Army opens 2026 with back to back noon kickoffs at Michie Stadium, gets two Friday night road trips on ESPN networks, hosts Air Force under the lights on CBS for the first time since 2006, and finishes where every Army season finishes: the Army Navy Game, this year at MetLife Stadium on Dec. 12. Two open weeks, Sept. 19 and Nov. 14, are spaced so the Black Knights never play more than five straight.
Jeff Monken is in his 13th season at West Point, 89-63 with a new extension through 2030 and second in program wins only to Red Blaik. Army went 7-6 in 2025, beat Kansas State on the road, won at Air Force, and closed with a 41-16 Fenway Bowl win over UConn. Quarterback Cale Hellums and four of five offensive line starters return from a unit that ran for 3,485 yards and allowed seven sacks, fewest in the FBS.
Games That Will Define the Black Knights’ Season
| Sept 12 vs South Florida | The conference opener in Week 2 against a USF team that was in the CFP conversation into November last season. A noon kick on The Plain sets the tone for the league race early. |
| Oct 10 vs Tulane | Tulane won 11 games and represented the American in the College Football Playoff in 2025. Army beat the Green Wave 35-14 in the 2024 title game at Michie Stadium; this is the first Tulane trip to West Point since. |
| Nov 7 vs Air Force | Air Force at Michie under the lights on CBS, the first night meeting there since 2006 and the 17th night game in stadium history. Army has won seven of the last nine in the series, including at Colorado Springs last year, and the first leg of the Commander in Chief’s Trophy is on the line. |
| Dec 12 vs Navy | The 127th Army Navy Game, at MetLife Stadium for just the second time (2021). Navy won 17-16 in Baltimore last December. CBS has aired every Army Navy Game since 1996; last year’s drew 7.84 million viewers. |
How the Schedule Sets Up
Two home games, a bye, then two straight on the road at Temple and Louisiana Tech before Tulane comes to Michie. The October stretch of Tulane, Florida Atlantic, Tulsa and Memphis is where the conference race is decided, and the second bye lands right after Air Force so the Black Knights get a breather before East Carolina, Rice and the two week run up to Navy.
For the other sides of the rivalry games, see our Air Force schedule and Navy schedule. The official schedule, tickets and gameday details are on GoArmyWestPoint.com.
The Bottom Line
Six home games, two byes, the Air Force game under the lights, and Navy at MetLife. Hellums and a veteran line give Monken’s 13th team a proven ground game; the defense, which lost eight starters, is the question. Bookmark this page; results and kickoff times are updated throughout the season.