Jeff Monken does not feel comfortable comparing himself to the immortal Army football head coach Earl ‘Red’ Blaik, whose career wins record at West Point has stood firm for 68 years. With a new five-year contract (through the 2030 season) agreed to this past week, the reality is Monken, 59, is now within reach of the heralded mark. Blaik posted 121 wins (and 33 losses, with 10 ties) over 18 war-torn seasons (1941-58). As he heads into his 13th season with the Black Knights, Monken has posted 89 wins and needs just 33 victories to surpass the Hall of Famer Blaik. An average of just over six wins per season would make that possible, hardly a stretch for Monken teams that have achieved at least a half-dozen wins in all but three seasons.
“I’m thrilled to be here," Monken said following Saturday’s first of three preseason scrimmages at Michie Stadium. “I'm honored and proud to serve these men, this institution, and represent the men and women that serve in the Army. And I'm thankful to our superintendent, Lt. General (Steve) Gilland; Tom Theodorakis, our athletics director, and frankly, my representatives who really worked it out." Monken has been coaching collegiately (save for a high school season in 1995) since 1989, serving as an assistant at Hawaii, Arizona State, Buffalo, Concordia, Ill., Georgia Southern, Navy and Georgia Tech. His first head coaching job was at Georgia Southern (2010-13) before arriving at West Point in 2014. He transformed an Army program that reached just seven wins twice and had 19 losing seasons since 1989 into a postseason contender. The Black Knights have won six of seven bowl appearances (including the last three) since 2016, Monken’s third year on the job. A high-water mark certainly came in 2024 when quarterback Bryson Daily guided Army to a school-record 12 wins, a top-25 AP ranking and American Conference championship in the first season of membership. Monken has interviewed at other schools in the past, but has remained at West Point. “We came to … this moment and an opportunity to really give a pledge of commitment for five more years, and I'm really excited about it," Monken said. “I love coaching these guys. We love living here. It's been my home for 12 1/2 years. So this is home. It's home for my kids. My kids have grown up here … (they) went to the elementary, middle schools here, and when my girls say, ‘I'm going to come home,’ this is where they come home to. West Point will always be their home. So we're really thrilled." Army opens the season on September 5 when Bryant visits Michie Stadium for a noon ET start (CBS Sports Network). kmcmillan@th-record.com X / Twitter: @KenMcMillanTHR This article originally appeared on Times Herald-Record: Army football coach Jeff Monken agrees to new five-year contract