The Army Black Knights, commonly known as Army or Army West Point, is the name of the athletics teams of the United States Military Academy. They participate in NCAA Division I-A as a non-football member of the Patriot League, a Division I Football Bowl Subdivision independent school and a member of Atlantic Hockey, the Collegiate Sprint Football League (men), the Eastern Intercollegiate Gymnastics League (men), the Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association, the Great America Rifle Conference, the National Collegiate Boxing Association, the National Collegiate Paintball Association and the National Intercollegiate Women's Fencing Association. Army is also one of approximately 300 members of the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC).
The three major service academies (Army, Air Force, and Navy) compete for the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy, which is awarded to the academy that defeats the others in football that year (or retained by the previous winner in the event of a three-way tie).
Varsity sports
History
Since 1899, Army's mascot has officially been a mule because of the animal's historical importance in military operations. For many years, Army's teams were known as the "Cadets." The academy's football team was nicknamed "The Black Knights of the Hudson" due to the black color of its uniforms. In 1999, Army adopted "Black Knights" as its official nickname in all sports. They may also use "Cadets" in certain circumstances.
U.S. sports media use "Army" as a synonym for the academy, while in 2015, the academy declared their name to be "Army West Point."
"On Brave Old Army Team", by Philip Egner, is the school's fight song. Army's chief sports rival is the Naval Academy, due to its long-standing football rivalry and the inter-service rivalry with the Navy in general. Fourth class cadets verbally greet upper-class cadets and faculty with "Beat Navy", while the tunnel that runs under Washington Road is named the "Beat Navy" tunnel. In the first half of the 20th century, Army and Notre Dame were football rivals, but that rivalry has since died out.
Men's sports
Football
The Army Black Knights football program are one of the few NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision independent schools (not in a conference). Army was recognized as the national champions in 1944, 1945 and 1946. The annual Army-Navy Game between the Black Knights of Army and the Midshipmen of the Naval Academy at Annapolis (Navy) is among the most storied rivalries in all of college sports and currently marks the end of regular season play for college football each year.
Men's golf
The men's golf team has won 20 conference championships:
- Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (9): 1982â€"88, 1989 (spring), 1989 (fall)
- Patriot League (11): 1991â€"93, 1994 (spring), 1994 (fall), 1995, 2002, 2004â€"05, 2011, 2016
Men's ice hockey
Every year, Army faces the Royal Military College of Canada (RMC) Paladins in the annual West Point Weekend hockey game. This series, conceived in 1923, is the longest-running annual international sporting event in the world.
Men's rugby
Army rugby plays college rugby in the Division 1â€"A Eastern Conference. The Black Knights play their home games at the Anderson Rugby Complex on the campus of West Point. Rugby is a relatively popular sport at Army; for example, the 2012 game against Air Force was attended by 2,000 fans. Army is led by Director of Rugby Matt Sherman.
Army has one of the most successful college rugby teams in the country. Army played in three consecutive national championship games from 1990â€"1992, and reached the national semi-finals four consecutive years from 2000â€"2003, and twice in a row in 2009 and 2010. More recently, Army reached the quarterfinals in 2013. Army also plays in the Collegiate Rugby Championship, the highest profile college rugby tournament in the U.S., reaching the finals in 2011. The Collegiate Rugby Championship is played every year in early June at PPL Park in Philadelphia, and is broadcast live on NBC.
Wrestling
The Army Black Knights Wrestling team host home dual meets, tournaments, workout, and practice in the state of the art facility Arvin Gymnasium on campus. The team currently competes in the Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association (EIWA) since Army is a member of the non-wrestling Patriot League.
In 2014, Kevin Ward, a former Oklahoma State All-American, took over the program. Ward is best known for starting the Ouachita Baptist University wrestling program in 2010, the first NCAA wrestling program in Arkansas.
See also
- Army Black Knights men's basketball
- Army Black Knights baseball
- Army Black Knights men's lacrosse
Women's sports
Women's basketball
- See footnote
Women's cross country
- See footnote
Women's soccer
- See footnote
Women's softball
- See footnote
Women's swimming and diving
- See footnote
Women's tennis
- See footnote
Women's track and field
- See footnote
Women's volleyball
- See footnote
Co-ed sports
Rifle
- See footnote
Non-varsity sports
Handball
The Army handball team has at least 31 men and 18 women National Championship titles.
Women's fencing
Alpine skiing
Awards
- Lt. Raymond Enners Award (national men's lacrosse award; named for a member of the Class of 1967)
- Maggie Dixon Award (national women's basketball rookie coach award; named for Army women's basketball coach)
- NCAA Award of Valor:
- 2007 - Derek Hines (Class of 2003), who demonstrated valor in Afghanistan before being killed there.
- 2008 - Emily Perez (Class of 2005), who died after an improvised explosive device exploded near her vehicle in Iraq and whose U.S. Army unit recognized her for her leadership after her death.
- NCAA Theodore Roosevelt Award:
- 1967 - Dwight D. Eisenhower (football)
- 1973 - Omar Bradley (baseball)
Hall of fame
- For a list of members by name, sport, class year, or induction year, see footnote
The Army West Point Sports Hall of Fame consists of displays in the Kenna Hall of Army Sports, which is located within the Kimsey Athletic Center. The first set of members was inducted in 2004.
See also
- Military World Games
- List of college athletic programs in New York#Division I
- United States Military Academy grounds and facilities#Athletic facilities
- List of sportspeople educated at the United States Military Academy
Footnotes
External links
- Official website