A History of the Army-Navy Game

The Army-Navy football game goes back in history more than 120 years, and today America tunes in to watch the two military branches face off in a friendly rivalry on the football field.

Here are seven facts about the history of the Army-Navy game:

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1. The first official Army-Navy football game was held in 1890. Navy won the game beating Army 24-0, according United States Naval Academy. "Most of the Army-Navy game fortunes in the early years of the football rivalry were fairly even with wins cycling back and forth between the two teams somewhat evenly," the website said. "The series was tied eight times during the first 26 games that were played between the two Academies."

2. In the years 1894 to 1898, no games were played between Army and Navy. According to Military.com, the suspension came about because the 1893 game between the two almost ended with a duel between Army and Navy officers. The Secretary of Navy and the Secretary of War banned the two teams from playing each other.

3. Pre-game pranks in which both sides participate include stealing the other side’s mascot, dropping a helicopter full of ping pong balls from the sky on the opposing side, and stealing each other’s uniforms, Military.com said.

4. The winning team along with its fellow students celebrate a tradition known as a night of liberty, where the winning side is given a night following the football game free of homework and various other responsibilities.

5. At West Point, students performing the lowest 5 percent academically are forced to play a football game on Thanksgiving morning. They are given the name "Goats," which is to be considered an insult, due to the Navy’s mascot being a goat. Along with the lowest-performing academic students, the top-performing students, known as the "Engineers," are also forced to play as the opposing team. The game is supposed to predict the outcome of the up and coming Army-Navy game, Military.com said.

6. Since 2002, the Navy has been on a 13-game winning streak – the longest ever – over Army, according to ESPN.

7. Dwight Eisenhower has been the only U.S. president to ever play in the game, playing in 1912, Military.com said.

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