2016 record: 8-5
Head coach: Jeff Monken (4th season)
After an abysmal 2-10 campaign in 2015, the Black Knights rebounded with their first eight-win season since 1996.
Monken had made little headway on restoring Army to its status as one of the game’s best programs in his first three years, but broke through last year on the back of a stout defense.
In 2016, the Black Knight defense averaged fewer than 20 points allowed per game for the first time this century, but will now have to replace three of its top four tacklers, including star linebackers Andrew King and Jeremy Timpf.
With those losses, Army will unlikely be able to replicate its stifling defense that held the Blue Devils to 13 points—albeit in the midst of Hurricane Matthew. But the Black Knights will return nine starters on offense and eight of their top nine rushers—all of which rushed for at least 100 yards in Monken’s triple-option attack.
That group includes third-year starter and senior quarterback Ahmad Bradshaw, who rushed for 824 yards and threw for 703 yards. Although the Black Knights ran almost 95 percent of the time, they were still 12th in the nation in yards per carry.
Bradshaw will, however lose his No. 1 receiver, Edgar Allan Poe, and his brother Christian Poe, but Army will return its other two top wideouts.
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Managing Editor 2018-19, 2019-2020 Features & Investigations Editor
A member of the class of 2020 hailing from San Mateo, Calif., Ben is The Chronicle's Towerview Editor and Investigations Editor. Outside of the Chronicle, he is a public policy major working towards a journalism certificate, has interned at the Tampa Bay Times and NBC News and frequents Pitchforks.