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‘That means we’re winning’: Army football coach Jeff Monken on rumors for bigger jobs
Army football coach Jeff Monken has been mentioned in several reports to fill vacant college jobs, among them North Carolina, West Virginia and Purdue, which was filled over the weekend by UNLV’s Barry Odom.
During Monday’s weekly press conference, Monken did not deny the reports, nor offer any thoughts on the prospect of leaving West Point.
“It comes with the territory,” Monken said. “I’ve been here 11 years and this isn’t the first go-round, it isn’t the first time my name’s popped up, That’s what happens when coaches are successful. They probably aren’t mentioning any other names of coaches for these positions that are on losing teams right now. So it’s just the way it is.”
Monken took over at Army in 2014. His 81 wins ranks second all-time at the Academy, trailing only Hall of Fame coach Earl ‘Red’ Blaik. He has guided the Black Knights to five previous bowl games, and will coach a sixth on Dec. 28 when Army plays Marshall in the Independence Bowl.
The Black Knights won the last four games of the 2023 season and first nine of 2024, assuming the longest win streak in the nation at 13 games. Notre Dame put an end to the perfect start but Army rebounded with wins over Texas San Antonio in the regular-season finale and Tulane in the AAC title game to run its mark to 11-1, the second time Monken has led Army to 11 wins.
The Black Knights will play Navy on Saturday in Landover, Md., with the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy at stake.
As long as Army is winning, Monken’s name comes up in coaching searches, as it has nearly every year. Monken did sign an extension through 2027, reported to be $2 million per year.
“You know, I’m glad because that means we’re winning,” Monken said. “So I hope we keep winning and this week it’d be a good one to (win) … this would be a good week to continue that and win again. We have some work to do to see that that happens.”
In related news, Army offensive coordinator Matt Drinkall was named head coach at Central Michigan on Monday. Drinkall will coach in the Navy game before assuming his CMU duties. Drinkall has held an on-field coaching position at Army since 2020.
kmcmillan@th-record.com
X / Twitter: @KenMcMillanTHR
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