How and what to watch for Air Force vs. Army in Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy Final

On Saturday the 8-2 Army Black Knights welcome the 3-2 Air Force Falcons to town to face off for the Commander-In-Chief’s Trophy, but it's the first time this game has ever taken place after the iconic Army vs Navy game.

Army has been a solid, if not remarkable team all season. Their eight-win total is a bit deceiving as the Black Knights have only beat one FBS team with a record above .500, though they held No. 9 Cincinnati close early in the season. The defense is very good, only allowing 14.7 points per game on average, which ranks 4th in the nation. The Air Force defense is good too, allowing just 16 points per game in a limited sample size.

Both teams score a lot too and do it in similar ways, averaging less than 100 yards passing each week while getting an absurd amount of yards on the ground. Air Force averages over 300 yards rushing each week and Army sits at 272. They both stop the run well too, giving up less than 120 yards rushing on average.

Both of these service academies are what you’d expect out of teams going into the military. Extremely tough and disciplined. Neither team has faced a grueling schedule this season, but have both held it close against good competition and blown out the bad teams they’ve seen. This shapes up to be a good game if you like the triple option.

Game Time/TV Channel/Streaming

You can watch Air Force vs. Army on Saturday, December 19th at 3:00 p.m. ET on CBS Sports Network, or you can stream it via the CBS Sports app with a cable or streaming service login.

Point Spread, Totals, Odds, Trends

Point spread: Air Force -2.5
Point Total: 38.5
Money line: Air Force -141, Army +116

• The total has gone under in all but one of Air Force’s last six games
• The Falcons are 10-4 ATS in their last 14 games against Army
• The total has gone under every time these two teams have played in the past six years
• Army has won all of their last eight games played at home.

Betting splits

Air Force: (93% of handle, 73% percent of bets)
Army: (7% of handle, 27% percent of bets)

The Best Bet

The best bet in this one is the under. Both teams have great defenses to begin with, plus they see the option every single day in practice. That point total is low, but if history has taught us anything, it's that these teams don’t score a ton when facing off.

Pick: Under 38.5

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