By JOHN JAMES MARSHALL

Abernathy, Texas, is the home of Army West Point quarterback Bryson Daily. It is a small town (population 2,800) and it is only 1,800 yards from one end to the next. In other words, if you really pushed it and didn’t stop at the Dairy Queen on 10^th Street, you could walk it in about 12 minutes and 21 seconds.

Which is the same amount of time that the Black Knights took on a drive that was indicative of just how they dominant they were in a 27-6 win over Louisiana Tech in the 48^th annual Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl Saturday night at Independence Stadium.

Lots can happen in 12:21 on a single possession. The Black Knights converted four fourth downs on that drive, plus two long down third down chances. If there was a play to be made on that drive, they made it. And mostly likely, it was made by Daily.

“That’s just the toughness of this team,” Daily said. “We’ve done it all year. We are very aggressive on fourth down. We don’t flinch when those big moments come.”

Army ran 21 plays on the possession, which was one less play than Tech had in the entire first half. And it was Daily who either ran or passed on 16 of those 21 plays.

“It definitely felt like forever when we were out there on that drive,” said Army running back Hayden Reed, who ran for 114 yards on 20 carries.

It certainly felt like forever for Tech, who finished the first half with only 7:33 in time of possession.

This was Army football. The Black Knights knew it. And so did Louisiana Tech.

“I thought on that drive we were really good defensively on third down,” Tech coach Sonny Cumbie said. “Unfortunately for us, Army was really good on fourth down.”

The Black Knights weren’t too bad on the other downs either on a night in which they ran for 321 yards. It’s not such much about the long runs that they had (seven plays of at least 10 yards) but more about the yards they didn’t lose.  Care to guess how many times Army lost yardage? Twice – once in each half – for a whopping total of three yards.

The military part of the Army may have secrets, but the football team doesn’t. Everything runs through the former Abernathy High Antelope star, Bryson Daily.

Daily’s influence in the success of Army is obvious – he’s the nation’s leader in touchdowns with 32, breaking the FBS single-season record Saturday night – and has come to be known as “Captain America” after finishing sixth in Heisman Trophy balloting.

Daily had an uncanny ability to pause to find just the right hole at just the right time at just the right moment.

After he ran for a game-high 127 yards on 27 carries and scored three touchdowns, Daily was named as the game’s Outstanding Offensive Player.

The Army offensive line certainly had its way with a transfer-portal damaged Tech defensive front and the Bulldogs also seemed to be a little surprised by the speed not only from Daily, but all of the Black Knight ball carriers and their option scheme.

“Whoa,” said Tech senior linebacker Zach Zimos, “this is real speed.”

Daily averaged 5.0 yards per carry in the first half and his average was the worst of the four Army rushers.

“They are one of the best offensive lines in the country,” Cumbie said. “They didn’t win the Joe Moore Award (for nation’s top offensive line) by coincidence.”

The long drive that resulted in a 21-3 halftime lead made it seem like the game was over because the Bulldogs hadn’t really come up to bat at that point in the game. They had their chances in the second half – Tech got inside the Army 15 twice and only got a field goal to show for it – but with the Black Knights playing almost mistake-free (only one turnover and one penalty), it was going to be a steep mountain to climb.

Then again, just getting a team together on short notice to play in a bowl game (after Marshall decided not to play in the game and made Tech a last-minute opponent) wasn’t exactly a walk in the park for the Bulldogs, who finished the regular season at 5-7.

“I think we should all be very proud of this football team in terms of answering the bell one more time,” Cumbie said. “Without hesitation, without flinching, these kids wanted to play. I’m really proud of this team. Very disappointed that we didn’t get the win, because that’s what we came here to do. But I think this football team has a bright future and I’m extremely excited as we learn from this and transition into 2025.”

For Army, the bowl win capped a 12-win season, best in the program’s 134-year history. “There are not many teams in college football that have accomplished that and that certainly makes us proud,” Army coach Jeff Monken said. “I’m proud of the accomplishments of this senior class. This finished the season off on a positive note.”

This story originally appeared in the Shreveport-Bossier Journal