navy football program has become a formidable foe for any opponent and Wagner talked about what it's been like to watch the Midshipment continue to improve as a program over the years.
From pregame to postgame, everything surrounding an Army-Navy football game is memorable, but Wagner says the Alma Mater's during postgame is one of the top experiences of the game.
"For most people, the biggest thing is at the very end of the game when both teams lineup beside each other for the playing of the alma maters'," said Wagner. "They talk about sing second brother is the big theme because the team that wins always sings second. They stand side by side, shoulder to shoulder for the playing of the alma maters at the end of the game. That's pretty darn poignant."
Westwood One's coverage of the game begins at 2 pm on 93.7 The Fan.