Army Black Knights Seek to Cap Dominant Season Entering Independence Bowl

The Army West Point Black Knights have had a dominant season in several areas as they prepare to face Louisiana Tech in the Independence Bowl.

Dec 14, 2024; Landover, Maryland, USA; Army Black Knights quarterback Bryson Daily (13) throws from the pocket during the first half against the Navy Midshipmen at Commanders Field. / Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images

The Army West Point Black Knights were dominated in their last game against Navy, a 31-13 loss. But, the Black Knights can finish the season with a flourish and that’s reinforced by how dominant the program has been in several areas throughout the season.

The Black Knights (11-2) face the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs (5-7) on Saturday in the Independence Bowl at Independence Stadium in Shreveport, La. Kickoff is set for 9:15 p.m. eastern on ESPN.

Army’s loss to Navy wasn’t an American Athletic Conference game. So, officially, the Black Knights remained undefeated in their first league season, going 8-0 in conference play and then dominating Tulane, 35-14, to win the program’s first conference championship ever.

In those conference games Army was nearly unstoppable. Led by coach Jeff Monken, the Black Knights won those conference matchups by an average score of 35.5 to 13.38.

Going back into last season, the Black Knights have won 15 of their last 17 games. The only losses in that span were this season to Navy and earlier this campaign to Notre Dame.

Plus, Army has won 11 games for just the second time in school history, with the other being in 2018, also under Monken. So, a win would be a program-first 12 wins. But it would also match the best season of any service academy.

Air Force won 12 games in 1985 and 1998.

Plus, the Black Knights have a good history in bowl games going into the Independence Bowl. Army has a 7-3 record all-time and a 4-1 record in bowl games under Monken. The program’s last bowl game was a 24-22 win over Missouri in the Armed Forces Bowl.

Also, Army is 3-0 in bowl games after it has lost to Navy. And, the Black Knights are 2-0 all-time against Louisiana Tech, though the two teams haven’t met in a bowl game or since 2013.

Meanwhile, Army quarterback Bryson Daily has produced an incredible season and has one more benchmark to clear.

His 29 touchdowns are tied for the FBS lead with Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty. Both are in action in the postseason, with Boise State in the College Football Playoff. One more touchdown run makes him the sixth player in NCAA history to total 30 or more rushing touchdowns in a season.

Daily is also 58 passing yards away from 1,000 on the season. He would be just the second Army quarterback all-time to have 1,000 yards rushing and passing in the same season.