Do you remember? When Army head coach Jeff Monken appeared on The Pat McAfee Show back in October, he couldn’t resist tossing a playful jab at Navy. “Do they still have a football program at that school?” Monken said, firing up the rivalry nearly two months before the two teams were set to face each other. Sure, it might’ve been a bold—or, let’s be honest, coc-y—statement from Monken, especially with the Army prepping for East Carolina that week. But hey, when you’re 6-4 against Navy in America’s Game, you’ve earned the right to talk like that.

So, when Jeff Moken went to the Triple Option show, how would you expect him to behave? Shady right? He did not disappoint his fans and gave them all the tea they needed to listen to. “I heard coaches say that it’s just another game. I never treated it that way. I was very honest with our players. When you play a rival, do you try to keep it just the same, or do you have empathy? Is it just different?” The host of the show asked Monken.

To that, he gave a befitting reply by saying, “Oh no, it’s different. It’s different. More than anything our players do here in the four years, including graduating from West Point, there will be nothing that they are judged on or at this game. Oh, you graduated from West Point. What was your record against that will be the question for the rest of their life. So it is; it is just a source of pride and cheese trophy. It’s awesome to experience that on the other end of it. It’s agonizing. I mean it. It is one of the worst feelings you can have as a competitor.”

With Monken’s Black Knights ready to roll for their third straight win over Navy this Saturday, the heat is on. Since 2016, Monken’s boys have dominated the rivalry, winning six of the last eight matchups. And while his comments were definitely “fun” trolling, there’s some irony here—Monken actually spent a decent amount of time coaching for Navy during his career.

Did Jeff Monken work for Navy?

Before becoming a fixture at West Point, Monken served on Navy’s staff under Paul Johnson from 2002 to 2007. Starting as the running backs coach, he helped build the Midshipmen’s triple-option offense, a system he’s since mastered at Army. During his time in Annapolis, the Navy captured five straight Commander-in-Chief’s trophies, cementing Monken’s reputation as a key piece of Johnson’s coaching tree.

Monken also added special teams coordinator duties in 2006, giving him even more tools in his coaching arsenal. So, yeah, while Monken is firmly Team Army now, there’s no denying he had a hand in the Navy’s rise back then. Added to that, Jeff Monken’s career at Army has been nothing short of ups and downs. When he joined in 2014, the program was struggling, and his first two years were completed with a 6-18 record.

However, since 2016, he has rolled with great improvement, and Monken has led the Army squad to a winning season in six years. Finishing 8-5 and cracking a Dallas Bowl victory. The next year was even better, as Monken’s crew defeated the Navy and finished the season with a 10-3 record. By 2018, Army saw great heights with an 11-2 season. Afterwards, things got a little messier as the 2019 season ended with 5-8, followed by a strong 9-3 season, and they stayed at 6-6 for the last two seasons. However, the program brought back its glorious days this season with an 11-1 record and having great odds entering the upcoming game against Navy.