It's been well publicized that the 2020 Army-Navy game will be the first to be played at West Point since 1943. The 1942 game also bowed to wartime demands for transportation resources and moved to Thompson Stadium in Annapolis. Attendance both years was limited to those within a ten-mile radius of the game's site, and that restriction applied to both the Corps of Cadets and Brigade of Midshipmen respectively. As a result, one of the nation's foremost rivalries saw unprecedented levels of cooperation during World War II.
The academies' superintendents attend the pep rally the night before the 1942 Army-Navy game while USMA's bandleader conducts the USNA band. |
In 1942, some USMA personnel, including a small contingent of cadets led by Superintendent F.B. Wilby, traveled from West Point to Annapolis. The cadets would lead a group of midshipmen assigned to stand on Army's sideline and cheer for the visiting team. These fans were provided leaflets with the words to songs and yells to support the Black Knights, although the accompanying illustrations capture the frustration of having to root for the other team.
Songs and yells supplied to the midshipmen who cheered on the Black Knights with a note of appreciation from the Corps of Cadets. |
Army's mascot did not make the trip to Annapolis, so the mule of an area farmer was pressed into service for the visiting cheerleaders to ride. A photo published in the Baltimore Sun showed the cadets having trouble staying on the mule, appropriately nicknamed "Lend-Lease," who was no doubt a homer.
Cheerleaders from West Point encourage the support of the midshipmen and ride their borrowed mule. |
When 1943 rolled around, the Brigade of Midshipmen ensured that Bill the Goat made the trip to West Point, along with Naval Academy officials and cheerleaders. Repaying Navy for its support, some cadets donned white Navy covers and cheered on the visitors from Annapolis.
Riding in an Army "duck" boat, Bill the Goat takes the field at West Point as do cadets wearing white Navy covers for the 1943 game. |
Meanwhile, back home in Annapolis, midshipmen gathered around radios in Bancroft Hall to listen to the progress of the game. Over on the north side of the Severn River, the officer's mess hosted a party in its lounge complete with bar service and a roaring fire. With the public address system providing game updates, two officers used a blackboard to draw play-by-play illustrations and descriptions of the game.
Midshipmen and naval officers in Annapolis each had their own way of enjoying the 1943 game from a distance. |
For the record, Navy excelled both at home and away by winning 14-0 in 1942 and 13-0 the following year. Go Navy! Beat Army!
Sources
Army-Navy Football, USNA Digital Collections. https://cdm16099.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p15241coll3
The Lucky Bag, 1944 and 1945. https://cdm16099.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16099coll7
Army-Navy/Correspondence, 1943. Office of the Superintendent/Correspondence: General Correspondence, RG 405.2.1 Entry 39b. Special Collections & Archives Department, Nimitz Library, United States Naval Academy.
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