20 days until kickoff: AA's picture-a-day countdown

(Army via Library of Congress)

Granted, it’s not the best action shot, but we’ve given you plenty of those (and more to come). Still, it’s a piece of history — a sideline view of the 1911 Army-Navy game at Philadelphia’s Franklin Field.

Army and Navy both entered the season finale undefeated. The Mids had five wins against three ties and had allowed 11 points all year, with 0-0 draws against Princeton, Western Reserve and Penn State. The Cadets entered the game at 6-0-1 and pitched five shutouts.

Navy had won the season-ending clash the year before in a typical-for-the-time defensive struggle, as Jack Dalton kicked a 35-yard field goal for the game’s only score. In 1911, years before television, fans were treated to an instant replay — Dalton, now the Navy captain, kicked a 35-yard field goal for a 3-0 win. After the game, the senior had a simple message for his teammates, according to his College Football Hall of Fame bio: “Boys, this is the proudest moment of my life, because I led a group of fighters to victory.”