Black Knights Increase Practice Intensity For Saturday Gridiron Battle With Kansas State
By John Chuhran CaMMVets Media 9-4-2025
Highland Falls, N.Y. – One of the great things about sports is the fact that no matter how bad past performances have been, every game offers a new chance at victory. For the Army football team, that chance comes on Saturday night.The Black Knights (0-1) struggled in their 2025 debut last Friday night, eventually logging a shocking 30-27 loss in double overtime to FCS opponent Tarleton State. After the loss to the team from Texas, Army Head Coach Jeff Monken told the media that Army had been outplayed in every way. But with three days to review video from the game, the coach was able to find quite a few positives that he feels could lay the foundation for future victories.“We felt like we made some plays and gave ourselves some opportunities,” Monken said, “but we also let some opportunities go and had some self-inflicted mistakes that really cost us. Even with that, we had a chance right there to win the game at the end but we didn’t come through. So, (it was) disappointing, but we had a lot to learn from and a lot to improve on. There’s plenty that went wrong and we’ve got to figure out the problems that we had. I thought our guys played physical, tough, and hard, but, frankly, there were times they just beat us. “They did a great job up front on both their offensive and defensive lines. We still made them punt seven times and when we do that it’s typically a good day for us. But we had 10 negative-yardage plays in the game and that’s way too many. Some of them were on first down and that makes it really, really hard to operate. “Our responsibility as coaches is to make sure our guys block the right guy and we didn’t do that. I watched the film and I know now, but it shouldn’t have happened. I accept responsibility for the failures and shortcomings. There were moments I thought we played well, but if we find a way to win that game we still have all the same issues, still have all the same problems to correct, we just don’t feel quite as bad. ” While there was a sting from losing by three points in double overtime, by Sunday all of West Point had shifted its attention to a dose of reality that has become a source of great pride at the Academy. Safety Larry Pickett Jr., a senior, was returning from dinner in New York City with his family, which was in town to watch Friday night’s football game, when they saw a car that had just hit a utility pole, knocked down power lines and burst into flames. Pickett and his father, Larry Sr., rushed to the wreckage and pulled the stunned driver from behind the steering wheel before fire engulfed the car. The whole event was captured on video by Pickett’s sister and went viral in the Internet. Countless messages of support, praise, and congratulations, from ordinary citizens to Secretary of the Army Daniel Driscoll, were posted online and the story topped the Sunday news cycle. CaMMVets founder and president Ken Kraetzer asked Coach Monken about the incident. “We’re very proud of Larry,” Monken said. “He and his family came upon that accident before anybody else had gotten there. It obviously had just happened. Larry – as cadets do, as people who are service-minded do – he didn’t stop and consider ‘is this going to be dangerous for me.’ He saw somebody in trouble and where a lot of people might stand by the wayside or turn a phone on and not do anything or just call 911 and not get involved, he did what we hope our cadets and first responders would do – he rushed toward the trouble and the danger. “Somebody in his family was videoing what was going on and he and his dad are pulling this gentleman out of this car and there’s sparks that are falling from the tree tops and downed utility poles and wires that are loose on the ground and the flames around the car. If you’re just looking at the car, you’re thinking, ‘Okay, that car’s full of gasoline, it could go up in flames or blow up at any point.’ He had complete disregard for that – he was going to save that guy and get him out of there. It speaks to his character, his courage, his selflessness, (and of those of) our cadets, and what this place stands for. I think it also speaks to his parents and to his upbringing – he wasn’t over there by himself, his dad was right there with him and they carried that gentleman from one side of the road to the other to get him out of harm’s way. “There’s a humility to Larry Pickett – you talk to him and it’s kind of ‘no big deal.’ You can see that in the video; he was matter of fact, it was just what he did. I’m really proud of him, we’re all really proud of him. He’s a source of pride for the entire academy, our (football) program, and the men and woman he serves. It was awesome and it should be national news. I’m happy for that man that he saved. I’m sure that his family is very glad that’s he’s Okay and able to come home and live another day, just as Larry’s family is glad that he’s safe and able to save that guy without getting hurt himself. We’re certainly glad he’s back here with us, too.” This week, the Black Knights travel to Manhattan, Kansas to take on an even bigger, faster and more powerful opponent, the Wildcats of Kansas State (1-1). “We’ll have to improve tremendously this week as we play Kansas State, who’s very talented,” Monken said. “They’re a great team and it will take our very best effort to be in the game with them. Hopefully, we give that kind of effort and we’ll be competitive on Saturday night (7 PM kickoff on ESPN TV).” Though the game will be more than 1,000 miles from West Point, a significant contingent of Kansas-based Army supporters from Fort Riley is expected to attend the game and cheer for the Black Knights. “It’s awesome to travel to a place where know that there are American soldiers close by and in attendance. There’s a pride that comes when the Army teams is coming town, and that means a lot to us. We are the Army team when we take the field. It gives me great pride, personally, when we do that and serve our men and women (in uniform), and it gives our team great pride to wear those colors and to represent the Army. We hope to have a bit of a hometown crowd (rooting for Army) among the huge crowd that I know Kansas State will have cheering for them.” Though Kansas State came from behind to grab a tight 38-35 win over North Dakota, this was still a disappointment to a team that started the year ranked as 21st in the nation and was thought to be a contender to win the Big 12 championship. The Wildcats had dropped a 24-21 decision to Iowa State in Ireland two weeks ago, a result that knocked Kansas State out of the Top 25, and they expected to get their problems sorted out and claim a convincing triumph over an FCS opponent in game two. However, North Dakota didn’t cooperate. Only some clutch performances enabled Kansas State mount a fourth-quarter comeback and claim a 38-35 victory. (cont'd)
By John Chuhran CaMMVets Media 9-4-2025
Highland Falls, N.Y. – One of the great things about sports is the fact that no matter how bad past performances have been, every game offers a new chance at victory. For the Army football team, that chance comes on Saturday night.The Black Knights (0-1) struggled in their 2025 debut last Friday night, eventually logging a shocking 30-27 loss in double overtime to FCS opponent Tarleton State. After the loss to the team from Texas, Army Head Coach Jeff Monken told the media that Army had been outplayed in every way. But with three days to review video from the game, the coach was able to find quite a few positives that he feels could lay the foundation for future victories.“We felt like we made some plays and gave ourselves some opportunities,” Monken said, “but we also let some opportunities go and had some self-inflicted mistakes that really cost us. Even with that, we had a chance right there to win the game at the end but we didn’t come through. So, (it was) disappointing, but we had a lot to learn from and a lot to improve on. There’s plenty that went wrong and we’ve got to figure out the problems that we had. I thought our guys played physical, tough, and hard, but, frankly, there were times they just beat us. “They did a great job up front on both their offensive and defensive lines. We still made them punt seven times and when we do that it’s typically a good day for us. But we had 10 negative-yardage plays in the game and that’s way too many. Some of them were on first down and that makes it really, really hard to operate. “Our responsibility as coaches is to make sure our guys block the right guy and we didn’t do that. I watched the film and I know now, but it shouldn’t have happened. I accept responsibility for the failures and shortcomings. There were moments I thought we played well, but if we find a way to win that game we still have all the same issues, still have all the same problems to correct, we just don’t feel quite as bad. ” While there was a sting from losing by three points in double overtime, by Sunday all of West Point had shifted its attention to a dose of reality that has become a source of great pride at the Academy. Safety Larry Pickett Jr., a senior, was returning from dinner in New York City with his family, which was in town to watch Friday night’s football game, when they saw a car that had just hit a utility pole, knocked down power lines and burst into flames. Pickett and his father, Larry Sr., rushed to the wreckage and pulled the stunned driver from behind the steering wheel before fire engulfed the car. The whole event was captured on video by Pickett’s sister and went viral in the Internet. Countless messages of support, praise, and congratulations, from ordinary citizens to Secretary of the Army Daniel Driscoll, were posted online and the story topped the Sunday news cycle. CaMMVets founder and president Ken Kraetzer asked Coach Monken about the incident. “We’re very proud of Larry,” Monken said. “He and his family came upon that accident before anybody else had gotten there. It obviously had just happened. Larry – as cadets do, as people who are service-minded do – he didn’t stop and consider ‘is this going to be dangerous for me.’ He saw somebody in trouble and where a lot of people might stand by the wayside or turn a phone on and not do anything or just call 911 and not get involved, he did what we hope our cadets and first responders would do – he rushed toward the trouble and the danger. “Somebody in his family was videoing what was going on and he and his dad are pulling this gentleman out of this car and there’s sparks that are falling from the tree tops and downed utility poles and wires that are loose on the ground and the flames around the car. If you’re just looking at the car, you’re thinking, ‘Okay, that car’s full of gasoline, it could go up in flames or blow up at any point.’ He had complete disregard for that – he was going to save that guy and get him out of there. It speaks to his character, his courage, his selflessness, (and of those of) our cadets, and what this place stands for. I think it also speaks to his parents and to his upbringing – he wasn’t over there by himself, his dad was right there with him and they carried that gentleman from one side of the road to the other to get him out of harm’s way. “There’s a humility to Larry Pickett – you talk to him and it’s kind of ‘no big deal.’ You can see that in the video; he was matter of fact, it was just what he did. I’m really proud of him, we’re all really proud of him. He’s a source of pride for the entire academy, our (football) program, and the men and woman he serves. It was awesome and it should be national news. I’m happy for that man that he saved. I’m sure that his family is very glad that’s he’s Okay and able to come home and live another day, just as Larry’s family is glad that he’s safe and able to save that guy without getting hurt himself. We’re certainly glad he’s back here with us, too.” This week, the Black Knights travel to Manhattan, Kansas to take on an even bigger, faster and more powerful opponent, the Wildcats of Kansas State (1-1). “We’ll have to improve tremendously this week as we play Kansas State, who’s very talented,” Monken said. “They’re a great team and it will take our very best effort to be in the game with them. Hopefully, we give that kind of effort and we’ll be competitive on Saturday night (7 PM kickoff on ESPN TV).” Though the game will be more than 1,000 miles from West Point, a significant contingent of Kansas-based Army supporters from Fort Riley is expected to attend the game and cheer for the Black Knights. “It’s awesome to travel to a place where know that there are American soldiers close by and in attendance. There’s a pride that comes when the Army teams is coming town, and that means a lot to us. We are the Army team when we take the field. It gives me great pride, personally, when we do that and serve our men and women (in uniform), and it gives our team great pride to wear those colors and to represent the Army. We hope to have a bit of a hometown crowd (rooting for Army) among the huge crowd that I know Kansas State will have cheering for them.” Though Kansas State came from behind to grab a tight 38-35 win over North Dakota, this was still a disappointment to a team that started the year ranked as 21st in the nation and was thought to be a contender to win the Big 12 championship. The Wildcats had dropped a 24-21 decision to Iowa State in Ireland two weeks ago, a result that knocked Kansas State out of the Top 25, and they expected to get their problems sorted out and claim a convincing triumph over an FCS opponent in game two. However, North Dakota didn’t cooperate. Only some clutch performances enabled Kansas State mount a fourth-quarter comeback and claim a 38-35 victory. (cont'd)
250829 Army LB Andon Thomas stops a TD catch and run by Texans (MetroSports magazine photo)
250829 - The place where football games are won or lost - the line of scrimmage(MetroSports magaz...
250829 Army Fullback Hayden Reed in action (MetroSports magazine photo).
250829 Army QB DeWayne Coleman rolls left looking for a receiver(MetroSports magazine photo)
250829 Head Coach Jeff Monken Directs Army alignment(MetroSports)
250829 Head Coach Jeff Monken Directs Army alignment(MetroSports)
The Wildcats’ offensive strength is the passing attack. Quarterback Avery Johnson will be making his 17th career start and starts the game with a 157.7 pass efficiency rating. He is 49-of-73 (67.1 pct.) for 591 yards and five touchdowns on the year. He enters the week ranked 14th nationally in passing yards per game (295.5) and 19th in completions per game (24.5). Johnson has completed passes to 11 different players this year, but his favorite target is wide receiver Jayce Brown, who had his best collegiate game (12 catches for 109 yards and a touchdown) last week; he the team in receiving with 16 catches for 187 yards and three TD. Jaron Tibbs and Joe Jackson also had TD receptions against North Dakota. Jerand Bradley is second among the receivers with eight catches for 121 yards and a TD.
Defensively, Kansas State’s defense has held its opponents to an average of 2.9 yards per rush on 79 attempts and also has 16 tackles for loss and seven sacks. Austin Romaine leads the team with 18 tackles, 10 last week. Tobi Osunsanmi has a team-leading 3.0 sacks and 3.5 tackles for loss. Wildcats defensive backs have totaled 10 pass breakups through the first two weeks of the season. Cornerback Zashon Rich leads the way with three passes defended, and he is second on the team with 11 tackles. Fellow cornerback Donovan McIntosh has two pass breakups, while five other Wildcats have recorded one each. The Wildcats have recovered three fumble in their first two contests.
“In the first two games, I think their opponents are averaging about 2.5 yards per rush. That’s a big concern; we’re a running football team and they’re pretty darn good at playing the run. (Seventh-year Head) Coach (Chris) Klieman and I have faced off against each other – him with North Dakota, me with Georgia Southern. He’s faced option teams in the past , faced other (service) academies, and he’s a defensive minded coach. He does a really good job of coaching his team.
“Offensively, their quarterback is really fast and his throws are great. They’ve got running backs, receivers, skill guys that are really talented and productive. The Offensive line is not giving sacks – they do a great job of just controlling the football game, and that’s what good offenses do. There’s a lot of concerns – how talented they are, how confident they play as a team, how well coached they are. It’s a really hard team to beat. Ask anybody in the Big 12 – those guys got 85 scholarships just like Kansas State, access to the transfer portal. Not a lot of teams can beat Kansas State, so it will be a real challenge for us.”
Both Army and Kansas State are still seeking that consistent combination of successful plays that will produce a dominant win. Last week, Army did total a solid 411 yards of offense (280 on the ground, 131 in the air). Sr. QB Dewayne Coleman led the running attack with 100 yards on 24 carries and completed 7 of 12 passes for 129 yards (plus two interceptions) in just his second career start for Army. Though he left the game with a leg injury in the final minute of regulation, Monken was optimistic he would be available this week and he expected his signal caller to continue to improve as the season progresses.
“Dewayne competed really hard, had some good runs, some good throws,” Monken said. “He had some errant throws – the long throw, that interception gained about 42 yards. The one that was way down in the Red Zone was just a mental breakdown to try to throw it to that receiver. He feels bad about it – he doesn’t want to make those mistakes. But he also led us on some scoring drives – a great throw to Noah short when we needed to get in scoring position. He made a great throw to Brady Anderson on a post route.
“There were a lot of things that he did really well, he’s just not as experienced (as last year’s quarterback Bryson Daily). Any player who’s not experienced is going to make mistakes at times. Fewer mistakes are made when a player is more seasoned. A guy can’t be a returning starter until he starts (a few games). Dewayne got some playing time last year, started against Air Force, but this is his team and there’s going to be some mistakes that are made. He wasn’t the only one. I thought he played really hard and for most of the game he gave us a chance to win.”
Other Army performances of note in last week’s game were turned in by Hayden Reed (88 yds. and 1 TD on 19 carries), Noah Short (43 yds. on 11 carries, game-high 6 catches from 9 targets for 81 yards) and substitute quarterback Cale Hellums (37 yards and a touchdown on eight carries). Defensively, Co-captain Andon Thomas had a game high 14 tackles while Eric Ford, Casey Larkin, and Collin Matteson had eight apiece. Stats certainly help the analysis of the game, but Monken knows that something else is even more important to gaining a victory.
“The bottom line is we better block the right guy and we better do it with really great fundamentals or we’re going to struggle to move the football on offense,” Monken said. “I’m confident that we’ll get our guys coached up, that our guys will be prepared, do a better job of at least getting to the guy we’re supposed to and using fundamentals to give ourselves a chance.”(-CaMMVets Media-)