This is the final installment of Army junior co-captain Stephen Anderson’s diary for the Times Herald-Record. A season-ending knee injury will keep Anderson, Army’s leading tackler, out of the service-academy rivalry. But Anderson’s leadership is still a big part of the team’s heart beat. He’ll take us inside the locker room, practice and the West Point campus leading up and after to the big game at Lincoln Financial Field.
Wow! That is all I have to say about that game. A tale of two-halves like most of our season. We know it as a team which makes it that much more frustrating. One thing is for sure and that is Army football is at a whole new level. A level that has not been seen in nearly a decade. I thank our seniors and our underclassman who stepped up huge as leaders – they made it possible. I am determined, our players are determined, our coaches are determined that next year, Navy will feel how we felt. We will continue to strive to be the dominant service academy and if this team gained so much in year one, imagine how much it will gain in the next.
There are three things I will remember about that game. First, the feeling of standing on the sidelines watching my brothers battle and give their 100 percent, something that many people believe was absent from earlier teams. My future brothers-in-arms fighting for the man on his left and right. You do not get that at very many places but this past Saturday was a clear example. Second,when Navy sang their Alma Mater. Nothing boiled my blood like that did. I will remember for the entire year the sound of the crowd, their facial expressions, and my feeling of disappointment, anger, and frustration. That will be on my mind fueling me to get better each and every day. Last and probably the worst, the look in my brothers’ eyes after the game. The pain I saw was not one I will see again. I will commit myself and my team to not see that pain again.
Too many of our seniors for too long have had that pain and our 2010 ArmyFootball team will put an end to it! We start the off-season with a week of exams. Nothing we can’t handle. Players will be leaving Friday and Saturday to return home for the holidayseason. Surgery is on Friday for me and I will be in physical therapy on Saturday. Long road ahead but my dedication to this team and program is second-to- none. Off-season workouts have already been sent out and I expect everyone to have enough fuel to get some good workouts in.
HERE ME NOW ARMY FOOTBALL FANS: The team coming back has 18 returning starters from offense and defense. The 2010 Football Team has every single bit of potential to BRING BACK Army Football. Stick around because this off-season will be filled with hard-work and high demands, but it will be worth everything next August!
Captain Army Football
Steve Anderson
Linebacker #50
This entry was posted in Uncategorized. Bookmark the
permalink. or leave a trackback: http://js-kit.com/trackback/blogs.hudsonvalley.com/west-point-army-football/p=2389
Award-winning writer Sal Interdonato has been on the Army football beat since 2007. He'll take you inside the huddle and into the lives of the Black Knights. Read Full
Stephen Anderson’s Army-Navy diary: Starting Fresh
This is the final installment of Army junior co-captain Stephen Anderson’s diary for the Times Herald-Record. A season-ending knee injury will keep Anderson, Army’s leading tackler, out of the service-academy rivalry. But Anderson’s leadership is still a big part of the team’s heart beat. He’ll take us inside the locker room, practice and the West Point campus leading up and after to the big game at Lincoln Financial Field.
Wow! That is all I have to say about that game. A tale of two-halves like most of our season. We know it as a team which makes it that much more frustrating. One thing is for sure and that is Army football is at a whole new level. A level that has not been seen in nearly a decade. I thank our seniors and our underclassman who stepped up huge as leaders – they made it possible. I am determined, our players are determined, our coaches are determined that next year, Navy will feel how we felt. We will continue to strive to be the dominant service academy and if this team gained so much in year one, imagine how much it will gain in the next.
There are three things I will remember about that game. First, the feeling of standing on the sidelines watching my brothers battle and give their 100 percent, something that many people believe was absent from earlier teams. My future brothers-in-arms fighting for the man on his left and right. You do not get that at very many places but this past Saturday was a clear example. Second,when Navy sang their Alma Mater. Nothing boiled my blood like that did. I will remember for the entire year the sound of the crowd, their facial expressions, and my feeling of disappointment, anger, and frustration. That will be on my mind fueling me to get better each and every day. Last and probably the worst, the look in my brothers’ eyes after the game. The pain I saw was not one I will see again. I will commit myself and my team to not see that pain again.
Too many of our seniors for too long have had that pain and our 2010 ArmyFootball team will put an end to it! We start the off-season with a week of exams. Nothing we can’t handle. Players will be leaving Friday and Saturday to return home for the holidayseason. Surgery is on Friday for me and I will be in physical therapy on Saturday. Long road ahead but my dedication to this team and program is second-to- none. Off-season workouts have already been sent out and I expect everyone to have enough fuel to get some good workouts in.
HERE ME NOW ARMY FOOTBALL FANS: The team coming back has 18 returning starters from offense and defense. The 2010 Football Team has every single bit of potential to BRING BACK Army Football. Stick around because this off-season will be filled with hard-work and high demands, but it will be worth everything next August!
Captain Army Football
Steve Anderson
Linebacker #50