VIRGINIA BEACH (WTKR) — The play happened three years ago, but Marcus Moore can remember Navy's fourth down stop to beat Army in 2021 like it was yesterday.
"They run the ball to the left side. Diego Fagot, Kevin Brennan, and Colin Ramos come and smash the line," said the safety who played for the Midshipmen from 2020-2023. "They don't get it, we win the game, the crowd's going wild. I'm up in the bleachers, in the stands celebrating with my brothers."
Those stories are common place at Shorebreak Pizza and Taphouse in Virginia Beach this week, as Navy alums pour in to share meals and memories ahead of the 125th meeting between Navy and Army on Saturday afternoon.
The Hampton Roads Chapter of the USNA Alumni Association meet yearly at the restaurant to watch the game together.
"We have the Navy Football Brotherhood, and even the guys you didn't play with or weren't on the same team with, you become super close," said former Navy longsnapper Matt Oberlander. "The stories never get old, you love hearing it."
"As a 30 year guy, I get the fire in my belly every time I hear someone else have their stories," said Lamont Gourdine, who played defensive back and was the Military Deputy Director of Athletics at the academy. "For the guys that are retired or are done playing the game, we still feel. That's why we have the Navy Football Brotherhood because if you took one snap at the Naval Academy, you're part of the brotherhood."
Navy holds a 62-55-7 lead in the all-time series over Army. The Midshipmen are 8-3 going into the game while the Black Knights are coming off a victory in the American Athletic Conference championship game against Tulane.
Every year the teams meet, however, the former players saying the records are not to be paid attention to.
"In your offseason, that's your goal. Every rep you take in the offseason, every drop of blood, sweat and tears," said former Navy offensive lineman Sam Glover. "It's for that, to sing second at the end of December to wrap up the year."
"At the end of the day, we're all here to serve our country. When we get in between those white lines, I want to say that we are not friends," Moore said. "We're out there to win the football game and bring the (Commander-in-Chief's Trophy) back to Navy."
The two teams will do battle for four quarters, but it's the moments after the game that still capture a nation's attention. Both teams join to sing the almae matres of the two academies, where pride and pain pour out of each squad.
"There's really not words to describe it. You go to the school for something bigger than yourself, but this game is really representing our country as a whole," Glover said. "It really means a lot and represents a lot."
"If people look at the game and see the emotion of the game, the tears and the agony of the ones who sing first," Gourdine said. "It's extremely personal for that game and it's emotional."
Navy and Army will kick off from Northwest Stadium at 3:00 on Saturday afternoon, with the game broadcasted on WTKR.
When they do, the memories will come flooding back for those who have taken the field before.
"There's nothing like it. I still get chills," Oberlander said. "It is truly one of a kind."
