Army Coach Proposes Moving Army-Navy Game to Thanksgiving Weekend

Jeff Monken believes the historic rivalry needs to adapt to an evolving college football calendar.

Published on Feb. 24, 2026

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Army head coach Jeff Monken has recommended moving the annual Army-Navy football game to Thanksgiving weekend in order to preserve the game's relevance and accommodate changes to the College Football Playoff schedule. Monken believes the game needs to be protected with a four-hour exclusive television window, even if it means shifting the traditional early December date.

Why it matters

The Army-Navy game is one of the most storied rivalries in college football, but its standalone positioning in mid-December has become increasingly challenging as the college football season has evolved. Monken's proposal aims to keep the game prominent while adapting to a shifting playoff calendar.

The details

Monken told The Athletic that there is 'not an appetite for the college football season to go all the way to the end of January,' and that there is a 'real hope' the championship game can be played around January 1st. To accommodate this, Monken suggested moving the Army-Navy game to Thanksgiving weekend, but only if it can retain its exclusive four-hour television window, whether that's on Thanksgiving, Black Friday, or the Saturday after Thanksgiving.

  • The Army-Navy game was typically played the first weekend in December prior to 2009.
  • In recent years, the game has occupied its own standalone slot following conference championship weekend.

The players

Jeff Monken

The head coach of the Army football team, who has recommended moving the Army-Navy game to Thanksgiving weekend.

Donald Trump

The former U.S. President who said he would sign an executive order to protect the Army-Navy game's exclusive four-hour television window, though the enforceability of such a move is unclear.

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What they’re saying

“There's not an appetite for the college football season to go all the way to the end of January. There's a real hope that we can get this thing into one semester, and have the championship game around Jan. 1, which I think would be awesome.”

— Jeff Monken, Army Head Coach (The Athletic)

“Give us a four-hour block on Thanksgiving, or on Friday of Thanksgiving, or on Saturday of Thanksgiving, and give us a four-hour block, and just say nobody else plays during this four-hour block. That's still protecting the game. I think Army-Navy is a huge part of the history of college football, and what it is today, even.”

— Jeff Monken, Army Head Coach (The Athletic)

What’s next

Administrators from both the Army and Navy service academies have held early-stage discussions about how an expanded College Football Playoff could impact the game's standalone positioning in mid-December. Conversations are ongoing about potentially moving the game to Thanksgiving weekend.

The takeaway

The historic Army-Navy rivalry game faces challenges in maintaining its traditional scheduling and television exclusivity as the college football landscape evolves. Coach Monken's proposal to move the game to Thanksgiving weekend aims to preserve the game's relevance and prominence, while adapting to changes in the playoff calendar.