Army (6-0) and (5-0) are each undefeated this deep into the college football season for the first time since the last year of World War II 1945. That’s 80 seasons of football!

It is the first time since 1960 that the military institutions are both ranked in the top twenty five. That’s 65 seasons of football.

Enjoy it, college football fans, because in the landscape of college sports and, particularly, in the realm of football, it’s simply not going to last. That’s because the game has been flooded with “sick money” changes in players’ status and requirements, along with profound changes in the culture of college sports.

In 1944-1945, during WWII, Army achieved its greatest success as a football dynasty. Unbeaten for three straight years with a tie with Notre Dame its only blemish, Army went 27-0-1, winning two “mythical” national championships, finishing first in the football polls, and having on its roster two of its greatest players. Doc Blanchard and Glen Davis garnered enough accolades from the players, fans, coaches, and the press. Each received the Heisman Trophy in 1945 and 1946, respectively.

Image by AI.

Navy had some great teams in the early 1960s and played in a few meaningful bowl games on New Year’s Day (the Orange in 1961 and the Cotton in 1964). It also had two Heisman Trophy winners:  in Joe Bellino (1960) and Roger Staubach (1963). Navy also finished both seasons in the final top five, ranking fourth in 1960 and second in 1963.

Staubach was one of the few college players who transcended the gridiron, becoming such a popular national figure in his collegiate years that he graced not just the covers of sports publications but mainstream magazines as well. In fact, he was the intended cover of a Life magazine in November 1963, only to be replaced by a picture of President Kennedy. The editors thought it more important to focus on the assassination and its geopolitical implications than the exploits of a Midshipman quarterback on an Annapolis football field.

Good call.

But this season’s records will not last, at least the unbeaten seasons of both squads. Why not? Because one will definitely lose to the other when they eventually clash in December. A second meet-up will have the same result. Both are members of the American Athletic Conference (AAC) and could meet in the championship game, with the winner of the title game vying for a potential spot in the 12-seeded NCAA football playoffs.

The chances of this occurring are overwhelmingly unlikely.

For now, having these two distinguished institutions even considered two of the best teams in college football is amazing and a tribute to the hard work of the players and the coaches who oversee the programs.

From now until those late, cold, grey days of December, the two academies will continue to navigate through their schedule. This will take place against a backdrop of new rules for college football players, who can profit financially from the Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) deals they negotiate with local businesses, corporations, and other entities, all the while playing for “good ol’ state” on the playing field and matriculating in the classroom for a diploma.

In effect, the players are paid interns, plying their trade as “amateurs” aspiring to be paid players, where they can earn potentially millions or more at the next level, the NFL.

The amateur purity (or at least the appearance of that purity) in college athletics is finally gone. Money always changes the meaning and integrity of any activity. Now, the “romance” of college football (Friday night bonfires, Saturday tailgating, weekly reunions set in the beauty of autumn red, gold, and orange) is gone. They live only in nostalgic imaginings.

Of course, it was never really squeaky clean. The NIL deals just take yesterday’s secret deals and legitimize them, with players having the right to sell their services to the highest bidder via the “Transfer Rules” the NCAA enacted.

The military academies are not a part of this reality, which sets them apart from the other NCAA member schools. They have allowed their graduates, if good enough, to compete for jobs at the next level in the NFL before committing to the rest of their duty and obligations as military officers. Most, however, fulfill their commission after their four years of college.

Knowing the realities of college football now and realizing that the academies’ success on the football field is fleeting makes rooting for them all the more fun, exciting, and important.

At least at West Point, on selected weekends in the Fall, one can become lost again, at least for a few hours, in the game as it used to be played. Let’s hope it lasts beyond the last fallen leaf.