In 1890, the football teams of the U.S. Service Academies; Army and Navy, meet on the gridiron of the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, NY for the first in what would become one of the most storied rivalries in all of college football. Navy took that first match-up, beating the Cadets 24-0.

Since the embarrassing, first loss shut-out for Army, the two academies have gone on to play 107 games with Navy holding a slight edge in the annual meeting 51-49 with seven ties in the series. Over the course of those 117 years, there has been 10 years where the two teams didn’t play. But really, that’s all just so much statistics in a match-up that is arguably the essence of college football.

What with the academic, and height and weight standards of the two academies, not to mention the military commitment for those who walk the hollowed halls, neither Army or Navy have figured much in the BCS Championship in recent years– talk about a rough recruiting pitch; “Come play football for us and then lead men into war!” In 2004, the game was dedicated to Midshipman J.P. Blecksmith, a 2003 graduate killed in Iraq.

The last NFL draft pick from either school was Napoleon McCallum going to the Los Angeles Raiders in 1986 and before that you’d have to go back to the days of Roger Staubach to find a player who had any impact at the professional level. No, the players on either side of the line this Saturday play for the love of the game, for the love of their schools and for many of them, it is the last time they’ll throw on pads and play. It doesn’t get any purer than this – no one is showboating to raise their status in the draft pick, no one player is trying to make a name for themselves, nope, each player is out there with the singular purpose – win this one for their school, for their entire branch of service. And make no mistake, the services take this game VERY seriously.

As far as rivalries go, does it get any better than Army-Navy? Will anyone ever forget Marine Corps Lt. Col. Oliver North walking into Iran-Contra hearings and when a reporter asked him if he had anything else to say, North, with a cunning grin said, “Go Navy, Beat Army!” One of the oldest rivalries in the game, the winner of the contest gets service bragging rights, and typically the Commanders in Chiefs Trophy awarded to the overall winner of the three service academies.

So this Saturday when CBS starts their broadcast from M&T Bank Stadium from Baltimore, make sure to tune in. You’re not going to see college football at it’s best, but you will undoubtedly see a fantastic game.