The Naval Academy needs to update 5 year Naval commitment & consideration of a few players to the NFL Draft

Navy Football Featured Article:

Situations like this have come up in the course of time at the Service Academies this is especially true at Navy and Army. In the time in which Navy and Army have met on the gridiron, their have been some suspensions of play in the Army-Navy Series, for various reasons.

In 1893 a duel arose between an Army Brigadier General and a Navy Rear Admiral, so heated was this argument, that it led to each agreeing to a duel with guns, the duel was averted but the damage had been done as word got back to the Secretary of the War Daniel S. Lamont, Secretary of the Navy Hilary A. Herbert and members of President Grover Cleveland's cabinet. As so it was that in that year of 1893 that the War Department, as it was called then, banned the game, and inforced a rule that neither team could leave their persprective campuses. They also for the first time acknowledged that "bad feelings" often arose from both schools and by it's fans, which was not unusual, and finally in 1899, both members of the staff (Army & Navy) in the War Department got a ruling from the higher ups in the War Department to agree to the resmuption of the game in 1899, siting it was good and neccessary for both schools athletic and physical training. The Army-Navy game was suspended from 1893-1898, the game did resume in 1899.

Following he 1927 game a dispute arose on the issue of eligibility, Army had players like Charles Daly (Harvard), Elmer Oliphant (Purdue), Pots Graves (already had played three years at North Carolina), Ken Boyers (Five years at Army) and Ed Farnsworth (6 years at Army) as well as others had been playing intercolliegate sports before getting appointments to the U. S. Military Academy, as Navy had so aptly pointed out . Navy also pointed the finger at Army for their age eligibility requirement of 21, while Navy's was 20, in which Navy stated that Army's age of eligibility of 21 gave Army the advantage of gaining more experienced players. Navy had ealier affirmed that it would only play schools that adhered to the strict 3 year policy, along with other schools playing College Football at that time. The Naval Academy's entrance age was from 16-20, while Army's was 17-21, Navy argued that the Army's older entrance policy gave Army the unequal chance to recruit players that had played at other schools, while Army argued that while Navy maintained that the 16-20 policy, this gave Navy a head start in grabbing better 1st year players and more of them than Army was able to get to come to West Point. Army's superintendant Major General Winans returned to West Point from Annapolis, with the unsigned for the 1928 Army-Navy Game. Navy refusing to sign it , siting that Army would have to declare any Army player with more than three years of varsity experience, such as Cagle, Nave, and Sprauge ineligible for that year(s) (1928) Army-Navy Game. Army would not agree to that, and the argument even reached the halls of Congress as Hamilton Fish, the Republican who's district included West Point, and Represenative Daniel Britten admonished West Point, and felt that Army was wrong in not changing it's eligibility standards. Finally the issue died out and Navy had replaced Army on the schedule with Stanford, Navy did however hold out a date of February 3rd, to the play the Army-Navy game, it just did not happen.

So now here we are in 2009, and yet another potential issue? Yes, their is but this is not between two Service Academies, but just involves only one on a singular level. Air Force Football and Army Football allow those few players with exceptional talent that is draftable to the NFL to and in lieu of a five year commitment serve instead a two year active duty commitment, with an additional six years in the reserves, should these players be drafted by the NFL.

So where is the issue?, not at Army or Air Force, it is at Navy, and it concerns their strict inforcement of serving their five year commitment as officer in the United States Navy or Marine Corps. Officals from both schools are meeting to go over guidelines that are fair and equatable for all of the Service Academies to make the playing field in NCAA Football equal to all three Service Academies.

GoNavySports.com Chief Writer and Moderator, GoNavy82 thinks it is about time, in my view, the percentage of players that would be eligable from Navy to be drafted into the NFL would be less than "one percent" of the graduating class of any given year at Navy. So if one, two or even three players have NFL talent, amend the policy so that they can represent Navy. When they announce players in the NFL that are playing in the game on the offensive or defensive line or other positions, what do they do? they state what college they played for, of course, and that would be one plus and a bonus for the Naval Academy, and that former Navy player to announce (example:) "Eric Kattani, Fullback, United States Naval Academy".

It would also do another great service, if Navy amends that policy, it would really put a boost into their recuiting players from the high school ranks. A high school player would see how a Navy player performs and his style of "duty, honor, commitment and country would shine as a beacon of light in the NFL, as to how NFL players should act on and off the field of play, and that in of itself, if not he only reason, but one of many might convince a high player to come to Navy instead of another, more prestigious schools such as Ohio State, Alabama, Florida, Florida State, Penn State or Notre Dame.

Example:

Naval Academy Recruiter: "there are many advantages to coming to Navy, and your athletic abillity could be of great use on the gridiron, we currnetly have two players ___________________who plays on the offensive line for the Detroit Lions, and __________________who plays for the Chicago Bears.

You get my point, So to the Naval Academy I state very strongly, that I would support your amending the policy to fall in line with you other Service Academy brethern.....do it please....right now!

Navy Midshipmen; Army Black Nights; Air Force Falcons; Ohio State Buckeyes; Alabama Crimson Tide; Harvard Crimson: North Carolina Tar Heels; Purdue Boilermakers; Penn State Nittany Lions; Notre Dame Fighting Irish.

Senior Navy Sports Writer: GoNavy82

For: GoNavy Sports.com