Takeaways: Army stumbles, but takes care of business against UMass

I think most people (myself included) saw this game being a repeat of Army’s trouncing of Bucknell the week prior. And while the Black Knights pulled away with the victory late in the game, they definitely let UMass hang in the game for much longer than any Army fan should’ve felt comfortable with. From a punt gone awry to missed passes and sloppy penalties, this was from Army’s best game, but thankfully a few key players showed up in a big way to notch another win for the Black Knights.

Here are some of the key takeaways from Army’s final home game of the 2021 season.

TAKEAWAYS

Record day for Andre Carter

The junior linebacker for Army regained his position as the nation’s sack leader with three sacks, which included two forced fumbles (both recovered by Army). The performance also pushed Carter into Army football history books as the program’s single-season sack leader (previously 12.5 set in 2009), and there are still 3 games left to play.

Carter is now tied with Alabama LB Will Anderson Jr. with 13.5 sacks on the season but has the edge with a 1.35 sacks per game average compared to Anderson’s 1.23.

Fire the Buchanans!

I’ll never get tired of this exclamation by CBS Sports analyst, Ross Tucker, when Army FB Jakobi Buchanan scores in short-yardage situations. In the fourth quarter, Buchanan kickstarted an Army drive with a bruising 26-yard run and capped off the drive six and a half minutes later with a 2-yard touchdown to put Army ahead, 26-17.

While helping the Black Knights convert multiple third and fourth down situations, Buchanan’s efforts on that particular drive and ensuing TD helped put the game out of reach for UMass late in the game.

The Bottom Line

Despite having an earlier punt return negated by a penalty, Tyrell Robinson gashed the Liberty defense with an 87-yard touchdown run for Army’s first points of the game. Robinson finished the day as Army’s leading rusher with 137 yards on nine carries, good for a 15.2 yards per carry average.

While Army’s penalties and botched punt to start the game were frustrated, probably the most excruciating thing to watch was the number of missed passes between QB Christian Anderson and WR Brandon Walters. Rather two or three TD passes, Anderson ended up just 2/12 passing on the day.

Army’s going up against a talented Liberty squad, so cleaning up the mistakes and being able to capitalize on chances both on the ground and through the air will be critical.

What’s Next: Liberty

Where: Williams Stadium – Lynchburg, VA

Watch: ESPN+

Kickoff: 12 p.m. (EST) on Saturday, November 27th