Company F-3 West Point cadet Dustyn Ruble '13 competes in at Site 3 Rope Bridge, Camp Natural Bridge, during the 2011 Sandhurst Competition, sponsored by the West Point Department of Military Instruction, a two-day military training course at Camp Buckner at the United States Military Academy in West Point, N.Y. (Danny Wild/USMA)

April has been a busy month as usual with baseball starting and the weather sorta kinda getting slightly warmer in the northeast. I’ll try and recap:

April 2 took me to Yankee Stadium for the second game of the Major League season here in New York, I brought my fisheye lens along and snapped this as I followed my friend Lynne off to explore the park for the final two innings:

The Yankees host the Indians on April 2 at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx, NY. (Danny Wild)

I ran a red filter on that in Photoshop to bring out the sunset a little more and just warm up the colors in general.

Army lax 2010. (Danny Wild)

April 9, I went up to Michie Stadium to see Army lose a close one to Bucknell on a really gorgeous day in West Point – bright sun, temperature around 60, great crowd.

The sun was actually quite difficult to shoot with at times, along with the heat waves coming off the FieldTurf surface, but I found more luck toward the end shooting totally back-lit.

I’ve been determined since last February — since snapping my first ever frame of Army lax, on the left — to get another good entrance shot of the team (I nearly ruined the shot for everyone else a month ago when the team took the field earlier than I expected) but I wasn’t too disappointed with this one:

The Army lacrosse team takes the field at Michie Stadium for a Patriot League matchup with Bucknell on April 9, 2011. (Danny Wild/USMA)

I loved being able to work in the DCA logo on the right below Hoffman Press Box — plus, when I lay down in this spot, I’m not in anyone else’s way since those ads block me from midfield. Good to see the Comm, BG Rapp, back on his feet and on the sidelines for this game after recovering from hip surgery, not that he’s missed any games regardless. You can see more of my photos from this game on the Army Athletics site.

Going back further, I also shot Army’s game against Cornell (with snow lingering) on March 5:

Army's Derek Sipperly fights for possesion against Cornell. (Danny Wild/USMA)

The Army lax team watches action from the East Stands sidelines against Cornell. (Danny Wild/USMA)

More photos from this game here (I’ll post Bucknell later).

Of football relevance, and this isn’t especially exciting, but I can report that USMA is renovating the East Stands at Michie for the upcoming football season — the bleachers have been removed and they are powerwashing and repairing the aging concrete stands. Should look nice and shiny for September — the Corps may even get some seatbacks in their area, if I recall. Michie is an old place and has a great charm to it, I think. Before the last lacrosse game, an osprey flew over the field holding a trout he’d just yanked out of Lusk Resevoir. When I told my friend Mark later that day, he said, “an M22 Osprey?!” heh not quite.

April 9-10 was the Army-Navy baseball series, a pair of doubleheaders on a pair of cold, windy days. One of my favorite photos from the weekend was of a Navy home run:

Navy's Greg Dupell rounds third following his two-run go-ahead home run at Johnson Stadium. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Cannot ask for better reactions and expressions than that. A little later, it was Army’s turn to celebrate when JT Watkins ripped a walk-off RBI single to left, a line drive that was bobbled and allowed Joey Henshaw to slide home safely:

Clayton Mosley (R) and Ben Koenigsfeld celebrate Army's walk-off win. (Danny Wild/USMA)

More of that series can be seen here.

Finally, Sandhurst. I’d been looking forward to checking out SANCOM since I missed the opportunity last spring. Sandhurst is an international military skills competition hosted by West Point since 1967 that brings together 9-member squads from various academies in North America and around the world for a two-day event at Camp Buckner, West Point’s summer basic training venue. The main part of the event is held Saturday and starts at 0600, which is about four hours after I first get home from work in Manhattan. So, I wasn’t going to be there for the start, you can imagine.

I got up to Buckner around 1130 and hiked my way around the seven-mile course with my 20-pound 400mm lens and a pack of camera gear. It was fairly chilly, windy and it rained toward the end. Man did I have a blast — what a great day. I got soaked and dirty and probably walked off a few pounds, met some cool people and got exactly the kind of intense action and tight portraits I was looking for.

A Company A-2 member climbs over an obstacle at Site 2. (Danny Wild/USMA)

What a different perspective. I’ve been to enough hockey games and football Saturdays to get the vibe of what it’s like to be apart of that scene, but this was pretty cool to witness. West Point sends 32 teams to this annual event, one from each regimental company, and many cadets from those companies come along to run with their team and just cheer and support their friends on what has to be an ridiculously grueling weekend for all involved.

West Point, academically, is tailored to be stressful and challenge the cadets in every aspect of their four years on post, and this was just a bottled up day of that mentality — these guys were doing stuff (pushing 300-pound tractor tires across open fields) that would make you think back to math class, why the heck are we doing this stuff? And at SANCOM, these cadets train for months to be ready to dominate those crazy obstacles and tasks.

When you’re watching a guy carry a wooden crate of howizter ammunition across a field, it makes you think twice about complaining about the weight of your camera lens.

Also, where else can you lay down in front of a soldier pointing an M16 at you and really not feel worried at all?

A cadet from H-1 Company sets up a security perimeter around Site 6 - First Aid. (Danny Wild/USMA)

One site I liked a lot was the boat/water course, and when it started raining hard late in the day, I was loving it.

Each team approached the lake’s beach, read a map and then had to decide whether to take a larger black boat or two smaller red boats. The entire team then had to paddle out to the middle of the lake and go around a specific buoy before returning. Like each site, the event was timed and penalties were issued for any violations to the rules.

One team was just pulling into the beach, about to jump out and finish up, when one of the supervisors yelled over from the beach that the team had navigated around the wrong buoy. They could either take a 30-minute penalty, or, go back and do it right. Guess which option they chose?

A USMA team paddles back to shore. (Danny Wild/USMA)

From a photographic perspective, this was served up on a platter. Nine guys grimacing through the pouring rain, paddling in unison in a race against the clock, making a line right at me and my camera? Point and shoot, basically. I would have liked a cleaner, darker background here, especially with the rain, so I moved around a bit. The Naval Academy team had one of the best times in this event. The Afghanistan team? Have to wonder if they’ve ever been in a lake before.

The USNA squad races back to the beach. (Danny Wild/USMA)

(Danny Wild/USMA)

The hike back to my truck at Area K parking lot when this was all finished was… long. I felt pretty good, actually, but it was a long afternoon. USMA’s Company B-3 team won the event, too.

You can see a slideshow of images from the day here. Also, down in Annapolis on this same afternoon, Army beat the snot out of Navy in lacrosse.

Thoughts? Also, for more experienced WordPress users out there, I’m thinking about turning my [other] website into a WordPress-themed site. Is it difficult to transfer over blog content to that site? If anyone has some advice or insight, let me know. I’m also thinking about a new desktop PC — advice/recommendations on specs/brands?

-D

Cardinals legend Mark McGwire shares a laugh with prospect Matt Carpenter before their game against the Nationals. (Danny Wild/MLB.com)

Vin Scully is telling family stories about Pablo Sandoval as I write this, which is extremely distracting since I have been waiting months to hear his voice and anecdotes from L.A. But, I also waited months to make that familiar walk through the green left field wall in Roger Dean Stadium, through the bullpen and into the dugout for what, to me, is the best way to start the baseball season: spring training.

My trip didn’t end well — my family and I all got food poisoning and spent some time in the hospital — but the baseball portion of it went smooth.

Cardinals Hall of Famer Bob Gibson signs for fans. (Danny Wild/MLB.com)

Cardinals third baseman David Freese laughs with outfielder Lance Berkman. (Danny Wild/MLB.com)

Cardinals ace Chris Carptenter took on Washington after missing a few weeks with hamstring issues. (Danny Wild/MLB.com)

Cardinals first baseman Albert Pujols watches his fly ball off Livan Hernandez. (Danny Wild/MLB.com)

Nationals opening day starter Livan Hernandez chats with teammates in the dugout. (Danny Wild/MLB.com)

Pudge, Ivan Rodriguez, takes a swing against Carpenter. (Danny Wild/MLB.com)

Some of the shorter batters, I was able to just squeeze ‘em into the frame horizontally. Here’s Brian Bixler:

Brian Bixler of the Nationals takes a swing. (Danny Wild/MLB.com)

One of the most unexpected things happened around the fifth or sixth inning of this game, when, after several players had been hit, the Nationals’ Ian Desmond charged the mound after taking a pitch off the back from Miguel Batista. The benches immediately cleared and Cards skipper Tony La Russa was in the middle of the action, as was Nats 1B coach Dan Radison. Here, La Russa gets into it with Desmond up the first base line:

Tony La Russa, Cardinals manager, argues with Ian Desmond. (Danny Wild/MLB.com)

Batista was ejected, although tempers flared again in the ninth.

First base umpire Angel Hernandez explains to Miguel Batista that he's been thrown out of the game. (Danny Wild/MLB.com)

Mets knuckleballer RA Dickey has a good one lined up in a start against the Marlins. (Danny Wild/MLB.com)

Mets prospect Matt Bouchard celebrates in the dugout following a home run. (Danny Wild/MLB.com)

Mets first baseman Ike Davis talks things over in the dugout. (Danny Wild/MLB.com)

Marlins All-Star shortstop Hanley Ramirez. (Danny Wild/MLB.com)

The Marlins' Anibal Sanchez delivers a pitch in Jupiter, Fla. (Danny Wild/MLB.com)

Mets starter Chris Young is a tall guy, sometimes tough to fit in the frame. (Danny Wild/MLB.com)

One of the real good guys in the Majors, Logan Morrison:

Marlins first baseman Logan Morrison watches his fly to center. (Danny Wild/MLB.com)

Marlins skipper Edwin Rodriguez watches the action from the back of the dugout. (Danny Wild/MLB.com)

Have to include this — a little grey bird landed at the top step of the dugout during the game and was totally unfazed by the action, fans or players. He wasn’t the only little critter to stop by during a game — a big toad showed up in the dugout during one Marlins game (Jeff Conine picked him up and paraded him around) and a little lizard jumped on my back after one of the Florida pitchers tried to scoop him up with his cap! He knocked it off me, though.

Some of the Jupiter, Fla., wildlife. (Danny Wild/MLB.com)

Ozzie Martinez showing that classic smile in the dugout following a homer. (Danny Wild/MLB.com)

Cardinals prospect Tyler Henley breaks his bat on this swing. (Danny Wild/MLB.com)

I still need to go through more photos — the food poisoning kept me in bed for a few days — so I’ll try and post a few more later.

One of the nice things about getting back to the Dean is seeing some familiar faces, including the third base dugout usher, Al, who always has some stories to tell. I dunno if it’s Florida, the ballpark, the spring atmosphere or all three, but everyone down there is super friendly and welcoming. Getting to chat with Lou Brock at Cardinals games, it doesn’t get much better. And I was lucky enough to watch a game with my friend Lynne — a former girlfriend, if you can believe it — on Thursday, when we rooted against the Red Sox.

I also got a free upgrade from Hertz on my rental, a red 2011 Ford Mustang convertible with black leather, Sirius radio and 300 horsepower. My sunburn is still peeling from a week in this guy with the top down on 95:

My Hertz 2011 Ford Mustang. (Danny Wild)

Allen Craig should see increased time in St. Louis this year. (Danny Wild/MLB.com)

I’m leaving in an hour for Newark Airport for my annual trip to Florida and Spring Training. It’s always a little tricky packing my camera equipment for plane trips — I take my big 400mm lens as a carry-on — but it’s worth it.

Spring Training, and this trip/week, is one of my favorite times of the year. The weather in Florida is incredible in March (80* and sunny every day this week) and the atmosphere at the ballparks is always very relaxed and laid back. The conditions for shooting are ideal — bright sun, puffy clouds, 1:05pm games. Roger Dean Stadium, in Jupiter, Fla., is my destination for most of the week. Love that park — it’s clean, fairly new, the dugouts are perfect to shoot from and it’s real easy to get to. Plus, it’s the shared home of the St. Louis Cardinals and Florida Marlins, so there’s plenty of games to see.

Mets closed Francisco Rodriguez throws in an exhibition game last year. (Danny Wild/MLB.com)

I’m also looking forward to actually using this 400mm lens — I traded in my old one last August but never had a chance to shoot baseball with the new one (my first time using the lens was an Army football game against Temple I think). It’s definitely sharper and focuses much better than my old one, so I’m kinda excited.

I’m scheduled to shoot the Cardinals, Marlins, Mets, Twins, Nationals and Red Sox this week. Expect some updates throughout.

I think I line up to shoot Chris Carpenter’s start on Monday, which will be his second since a minor injury sidelined him for the beginning of spring camp. Last year I had a chance to shoot Adam Wainwright, one of the best pitchers in the National League, although he’s out for the season.

St. Louis ace Adam Wainwright throws in 2010 against the Mets. (Danny Wild/MLB.com)

You can also watch out for some of my photos on MLB.com’s daily spring galleries and any of the above noted team websites.

Amred Forces Bowl triubute - design by Steve Ng, photos by Danny Wild

Been working on some photo illustrations lately, what do you think?

Trent Steelman design - photos and illustration by Danny Wild

Some lacrosse love:

Army lacrosse illustration and photos by Danny Wild

I’ve been slacking on the blog, although I have plenty of images to share — Army’s spring football practice, some lacrosse at UMass and West Point, some Spring Training baseball in Florida coming up next week. Some additional illustrations on Flickr — I have a few more in the works as well.

Army's Andrew Rodriguez last took the field at the 2010 Army spring game. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Some of my Army hockey photos will be featured in the upcoming issue of West Point Magazine, published by the West Point AOG, I’ll try and get some screenshots of that up when it’s available. (Interestingly, I found out recently that the AOG office was created at West Point following the Civil War in an effort to bring alums back together, many of which who fought against each other during the war. Pretty nuts.)

Football-related, I heard Army linebacker Andrew Rodriguez may return for 2011 and may also have a shot at being the first captain of the Corps — pretty exciting on both fronts.

Next week, I’ll be in Palm Beach County, shooting some Cardinals and Marlins spring action.

Army senior Drew Pierson (right) and teammates celebrate after beating AIC on Saturday in Hartford during Whalers Hockey Fest 2011. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Wasn’t sure what to expect this weekend in Connecticut for my first taste of outdoor hockey when Army took on AIC during the week-long Hartford Whalers Hockey Fest at UConn’s 40,000-seat football stadium, Rentschler Field.

To set the scene, it was brutally cold and windy, and almost no fans showed up for this particular game, which was both disappointing and extremely understandable (my hands were cold even with gloves on). Army won 4-1 thanks to an outburst of goals in the second period.

Army captain Cody Omilusik (left) chats with Mike Santee after the win. (Danny Wild/USMA)

I drove out to East Hartford with my buddy Tommy (you can see his photos from the game here) and also bumped into another friend, Mark, who captured these images.

My stuff will most likely be featured in a story that’s running in the U.S. Military Academy’s new alumni magazine, West Point, a publication of the West Point AOG office (the was also a photo gallery on GoArmySports.com). I think the story will focus on the seniors, so I tried to get some of each, including goalie Jay Clark, who joined his teammates in wearing eye black:

Army goalkeeper Jay Clark. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Zambonis resurface the ice during the second intermission. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Clark waits to have his skate guards put on before leaving the ice. (Danny Wild/USMA)

The sunlight offered some great light to work with on the far edge of the rink, although when the shadow from the press box crept up as the game went on, it made it a little difficult.

A collision along the boards. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Army celebrates a goal in the second period. (Danny Wild/USMA)

A general view of the field and rink at Rentschler during the first intermission. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Omilusik during the first period. (Danny Wild/USMA)

The rink’s glass was pretty dirty, and the holes to shoot through were both small and square, which couldn’t have been less ideal for photography (who the hell designs these things?) I brought my 400mm lens, since it comes everywhere with me, but it was pretty difficult to use in a tight space. The holes were just small enough and positioned poorly enough that if you wanted to tilt your lens up ice to get the play developing, you got the edge of the glass (plastic, really) in your frame.

Cody shows off the eye black. (Danny Wild/USMA)

I tried to work my fisheye lens in as much as possible, which is par for me — a view from behind the AIC net showed the scene:

Action during the first period. (Danny Wild/USMA)

This isn’t an especially good shot, but it does show the stick flex in action:

Can it really bend like that? (Danny Wild/USMA)

Here’s one with the 400mm f/2.8 L lens:

Marcel Alvarez in the first period. (Danny Wild/USMA)

An uncropped photo at 400mm of Mike Santee, who’s dad, David, was a two-time Olympian:

Mike Santee of Army. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Santee plays the puck in the first. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Clark leads the team onto the ice at Rentschler. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Army celebrates with a team photo after the win. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Here’s a slideshow of about 180 images from this game.

I had no clue who this man was before starting my research, and in the end, it’s a pretty unique story — check it out.

Anyway, I was pretty flattered today to find a nice note from a fellow sports writer, the highly-respected baseball scribe and longtime [former] ESPN columnist, Rob Neyer:

Over at MiLB.com, Danny Wild’s got a really fantastic piece about Emmett Ashford, the first black umpire in the major leagues. I’m not going to throw an excerpt in here because the whole story really deserves to be read. It does occur to me that with the first 20th Century black player (Jackie Robinson), the first black American Leaguer (Larry Doby), and the first active female owner (Effa Manley) of an important team all in the Hall of Fame, there might eventually be a place for Ashford, too. He might not have been a great umpire — opinions are divided — and you might think umpires shouldn’t be showmen. But he certainly was entertaining, and he certainly was a pioneer.

No greater honor than one from someone like Rob. The feature has created some buzz on Twitter, and I know Mr. Ashford’s daughter has been proudly circulating it among friends. Perhaps it’ll bring his story back to light for the Hall of Fame to reconsider.

-D

Army's Nathan Hedgecock, of El Paso, Texas, takes on Navy. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Last weekend was the much-anticipated Army-Navy (or should we start referring to it as Navy-Army) basketball doubleheader at West Point — two more wins for the Mids in front of an enormous crowd at Christl Arena and a national TV audience on CBS College Sports. I stopped by for the games plus a bit of the Army-RMU hockey game at Tate Rink.

West Point cadet Mike Hull scored one of Army’s two goals in a tie against Robert Morris last Saturday. (Danny Wild/USMA)

A cadet makes a sign on the court before Army's game against Navy. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Army hosts Navy at Christl Arena in the Holleder Center at West Point. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Army football fullback Jonathan Crucitti (left, in combat helmet) cheers on the corps squad against Navy. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Here’s a photo gallery of my images from the men’s Army-Navy game. I shot the women’s game as well, check out that photo gallery here.

There’s still some football news in the aftermath of the Armed Forces Bowl victory (Trent Steelman recently had shoulder surgery), most notably senior captain Josh McNary’s award-winning effort at the East-West Shrine Game that now has him potentially positioned for the NFL Draft. According to my man Sal at the Record, NFL scouts have projected McNary as an outside linebacker in the league, a position he played in the East-West game under head coach Dan Reeves on NFL Network.

Army senior captain Josh McNary. (Danny Wild/USMA)

McNary won the Pat Tillman Award, which is presented to a player who best exemplifies character, intelligence, sportsmanship and service. The award is about a student-athlete’s achievements and conduct, both on and off the field.

McNary, who finished as Army’s all-time leader in sacks and tackles for loss, will graduate this spring and spend at least two years in the Army before he can request an early release to potentially join an NFL team. Would be pretty cool to see Houston give him a shot.

McNary’s storyline was told over and over during bowl week in Texas — ignored by many schools in high school, he was a walk-on at USMAPs and went on to probably see his number retired at Michie some day. He was also named an ECAC Football Bowl Subdivision All-Star last week … a distinguished career for a good guy who had an enormously clutch touchdown in Army’s bowl win.

Before I forget, if you have not seen the football team’s new website, it’s worth checking out: http://thearmyteam.com

It features a ton of my photos, including Malcolm Brown front and center. See if you can find little Navy boat on the Hudson that is just asking to be sunk.

Sal has also been going hard on the recruiting beat — I don’t know who any of these kids are, but it sounds good, and I’d like to think the team’s winning season and bowl win has given the program a boost over the last month. Derek Sanchez sounds like someone from the McNary mold, a quick defensive end that has also seen time at linebacker — Sal reported on Wednesday that he committed to USMA.

Another DE, Dalton Mendenhall, spurred Boise State and Utah for West Point.

Meanwhile, to put that into perspective a bit, West Point Superintendent Lt. General David Huntoon stopped by Kabul, Afghanistan a week after celebrating the bowl win in Texas. He signed an agreement with the Afghan army to continue a relationship between West Point and the Afghan military academy.

Army and Navy battle in a women's basketball game on Saturday. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Hope you enjoyed following my photos of Army’s football season this fall, it was a a great experience from Day 1 back in summer camp and August scrimmages to the on-field celebration in Dallas in December. To be apart of the entire journey is something really remarkable. If you haven’t yet been to a game at West Point, you are really missing out.

My camera and super telephoto lens need some repairs, though, after all the miles I put on ‘em this past summer and autumn. I actually shot those basketball games last weekend with a busted camera that was impossible to look through. Once (if) the snow clears, I’ll be heading to CPS in New Jersey.

Army celebrates it's win at the Armed Forces Bowl. (Danny Wild/USMA)

What a week. It’s 2011 and I’m still smiling from Thursday’s win. What an honor and thrill it was to be apart of Army’s bowl week and victory in Texas. The team’s theme this year was “Bring it Back” — bring back winning to the Army program, bring back the pride and respect. On Thursday afternoon, 24 seniors walked off the field with big, big smiles.

Here are some of my photos from the epic win in Dallas, many of which were featured immediately after the win on USMA.edu and GoArmySports.com. Congrats to Davvd Brooks on an enormously clutch catch to seal the win.

Believe it: Army wins it! (Danny Wild/USMA)

THE Man: Senior captain and MVP, 5-0, Stephen 'Hollywood' Anderson. (Danny Wild/USMA)

The pride of Delafield, Wisconsin, Jared Hassin gets a bowl ring. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Recap and photos from Army

Army gets to work at Kennedale High School in Kennedale, Texas, just outside of Arlington, for its first practice. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Army's sophomore quarterback, Trent Steelman, takes aim with a shotgun at an arcade hunting game during a team welcome event at Billy Bob's Texas in Fort Worth. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Army offensive lineman Seth Reed smiles beside head coach Rich Ellerson following a practice in Kennedale. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Army place holder Kolin Walk and punter Jonathan Bulls walk off the practice field. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Army QB Trent Steelman gets his feet taped before practice on Tuesday. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Co-defensive coordinator Payam Saadat and the West Point defensive corps goes over their game plan during a walk-through on Wednesday at Ford Stadium. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Army senior captain Stephen Anderson jumps on a stationary bike before kickoff. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Senior captain Josh McNary reacts after making a stop in the first quarter. (Danny Wild/USMA)

U.S. Army 2nd Lieutenant Mike Gann, an Army senior defensive tackle, catches his breath on the bench. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Senior linebacker Kingsley Ehie pounces on a punt on the one-yard line, pinning SMU deep. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Freshman slotback Malcolm Brown scored Army's second touchdown. (Danny Wild/USMA)

SMU back Zach Line takes a handoff from quarterback Kyle Padron. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Lt. General David Huntoon Jr., appointed by president Obama last summer as the 58th Superintendent of the United States Military Academy, watches the action from the Army sideline. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Junior Steve Erzinger leaps onto fellow linebacker Stephen Anderson after a big third down stop. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Junior kicker Alex Carlton watches his successful field goal in the second quarter. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Sophomore fullback Jared Hassin, an Air Force Academy transfer, became the 14th player in Army history to run for 1,000 yards after piling up 82 in the win. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Senior captain Stephen Anderson celebrates after a sack. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Senior captain Josh McNary, of Houston, Texas. (Danny Wild/USMA)

JJ: Defensive back Josh Jackson is congratulated after running out of bounds following a third-quarter intercepion. (Danny Wild/USMA)

QB Trent Steelman picked up key first downs on the ground. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Junior kicker Alex Carlton bites his nails as he watches the scoreboard during the final minutes. Army held SMU on third-and-long before Mustangs kicker Matt Szymanski missed left on a potential go-ahead 46-yard field goal with 4:06 remaining. Army picked up two key first downs to run out the clock. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Army sings its alma mater to the Corps of Cadets following a 16-14 win. (Danny Wild/USMA)

U.S. Army 2nd Lt. Mike Gann, who graduated on Dec. 17, reacts after the win. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Quarterback Trent Steelman screams when he finds his family reaching out from the crowd. (Danny Wild/USMA)

U.S. Army 2nd Lieutenant Jason Johnson embraces his mother and grandmother following the win. Johnson graduated on Dec. 17 and will going on to Ranger school at Fort Benning, Ga. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Fullback Jared Hassin and QB Trent Steelman soak in the win infront of their families. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Senior captain Stephen Anderson was named MVP in his final game. (Danny Wild/USMA)

More photos here

Army's trio of quarterbacks, senior Chip Bowden (10), sophomore Trent Steelman (8) and junior Max Jenkins walk off the field at Kennedale High School following Monday's practice. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Army ran a lot of passing drills today at Kennedale High School on Monday, putting in about two hours on a chilly, windy morning in Texas. The team hit the gym for a bit afterwards, with coach Rich Ellerson stressing the importance of being healthy heading into Thursday’s big game.

QB Trent Steelman gets his cleats taped before practice. (Danny Wild/USMA)

One of the highlights of the day was the post-dinner comedy improv show the team attended in Fort Worth — Richard King took a lot of heat for walking into the act late, and perhaps the biggest roar from the team came when one of the entertainers pulled a notecard with “50″ written on it, commenting, “he must be a benchwarmer.”

Fullback Jared Hassin chats with Austin Barr during Monday's practice. (Danny Wild/USMA)

The practices have been spirited and upbeat — there’s definitely no sense of pressure looming over this team. They are loose and confident and prepared to take on SMU this week, with even the coaches in good moods. The two-hour practice today was followed by about an hour of the team watching video of the workout back in the hotel before Jared Hassin, Donnie Dixon and Steve Erzinger spoke briefly with a reporter.

Rich Ellerson talks with Jarrett Mackey during practice Monday. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Trent Steelman (right) and Josh Jones talk with ITT Knight Vision's Rick Johnston at Billy Bob's Texas on Sunday. (Danny Wild/USMA)

Lots more photos here on Army’s website. The team will practice early again on Tuesday, with several players attending charitable events honoring returning veterans and visiting a children’s hospital.