TO FIGHT & DIE FOR THAT INCH
A 6-inch War, The Monken Era & The Long Gray Line
As a 2003 graduate of West Point and a member of the last Army Football team to BEAT NAVY (2001) maybe I am just waving my pom-pon. Maybe I am merely trying to help ease the pain of another December loss to Navy and another season below .500…or maybe I saw something.
Today I’m just a visual storyteller. It’s my job to show you what I saw, add a few words for context and be a little persuasive in the process. Visuals and truth can be tricky and I’ve resigned the fact that the best I can do is maybe 83–91% truth. However, it’s possibly that my lens actually captured something I was unaware of on game day. But it’s also possible that I’m just being optimistic.
This is why I love photography and storytelling. No matter what baggage I bring to the table, you bring your baggage too (don’t worry…there’s plenty of room). And ultimately you get to decide, for yourself, what’s going on here.
Rise. Life is in motion. I’m stuck in line.
Rise. You can’t be neutral on a moving train.
- Pearl Jam
THE SIX INCH WAR
It just sits there. Prior to each snap its available. Whoever wants it can take it. By its very definition, its neutral.
Despite advancements in technology, game planning, schemes and athleticism — football is still a strikingly simple game: Win the 6-inch war. Control the line of scrimmage.
A team game of controlled collisions & 11 individual 1-on-1 battles.
But, it’s easier said than done and the 6-inch war can get more complicated. Superior athletes or better schemes can neutralize a given team’s ability to control the line-of-scrimmage. But, it starts up-front and consistent control of that neutral space is still where victories lie for Army Football.
The 2014 football season ended with a record of 4–8. For those keeping score, that’s less than mediocre. Losing 2 out of every 3 games. As a graduate, former member of the Army Football team and current member of the Army Football Club it is frustrating and demoralizing to witness yet another subpar win/loss record. It sucks that the season ended with a one-score loss to Navy (in front 70,000 in Baltimore and the largest TV audience in 15 years).
Am I upset? Demoralized? Frustrated? I am, because, well…thats how I am supposed to feel, right? What other option do I have?
Much has been written on the current state of Army football. And this is not meant to be a dialogue with a recipie for ‘fixing’ Army Football. Like I said earlier, it’s simply a visual observation and story. But, if you would like to educate yourself with the current climate surrounding the Pride & Dream, please check-out & support None More American: Army Football in Post 9/11 America. This documentary film, by Rob O’Sullivan, tells the story of Army Football over the past 13 years and offers a great deal of perspective on the type of high quality individuals that make Army Football & West Point a special place.
Progress is a puzzle. Putting the pieces together is a challenge. Building or rebuilding a foundation can be trying. But it can be especially trying when stuck between on-field success and eons of tradition, lineage and culture. West Point is a place where the foundation is the culture and the culture is the foundation.
In years past, I have felt ‘let down’ by Army Football…but not this year. I can sense the re-working of a foundation. A shift and a change in culture. And if for no other reason than that, I am optimistic about our chances with the 6-inch war.
THE MONKEN ERA
It’s year 1. And, unfortunately, Army Football is no stranger to year 1. Patience has worn thin. So we find ourselves projecting and asking: How will the Monken era be defined? Through the first year I observed “Ownership” & “Solidarity”.
On Saturday, December 13th coach Monken made his way off the field. He tipped his hat to the Corps, thanking them for having the team’s back and disappeared into the tunnel. For a moment his frustration rang loud and clear. Then, a few steps later he made an apology to a pair of Generals. OWNERSHIP.
After the Army-Navy game, there were 3 individuals who addressed the team: Head Coach — Jeff Monken, Superintendent — GEN Robert Caslen & U.S. Army Chief-of-Staff — GEN Ray Odierno. Tactical, Operational & Strategic. On the same page. Together. Together they spoke of disappointment and perspective in light of that disappointment. In solidarity, they clamored not for a moral victory. But seeking momentum, they spoke of something that had been missing — BELIEF. Belief from fans, Belief from The Corps and Belief from within, that this was a different Army team. SOLIDARITY.
Then coach Monken told the players something I wont soon forget. He told them:
“You don’t know if or when you will get another chance to tell your team mates what they mean to you, so do it now” — Jeff Monken
And that simple statement carried with it a certain amount of gravitas. It rang more true in THAT locker room, to THOSE players than it did in most locker rooms and to most players after a simple game of football.
Coaches and players, players and Generals, players & players. It was in this somber moment that age, rank & race disappeared. Respect did not. In this moment there was only…The Army Team. Top to bottom & bottom to top.
The Long Gray Line saw its future, remembered its past & engaged its present. There were tears & even some smiles…but all brotherhood…all family.
But this awareness and idea of family was not mere coach speak. It was the speak of a man who walked the walk. Several moments after speaking those words to his players & coaches, Coach Monken exited that locker room. There stood his family and a man transformed from coach to husband, father, brother & son…or so I thought he transformed.
Then, in the press room, this man…this leader of future officers shared a similar moment with team captains, Larry Dixon & Joe Drummond. It was impossible to distinguish ‘family-man’ from ‘coach’.
The disapointment I had been feeling disappeared.
I felt a sense of relief.
Army Football had its leader.
THE LONG GRAY LINE
Army Football’s relationship with the Corps is distinct and sometimes difficult. Every team has legions of super fans — rowdy, raucous. There’s the now cliche “12th man” that litters just about every fan base. And then there’s the Corps of Cadets. 4,000 future leaders of America’s sons & daughters. During the week they’re held captive in a stone castle on the Hudson River.
Sometimes they’re let out of their cages. You can find them on Saturday afternoons at Michie Stadium. Here they get the chance to blow-off the stress of a vicious academic workload & grueling military regimen. Their free-time is often actually controlled by the success of Army Football. It creates a different kind of fan. Its an unusual college experience and because of this, its a synergy (between team & Corps) that can’t be forced. Coach Monken’s personality seems to mesh well with the tenacity and energy of the Corps. So far, so good.
THE CORPS! THE CORPS! THE CORPS!
Written by West Point Chaplain, Bishop H.S. Shipman (circa 1902)
The Corps, bareheaded, salute it,
with eyes up, thanking our God.
That we of the Corps are treading,
where they of the Corps have trod.
They are here in ghostly assemblage.
The men of the Corps long dead.
And our hearts are standing attention,
while we wait for their passing tread.
We sons of today, we salute you.
You sons of an earlier day;
We follow, close order, behind you,
where you have pointed the way;
The long gray line of us stretches,
thro’ the years of a century told
And the last man feels to his marrow,
the grip of your far off hold.
Grip hands with us now though we see not,
grip hands with us strengthen our hearts.
As the long line stiffens and straightens
with the thrill that your presence imparts.
Grip hands tho’ it be from the shadows.
While we swear, as you did of yore.
Or living, or dying, to honor,
the Corps, and the Corps, and the Corps.
353 and a butt days until Army beats the HELL outta Navy…
GO ARMY! BEAT NAVY!
I’m Chris. I am an independent freelance photographer and storyteller. I am available to tell your story and am seeking new collaborations & projects.
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As we turn the calendar from 2014 to 2015, I wish you a happy and a joyous holiday season!
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