Week 16 is the final week of the 2025-26 College Football regular season, and it’s unlike any other week of the season. In fact, Week 16 is reserved for one of the sport’s most revered traditions – the Army vs. Navy game. Additionally, this week also crowns the winner of the Commander in Chief’s Trophy.

First awarded in 1972, the Commander in Chief’s trophy is given out to the U.S. Military Academy team that wins the season series of games between the Air Force Falcons, Army Black Knights, and Navy Midshipmen.

This year, the Military Academy series of games take place as follows:

• Week 6 (Oct. 4): Navy Midshipmen defeat Air Force Falcons 34 to 31
• Week 10 (Nov. 1): Army Black Knights defeat Air Force Falcons 20 to 17
• Week 16 (Dec. 13): Army Black Knights vs. Navy Midshipmen at M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore, MD

Once the final whistle blows in the Week 16 matchup between Army vs. Navy, then all attention will be turned towards Bowl Game Season which includes the College Football Playoffs that begin on Friday, December 19.

Eventually, the sport will make its way towards the 2025-26 College Football Championship game on Monday, January 19, 2026, at Hard Rock Stadium in Maimi Gardens, Florida.

College Football Week 16 Odds

Keep an eye on the latest College Football odds from the top online betting sites and monitor how the lines change throughout the week.

The one thing that really stands out this week is the game total. It was extremely rare this season to see a game total in the low 40s. It’s even rarer when a total dips below 40.

When a total does go below 40, it’s usually a game that involves Army. This year’s Army-Navy total opened at 38.5. It was bet up to 39.5 but has dropped back down to its opening line. Army tends to play a very methodical type of offense to shorten games and gain an advantage over their opponent. Will it work this week against Navy?

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College Football Week 16 Predictions

When the odds become available, we’ll make our official College Football picks for Week 16.

Army Black Knights vs. Navy Midshipmen

As mentioned, these two pillars of college football have played 126 times. Navy holds the advantage in the series. The Midshipmen are 63-55-7 thus far. Navy has won just three times in the last nine years.

Army’s newfound dominance in this rivalry coincides with the hiring of Jeff Monken as the Black Knights head coach. Monken brought in the triple option offense, a staple for the military academies, and a philosophy designed to control the pace of every game.

The Black Knights went 12-2 last year and beat Tulane 35-14 in the American Athletic Conference championship game. The following week, rival Navy poured it on the Black Knights 31-13. You can bet Monken and company remember that.

Both of these teams are committed to running the football. Navy leads the nation in rushing yards per game with 281.8. Army is third with 254.9 yards per game.

The Midshipmen do it a little differently now. After struggling a couple years ago, head coach Brian Newberry wanted more. He got it when he hired offensive coordinator Drew Cronic, the former head coach at Mercer.

What Cronic brought with him to Annapolis was an offense built around the run. It incorporates a lot of Wing-T concepts along with a heavy dose of option football. The results have been tremendous.

The Midshipmen also had a great season in 2024. The offense exploded scoring 30 or more points in eight of 12 games last season. This season, it has been more of the same. Navy is 30th in the nation in scoring, averaging 30.5 points per game.

The offense is in great hands with Blake Horvath running the show. Horvath has 1,040 rushing yards and 1,390 passing. His counterpart, Cale Hellums of Army, has been pretty effective himself. He leads the Black Knights with 1,078 yards and 15 touchdowns.

The big difference between the two offenses is Navy’s ability to throw the football. Hellums has 504 passing yards this season and, as a team, Army has just 861. Still, the Black Knights went 6-5 overall.

That’s because they tend to keep the ball away from opposing offenses. Army leads the nation in time of possession, controlling the football for over 35 minutes per game. They run the ball an average of nearly 60 times per game. That typically shortens games and leads to low game totals.

In this rivalry, the Under is 7-2-1 in the last 10 games. Each of the last five meetings have had a closing total below 40. Last year’s total was 39.5. Navy scored 31 points and the game went Over, but keep this in mind.

In the last ten Army-Navy games where Navy was favored to win, the Under is 9-1. The Midshipmen have won nine of those ten games, but they have only covered four of the ten.

If you are into player props, consider Horvath and Hellums for Anytime Touchdowns. If you like Horvath, get in quickly as his Anytime TD prop is already approaching -200. Hellums is listed at -120 for an Anytime TD as of this writing.

Another great look is Hellums Passing Yards prop. You can get Under 65.5 Passing Yards at -120. Hellums has only broken the 100-yard mark twice this season. Those are also the only two times that Hellums threw for more than 64 yards. He’s 9-2 on this prop at 65.5.

Navy has the better offense, but the familiarity that these academy teams have with each other gives the defenses an advantage. That’s why there is value on Army. In the Army-Air Force game, the Black Knights won 20-17. Navy beat Air Force, which had a terrible defense, 34-31. Expect another close one. Six of the last nine in the series have been decided by a single score.

Bet: Navy -235, Army +6.5 (-115), Under 38.5 (-108)

Best College Football Week 16 Bets

Here are our favorite bets for Week 16:

• Under 38.5 total points
• Navy Midshipmen -235
• Cale Hellums Anytime TD

As mentioned, these teams are familiar with the style of offense that each team plays. Navy is a little more dynamic, but Army faced Cronic’s offense last year and has seen all of 2025’s film. Remember, these teams face the option every day in practice in spring football. It’s why the Commander-In-Chief games are usually low-scoring.

The big thing, too, is that Army controls the football. They have had games where they’ve had the ball for 41 to 42 minutes. That doesn’t leave a lot of time for opponents to get on offense and score.

Ultimately, Navy is the better football team. They’ve got the better quarterback and they have tons of experience that returned from last year. While it should be a close game, the Midshipmen should win. It’s almost a home game too as Navy is located in Annapolis and the game is at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore.

It’s a pretty good bet that if Army scores in this game it’s going to be Hellums getting into the end zone. He has 15 touchdowns this season. He’s Army’s leading rusher. Hellums did not score in the win over UTSA to end the regular season.

However, in the previous six games he had at least one rushing touchdown. For the season, Hellums had a touchdown in eight of Army’s 11 games.

Commander In Chief’s Trophy Odds

Since 1972, this is just the 9th time that Army vs. Navy winner will capture the Commander in Chief’s Trophy outright. Both of these military schools have already defeated Air Force this season.

What Is The Commander In Chief’s Trophy?

As mentioned above, this trophy was created to award the top Military team for the season based on an annual series of games. In its inaugural season of 1972, President Richard Nixon presented the award. That season, the trophy went to the Army Black Knights as they beat Air Force and Navy that season.

The trophy itself weighs roughly 170 pounds and stands about 2.5 feet tall. The concept of the award is credited to Air Force General George B. Simler. However, the design of the trophy was not. In fact, the original trophy now sits in the College Football Hall of Fame as an identical one was made in 2021, to replace it.

If two teams finish the series tied, then the Commander In Chief’s Trophy will be shared. The team that won the award in the previous season, will maintain physical possession of the trophy. As of now, there have only been five occasions when a tied occurred: 1974, 1976, 1980, 1993, and 2021.

Army Black Knights

Although the Army Black Knights won this trophy in 2023, and the first ever trophy in 1972, they still have the lowest trophy count at 10. Furthermore, they also have the worst combined record among the Military Academies at 38-67-1.

Last year, Army got out of the gate with a resounding win over Air Force by the score of 20-3. It almost matched their 23-3 victory from the 2023 season. The Black Knights have won eight of the last 10 meetings against the Falcons. However, Air Force has a 35-18 record against Army since 1972.

The 2024 Week 16 matchup against Navy ended in a thud for Army last season. They were crushed by the score of 31-13. That was their biggest loss to Navy since a 31-7 defeat in 2019. It dropped their record to 32-20-1 against the Midshipmen in the trophy era. These teams are 3-3 in their last six meetings.

The Black Knights already defeated Air Force by the score of 20-17, which was a third consecutive victory over the Falcons. However, it was the closest margin of victory over those three games.

Navy Midshipmen

The Navy Midshipmen won their 17^th Commander In Chief’s trophy last year. It was their first trophy since 2019. The Midshipmen were able to take home this prestigious trophy by outscoring their opponents 65-20.

Navy opened up with a 34-7 crushing of Air Force, which was their first win over the Falcons since 2019. Air Force had won four games in a row over the Midshipmen.

As mentioned above, Navy’s 31-13 victory over Army helped improve their series record to 3-3 over the last six meetings. They’re now 32-20-1 against the Black Knights in the trophy era and 22-31 against the Falcons.

In addition to winning the Commander In Chief’s trophy, Navy also finished last season with a 10-3 record. That was good for third in the AAC.

Navy narrowly escaped against Air Force as they won 34-31 to score a second straight win over the Falcons. This is the first time that Navy has beat Air Force two straight seasons since 2012-13.

Air Force Falcons

The Air Force Falcons lead this series with the most Commander In Chief’s trophy wins at 21, despite not winning the award until 1982. They last won this trophy in 2022, when they defeated Navy and Army by a field goal in each game.  

Since 1972, Air Force is 31-22 against Navy and 35-17 against Army. That’s a combined record of 66-40. against the other two Military teams. It’s the best record among the Military Academies.

In 2024, the Falcons were crushed in both matchups against the other Military teams. They lost 34-7 to Navy and 20-3 to Army. That’s a combined total of 54-10.

The 44-point differential was the largest of the trophy era. It surpassed the previous high of 43 points set in 1978, when Navy won 37-8 and Army won 28-14. The 27-point loss to Navy last year, was the biggest defeat since their 1978 matchup.

This year, the Air Force Falcons lost by a total of six points to Army and Navy. They will look to rebound from these losses next season.

Commander In Chief’s Trophy Predictions

Oddsmakers favor the Navy Midshipmen to win the Week 16 matchup against Army in Baltimore. It’s hard to argue with that, especially since Navy has the better record and the best player on the field.

As you can see from above, we like Navy to win this game outright, but for Army to cover the spread. So, with Navy’s win, they will also capture the Commander In Chief’s Trophy for a second straight year. This marks the first time since 2012-13 that Navy has won consecutive CIC trophies.

Bet: Navy Midshipmen (-235)

Commander In Chief’s Trophy Wins

The following details are from the Trophy Era heading into the 2025 NCAAF season: