NAMPA, Idaho — The Warhawk Air Museum held a private party for veterans on Saturday so they could gather for the annual tradition known as the Army-Navy game.
"Go Navy beat Army," said Navy veteran Bob Wheeler.
And a group of hard charging @NavalAcademy midshipmen 💪 pic.twitter.com/ny1CztGJtZ
— DOD Outreach (@DOD_Outreach) December 11, 2021
Navy despite a 3-8 record defeated Army 17-13 who was 8-3 on the season but anything can happen in this game that dates back to the 1800s.
This game has been dubbed America's game because the country is the real winner because every player on the field will go on to be an officer in the military.
"I love this game, I think it brings everybody together in the best way everyone is united around a common game," said West Point graduate and Army veteran Jordan Trompke. "There is a quote that I read, it’s the only game played every year where everyone playing would die for everyone watching."
Trompke played football for the cadets and he never beat Navy who had a 14-game winning streak that got snapped in the fall of 2016, Trompke graduated in the spring of that year.
"I was at BOLC (Basic Officers Leaders Course) at the time it was all West Pointers and everyone was so excited just to finally break that streak," said Trompke. "It is awesome that we are heading in a positive direction."
“I’m a Cold War veteran," said Wheeler. "I served mostly on the U.S.S California as a radioman and I’m very proud of that."
The Wheeler's also have a reason to be proud of their daughter Cecilia who is in the Navy Midshipmen class of 2024, she recently won the Boxing Brigade Welterweight Championship.
“That was very exciting for us it was on Facebook live and luckily we just saw the third round which she won," said Wheeler. "Then we watched the first round and like oh my goodness we are glad we didn’t watch it first."
Always look forward to the Army-Navy game each season.
— Field Yates (@FieldYates) December 11, 2021
The uniforms each side will be wearing today are awesome 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/2D6R5ZTGuw
Part of the beauty of the Army-Navy game is the stories veterans get to share while cheering for their branch of the military and giving each other a hard time.
"We love to tease each other," said Wheeler. "It brings great conversation, it is great to be around other veterans."
"It definitely means a lot to me," said Trompke. "A lot of camaraderie and competitiveness among the branches."
But in the end, Navy sang second and now they lead the all-time series 62 games to 53 with seven ties mixed in.
