Saturday, December 8, 2007

07 December 2007: A happy day for Army Football

A prayer has been answered! Paul Johnson has been named the new coach at Georgia Tech. His "reign of terror" at Navy is over. He has shown no mercy on Army. He made my prediction come true - Army never defeated a Paul Johnson coached Navy team. Every Army fan in the world should be celebrating right now. The flip side of this is every Georgia Bulldog fan in the world better be worried. Georgia Tech will be coming after you with a vengeance.

Now how might this whole thing backfire on Army? There are several scenarios. Unfortunately, given the poor track record of leadership at Army where the football team is concerned, this situation may actually prove how misguided Army football really is right now. The worst case scenario would be that a.) Army does nothing to change their offensive system or approach to football in general; b.) Navy, in need of a new coach, hires Jerry Moore from Appalachian State. This "worst case" scenario would guarantee that Navy's current 6-win streak would extend to 12 straight wins over Army. Who's Jerry Moore you ask? Well he has Appalachian State on the verge of winning its third straight National Championship. He also defeated Michigan at The Big House on opening day. He's definitely an ideal fit to take over at Navy. Navy Football, unlike Army, is well managed so hiring a guy like Jerry Moore isn't a stretch. Army fans, let's hope that my worst case scenario doesn't come true. If it does - particulary the part about Army not changing a thing in its approach to football - I will completely lose faith in Army Football altogether.

The best case scenario (and most unlikely) will be that Army completely revamps its system to the style of football played by both Navy and Air Force. In addition, Navy simply hires someone from Paul Johnson's staff to take over the program. This scenario would definitely create hope for Army and would be the move in the right direction. Hell, I may even go to the Army-Navy game next season if this happens. What happens in the next few weeks will be very telling for the future of both Army and Navy football programs. Today was a glimmer of hope for Army. I'm extremely happy for my friend Paul Johnson. Georgia Tech is going to run roughshod over the ACC in coming years.

I sent my Coast Guard folks to Rustimayah today to conduct HAZMAT inspections. They'll be out doing mini-FOB hopping over the next few weeks. There is serious light at the end of our tunnel right now. We are rapidly closing in on the proverbial finish line.

Let us not forget the significance of this day in history. The lesson in preparedness is always applicable to the survival of our country and our way of life. 66 years ago today the Japanese launched a successful attack on the U.S. Pacific Fleet anchored at Pearl Harbor. It was an appalling demonstration of what can happen when we as a nation let our guard down. Let us be ever-mindful of history and never allow our nation to be lulled into a false sense of unprepared security. Do not ever think that something like Pearl Harbor could never happen again. September 11, 2001 proved that even today our nation can be taken by surprise with catastrophic results. Our nation's history is the very key to understanding how to guarantee our future.

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