The Army-Navy Game is always special, but it won’t be the same in 2025
PHOTO: John Feinstein on the sidelines at the Army-Navy Game.
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By TOM SHANAHAN
The upcoming college football season marks the 30th season since publication of John Feinstein’s iconic book on the Army-Navy Game rivalry, “A Civil War.”
Feinstein embedded himself with both academies throughout the 1995 season, and his account was published shortly before the 1996 Army-Navy Game. He previously embedded himself with Indiana basketball coach Bobby Knight for his wildly successful book, “A Season on the Brink.”
That 1986 work brought out the dark side of Knight, but “A Civil War” celebrated football and patriotism in their purest forms. Feinstein magnifies the players’ commitment to serve their country upon graduation in a time of an endless war on terrorism.
But sadly, this also will be the first Army-Navy Game without Feinstein’s special coverage published in the Washington Post. The long-time sportswriter and best-selling author died in his sleep on March 13 at age 69.
Army coach Jeff Monken knew Feinstein on both sides of the rivalry as a Navy assistant coach from 2002 to 2007 and Army’s head coach since 2014. I asked him to comment on Feinstein’s impact touting the rivalry following the 2025 team’s first practice Tuesday at West Point.
“We’re all very appreciative of what he did to bring attention to academy football,” Monken said on a Zoom call. “My first few years he would do a weekly write up (goarmywestpoint.com) about the Army games, and it was an enjoyable read. He appreciated the competitive nature of the players and coaches and what went into it.
“I think he appreciated what our young men and women at the academies commit to on a daily basis and what they are invested in doing after graduation.”
PHOTO: Army coach Jeff Monken.
It’s not a stretch to say Feinstein contributed to the rebirth of America’s love affair with the Army-Navy Game. His work was a reminder that prior to the quagmire of the Vietnam War in the 1960s and the rise of NFL popularity in the late 1960s, the most important games of the football season – college or pro — were the Army-Navy Game and the Rose Bowl.
The Army, Navy and Air Force programs gained consistency with the respect the military regained in the 1990s following Desert Storm. The Cadets, Midshipmen and Falcons commitment came through in the pages of Feinstein’s book. And as a high-profile media figure, anytime he was invited to appear on a sports talk radio show, he educated the audience on the significance of the Army-Navy Game.
In the 2024 season, Army posted a 12-2 record en route to winning the American Athletic Conference title. The Black Knights were ranked No. 19 against unranked Navy in the Army-Navy Game, but Navy won, 31-13. It was yet another example of throwing out the records in the intense rivalry.
At the time I read “A Civil War,” I especially enjoyed it because the names of Navy’s Gervy Alota, John Moe and Lebron Butts jumped off the pages. I wrote about all three when they played at Morse High, a San Diego power in those days. All three were Navy starters from a Navy town – Alota a safety and team captain as a senior in 1997, Moe an offensive lineman and Butts a wide receiver.
The Army-Navy Game TV ratings have been on the rise in the 21st century. The renewed interest was evident from President Donald Trump making an appearance. If the game wasn’t popular, Trump, who dodged the draft by managing five deferments for a dubious born spurs diagnoses during the Vietnam War, wouldn’t be on the scene grandstanding. He was rubbing elbows with men and women who are committed to what he wouldn’t do.
John no doubt would have agreed with me on that point.
PHOTO: Army linebacker and 2025 team captain Andon Thomas.
Feinstein’s death was on the eve of his other passion, the NCAA basketball tournament. Most people knew him through basketball, but I got to know him through the Army-Navy Game and writing about race in sports. He was a guest on my podcast, THE END GAME, when upon release of his book, “Raise a Fist, Take a Knee.” The book included examining how Michigan State’s Jimmy Raye never earned a chance as a head coach in the NFL.
Feinstein was a Duke graduate who extensively covered ACC basketball and its 1980s and 1990s golden age of coaches, Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski, North Carolina’s Dean Smith and NC State’s Jim Valvano.
John Feinstein’s appearance on THE END GAME
“John was brilliant,” said Coach K, a West Point graduate and former Army coach in a media interview last March. “He was one of the best writers for sports of all time. We were great friends. I loved John. But I knew he was polarizing. You loved him or hated him. He understood that. He handled it well. He is that because he was so damn talented. You don’t become polarizing if you’re mediocre.”
Army’s 2025 team captains, inside linebackers Andon Thomas and Kaleb Fortney, likely would have been Feinstein interview subjects this upcoming season. They weren’t born yet when “A Civil War” was published, but Thomas offered a comment on Feinstein’s legacy after Tuesday’s first practice.
“It seems like he was really respected, a genuine guy,” Thomas told me. “I would have loved to sit down and talked with him.”
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Tom Shanahan is an award-winning sportswriter and frequent contributor to Spartanmag.com in addition to posting on his website. His new book on Michigan State leading college football integration is, “THE RIGHT THING TO DO, The True Pioneers of College Football Integration in the 1960s.” His first book was “RAYE OF LIGHT, Jimmy Raye, Duffy Daugherty, the Integration of College Football and the 1965-66 Michigan State Spartans.”
Below are links to click on to purchase my books focused.
My books tell the true story of college football integration in the 1960s and address the myths and fiction that allowed a false narrative surrounding the 1970 USC-Alabama game to usurp the credit from the true pioneers. As I said when I spoke at the National Sports Media Association book festival, no two books provide an accurate portrayal more than RAYE OF LIGHT and THE RIGHT THING TO DO.
I’ll put my facts up against anybody, anytime, anywhere. Watch here.
Click here for my story on the 1962 Rose Bowl and Segregation awarded first place by the Football Writers Association of America. I tell untold stories on Michigan State’s leading role and the true pioneers of college football integration. Click here to read the summary as a first-place story.
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Click here to purchase The Right Thing To Do
THE RIGHT THING TO DO
The True Pioneers of College Football Integration in the 1960s
Foreword by Ruffin McNeill
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Click here to purchase Raye of Light.
RAYE OF LIGHT
Jimmy Raye, Duffy Daugherty, the 1ntegration of College Football and the 1965-66 Michigan State Spartans
Foreword by Tony Dungy
DUFFY CHILDREN’S BOOK purchase links: Order from Barnes and Noble here and Amazon here.
