It wasn’t that long ago that the Army football program was struggling. Then, head coach Jeff Monken stepped in and turned the program around. Over the last six seasons, Monken and the Black Knights have gone 52-25.
There was just one aberration, a 5-8 campaign in 2019. The rest were winning seasons and two of them – 2017 & 2018 – featured double-digit win totals. The Black Knights had another winning season in 2021 and many believe that the 2022 edition could be Monken’s best team yet.
Army Regular Season Win Total Betting Lines
OVER 8 (-125)
UNDER 8 (-105)
Last Season
Last year, Army finished 9-4 with one of its best bowl victories in recent memory. The Black Knights beat the SEC’s Missouri 24-22 in the Armed Forces Bowl.
Monken’s squad opened the season with four straight wins then dropped three straight to Ball State, Wisconsin, and Wake Forest. Army lost to the Badgers by six (20-14) and lost one of the most exciting games of the 2021 college football season to the Demon Deacons.
The Black Knights totaled 595 yards of offense, 416 of which came via Army’s triple option rushing attack. Army would win four straight again before losing to rival Navy in the regular season finale.
Black Knights Key Losses Heading Into 2022
Army loses QB Christian Anderson, but because of injury and the abilities of some of the other Army quarterbacks his loss shouldn’t be significant. The offensive line needs some tweaking and the defense loses nose tackle Nolan Cockrill.
Monken returns the bulk of his 2021 roster, which is why expectations are high at West Point this fall.
2022 Army Black Knights Team Preview
Only at Army could there be an FBS program with a 5-foot-8-inch, 183-pound quarterback. That’s exactly what the Black Knights have in Tyhier Tyler, who led Army in rushing back in 2020. Tyler finished fourth on the team last season in rushing with 486 yards. He also had seven touchdowns.
Tyrell Robinson returns at one of the slotbacks. He was second on the team in rushing with 609 yards with an average of 8.5 yards per carry. Big 260-pound FB Jakobi Buchanan returns as do his 504 yards and team-high 12 touchdowns.
Army finished second in the country in rushing last year averaging 280.6 yards a game. The Black Knights have finished in the top-4 in rushing in each of the last six seasons.
The Army defense only plays about 25 minutes per game as the offense controls the football with its rushing attack. Edge rusher Andre Carter (6-7, 250) returns and the entire defensive backfield, including Marquel Broughton, is back.
2022 Army Football Schedule
The Black Knights schedule is always changing as the school plays an independent schedule. Army opens at Coastal Carolina, a program on the rise. The Chanticleers have had back-to-back 11-win seasons. Then, Army gets UTSA at home. The Roadrunners went 12-1 last season.
The remainder of the schedule lends itself to Monken and Army having a great season. The Knights play FCS opponents Villanova and Colgate. UConn and UMass are two programs with new head coaches. Wake Forest loses its quarterback, but is a Power 5 program and then there the two rivals – Air Force and Navy.
2022 Black Knights Regular Season Win Total Prediction
Looking at the Army schedule, there is no doubt they can end up with double-digit wins in 2022. The key will be getting off to a good start. Playing Coastal Carolina early is probably a good thing. Georgia State, Troy and UL-Monroe should be easy wins as will be the two FCS opponents. UConn and UMass might as well be FCS opponents.
The question isn’t can Army win eight games. The better question is how many more games above eight can Army win.
PICK: ARMY OVER 8 WINS (-125)
Check out our 2022 Clemson win total prediction and 2022 Notre Dame win total prediction.