2024 College Football Week 16 Odds: Army vs. Navy

It’s the greatest rivalry in all of college sports. Yes, there is one final regular season game and it pits two of the oldest and most successful college football programs against one another – Army versus Navy. Interestingly, the two teams are now part of the same conference, the American Athletic Conference. Army just won the conference title in its first season. The Black Knights dismantled Tulane last week, 35-14. Navy had a great season as well, finishing 8-3.

Despite its AAC win and an 11-1 record, the Black Knights were not selected for the 12-team playoff. The College Football Playoff will begin on Friday, Dec. 20, when No. 10 Indiana plays No. 7 Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish were the only team to beat Army this season.

At one point during the regular season, both Army and Navy were unbeaten and ranked in the AP Top 25. Both teams entered the poll in Week 8. Army (6-0) was ranked No. 23 and Navy (5-0) checked in at No. 25.

Both teams won in Week 8 and Navy moved up one spot in the rankings. The Midshipmen fell out of the rankings in Week 10 with their first loss of the season to Rice. Army would get as high as No. 19 before its loss to Notre Dame.

While neither Army nor Navy will play in the College Football Playoff, Scores & Stats will keep you updated on all the latest regarding CFB’s postseason. We will continue to provide the best content and expert picks and predictions from some of the top handicappers in the industry. Stay with us from now all the way through the 2024 College Football Playoffs right up to the CFP National Championship game.

College Football Week 16 Odds

Team	Moneyline	Spread	Total
Navy Midshipmen	+210	+6.5 (-110)	O 38.5 (-110)
Army Black Knights	-260	-6.5 (-110)	U 38.5 (-110)

Keep an eye on the latest College Football Odds and monitor how the lines change throughout the week.

Bettors should keep an eye on the line for this game. The initial point spread was just 1.5 in favor of Army, but that number shot up to Army -6 on Dec. 9 and is sitting at Army -6.5 as of the time of this writing. Bettors that like the Black Knights can still find value at various sportsbooks offering Army at lines better than -6.5. Shop wisely.

The other number to watch is the game total. The total opened at 38.5, ticked up to 40 on Dec. 9, and has since moved back to 38.5. The last 10 games in this series have all featured final scores totaling 38 or fewer points. Last year’s 17-11 Army victory saw just 28 points scored. The games in 2015 and 2016 landed on 38, the highest-scoring games of the last decade.

The two offenses are similar, both using plenty of triple option schemes. Both teams run the ball more than any other FBS team. Army leads the nation in rushing play percentage, running the ball on 86.5 percent of their offensive plays. Navy is third (behind Air Force) at 75.4 percent. It’s no surprise that Army leads the nation in rushing with 308.9 yards per game. Navy is fifth at 246.2.

These rushing offenses tend to use a lot of clock and lead to lower-scoring games. However, it’s worth noting that these two offenses were among the top scoring teams in the FBS. Army is 30th in the nation in scoring, averaging 32.1 points per game. Navy is 39th scoring 30.6. Even so, there is value on the Under, which has cashed eight times in the last ten games in this rivalry.

College Football Week 16 Predictions

Let’s take a look at the featured College Football Week 16 games and make our spread, total, and moneyline NCAAF picks for the Army vs. Navy game.

Navy Midshipmen vs. Army Black Knights

It is one of the oldest and enduring rivalries in all of college sports. The Army-Navy game has been played 124 times, beginning in 1890. It is frequently attended by the President of the United States and has been broadcast nationally every year since 1945. The game is played each year on the Saturday following the conference championships.

There is plenty of history among these two programs and the rivalry itself. Navy holds a 62-55-7 advantage in the series. Army holds the advantage in Heisman Trophy winners. Doc Blanchard (1945) and Glenn Davis (1946) won in consecutive years before Pete Dawkins won it in 1958. Navy has had two winners – Joe Bellino in 1960 and Roger Staubach in 1963.

Navy won 14 games in a row in the series between 2002 and 2015. It’s the longest winning streak in the rivalry. Since that streak, Army has won six of the last eight games, including the last two in a row.

In the last ten games in the series, Army is 6-4 SU and 7-3 ATS. As mentioned, the Under is 1-8-1 with the two teams averaging a total of 30.5 points over those last ten games. If you like passing offense, you aren’t going to see it here. In the last ten games in the series, both teams combined have averaged 18 pass attempts per game.

Navy Midshipmen vs. Army Black Knights Predictions

There is no question this will be a battle. Army is favored for a reason. The Black Knights just won the AAC conference championship game and completely dominated a Tulane team that beat Navy 35-0. Army ran all over – 335 rushing yards – Tulane and led from start to finish.

Just a few weeks prior, Tulane held Navy to 100 yards rushing and no points. Navy turned the ball over twice and played their worst game of the season. The problem that Navy will have is with the Army defense. It’s one of the best in the nation. Army is sixth in scoring defense giving up 15.7 points per game. The Black Knights rank eighth in total defense (299.4 ypg) and they are seventh against the run, holding opponents to 97.8 yards rushing.

Navy’s offense is a bit different than in year’s past. Last offseason, the Midshipmen went out and hired former Mercer (FCS) head coach Drew Cronic. His offense is a blend of option principles meshed with the Wing-T. They are two things that most defenses don’t see throughout the course of a season, and that is why Navy was able to average over 30 points per game this season.

Still, it’s two service academies. Navy blew out Air Force in the Commander in Chief’s Trophy race. That game ended 34-7. Army also beat Air Force, 20-3. Neither game went Over 41 points. Expect similar results Saturday. These two teams know how to defend each other and that will play a huge role in the outcome.

Best Bets for College Football Week 16

It’s only one game for our experts to analyze. Here is their best bet for college football Week 16.

• Navy @ Army (1H) Under 20

These service academy games are notorious for going Under the total. Eight of the last 10 Army-Navy games have gone Under the game total. In the last eight, only once has the first half total gone Over 20. Each of the last two games, have featured just 10 first half points. This should be another low-scoring Army-Navy game.

Commander In Chief’s Trophy

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

Air Force General George B. Simler is credited with creating the Commander in Chief’s Trophy. His goal was to create an annual series of games between these teams and reward the winner with a trophy and recognition. As mentioned above, it was first awarded in 1972. In fact, President Richard Nixon presented the trophy that year. Nixon’s act has inspired future Presidents to carry on the tradition.

It should be noted that if two teams finish the series tied, then the award will be shared. However, the team that won it the previous year will maintain physical possession of the trophy. Currently, the trophy as been shared on five occasions, with 2021 being the most recent occurrence.

The 2024 Commander in Chief’s series of games were scheduled as follows:

• Week 6 (Oct. 5): The Navy Midshipmen steamrolled the Air Force Falcons at Falcon Stadium, USAF Academy, CO, in Week 6. Navy blanked the Falcons in the second half to pull away for a 34 to 7 victory.
• Week 10 (Nov. 2): Air Force Falcons came up short in their quest to hand the Army Black Knights their first loss of the season at that point. Army ended up shutting down the Air Force offense to win the game 20-3.
• Week 16 (Dec. 14): Navy Midshipmen vs. Army Black Knights at Commanders Field, Landover, MD

Air Force Falcons

Heading into the 2024 College Football season, the Air Force Falcons lead this series with the most trophy wins at 21. They last won in 2022, and their first trophy win was in 1982.

Since 1972, Air Force is 31-21 against Navy and 35-17 against Army. That’s a combined record of 66-38 against the other two Military teams.

Last year, Air Force easily defeated Navy, but they were crushed by Army 23-3. This year, the Falcons are projected to have the better team.

Army Black Knights

Currently, the Army Black Knights have won the fewest number of trophies at 10. Since 1972, Army is just 17-35 against Air Force and 20-31-1 versus Navy. They have the worst combined record against the other two teams at 37-66-1.

However, heading into this season, Army is the reigning Commander in Chief’s trophy winner. They also won the inaugural trophy as well. Furthermore, Army has won four of the last six trophies.

Navy Midshipmen

The Navy Midshipmen have captured 16 trophies since 1972, but they haven’t won since 2019. Navy has been solid against Army with a 31-20-1 record since the trophy was introduced.

Unfortunately, they are just 21-31 against Air Force. Even worse, the Midshipmen are 1-7 over the last eight games in this series. They have lost four in a row to Air Force and three of the last four against Army.

Commander In Chief’s Trophy Prediction

At the beginning of the season, the Air Force Falcons were favored to win the 2024 Commander In Chief’s Trophy with Even odds. The Army Black Knights were second with +150 odds, while the Navy Midshipmen were the longshots at +425 odds.

Prior to the start of the 2024-25 College Football season, we went with the handicappers and sports betting sites by taking Air Force to win. Unfortunately, this was a down year for the Falcons football team as they lost both games to Army and Navy, finished 5-7 overall and went 3-4 in the Mountain West Conference. Boise State ended up running away with the conference, while Air Force ran to their non-football duties.

With that said, the Army Black Knights were clearly the best team of the three all year long. They crushed Air Force, won the AAC Championship and were probably a win away from making the College Football Playoffs.

While Army still has a Bowl Game to play after this weekend, you can bet that they won’t overlook their longtime rival. The Black Knights captured the Commander in Chief’s Trophy last year and as you can see from above, we like them to beat Navy on Saturday, pick up their second consecutive trophy (17th overall), and move within four of Air Force’s all-time mark of 21 trophies.

Commander In Chief’s Trophy Wins

Team	Trophies	Record	Last Trophy
Air Force Falcons	21	66-38	2022
Army Black Knights	16	52-51-1	2019
Navy Midshipmen	10	37-66-1	2023