Breaking down Army's football schedule

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Sept. 1: at Akron*

"That's what we have been working for since walking off the field against Navy. That will be our opening game of the season and we'll be fired up for it." ? C Trey Miranne

Sept. 8: vs. Rhode Island

"First home game, it will be the first time I will be a senior on this home field. ? DB Caleb Campbell

Sept. 15: at Wake Forest

"Just a great program." ? DB John Laird

Sept. 22: at Boston College

"They have a new coach. They have giants on the offensive line. The defensive line is well coached. A great football team." ? coach Stan Brock

Sept. 29: vs. Temple

"One of our old coaches is down there, so we have to come prepared because you know they will have a good game plan." ? WR Jeremy Trimble

Oct. 6: vs. Tulane

"I can't wait for that game. That was the game I got knocked out in last year and they gave us a pretty good whupping. We will be on our home field, and Tulane will be a fun game." ? DB Caleb Campbell

Oct. 13: at Central Michigan

"An outstanding football team. I think they were conference champions last year. They went to a bowl game, and they are a very good football team. That will be a challenge." ? coach Brock

Oct. 20: at Georgia Tech

"Looking forward to Georgia Tech game, huge team, a lot of family is down South. We will have a lot of family down there, a huge crowd and TV. It will be a great atmosphere." ? DB John Laird

Nov. 3: at Air Force

"We travel to Air Force. We took a butt whipping up here. They are a good football team and in the past we've struggled there at Air Force." ? coach Brock

Nov. 9: vs. Rutgers

"Georgia Tech and Rutgers ... those are two games where you can have something to prove. They are powerhouses we can contend with, and two games where you can shock the world." ? LB Charlie Rockwood

Nov. 17: vs. Tulsa

"Last home game, that will be a big one, my last home game in Michie Stadium." ? C Trey Miranne

Dec. 1: vs. Navy#

"That's a big rivalry that has been here for 100 years. We're going to go out there and fight as hard as we can and get the win." ? QB David Pevoto

* ? in Cleveland; # ? in Baltimore

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Army freshman running back Patrick Mealy: Another Westbrook?

West Point ? He'd spend his lunches at DeMatha High in Maryland glued to the TV in the film room.

If Patrick Mealy had a free period, he was watching his childhood idol break off a big run or step up and help pass-protect as an undersized blocker.

Mealy waited until his senior season to be the starting running back at DeMatha. So he wanted to see the school's best on tape. At DeMatha, there are some big cleats to fill. It's where Philadelphia Eagles star Brian Westbrook played his high school ball.

"Everybody said I reminded them of Westbrook," Mealy said. "I used to get that all the time."

Mealy's build ? 5-foot-10 and 203 pounds ? is the exact current height and weight of Westbrook.

Mealy's running is like Westbrook's too, with the moves to elude linemen and another gear once he's in linebacker territory. He's tough and not afraid to stick his helmet into the chest of a rushing defender. Anything for the team.

"He's very similar to Brian," long-time DeMatha coach Bill McGregor said. "Very unselfish. A total team player. He's the same type of tough, hard-nosed, undersized player. You have people saying he can't take the pounding. But you can't measure what he has inside of him."

Army thinks Mealy can bring a few of Westbrook's qualities to Michie Stadium this fall. Coaches are hoping Mealy gives a jolt to a running game that ranked 70th out of 119 Division I teams in 2006 and averaged just 127.5 yards per game. Some thought Mealy was the best running back in the program when he was playing for the Army prep school last fall.

Mealy has taken reps with the first and second teams as well as the scout team in early preseason practice.

"He gets into a crowd and has a little wiggle to him," Army coach Stan Brock said. "He's got great vision and tremendous balance. He has the ability to make people miss. I'm comfortable with him carrying the football."

How comfortable? Comfortable enough for Mealy to start? Junior Wesley McMahand, Army's leading rusher (654 yards) last year, is listed second on the depth chart behind junior Tony Dace, who had 30 rushing yards in 2006. Tony Moore, who led Army with six touchdowns in 2006, has been battling injuries since the spring and has been limited to non-contact drills in the preseason.

Freshmen don't simply walk into West Point and earn a starting position, even if Army has won just 10 of 59 games the last five years. Only 19 freshmen since 1993 have started a game in their rookie season, and just two plebes have started a season opener. Ron Leshinski (1993), a tight end, is the only player to start every game of his freshman season since 1993. Wide receiver Jacob Murphy's only start of 2002 came in the season opener against Holy Cross.

No freshmen are listed on the preseason three-deep depth chart.

"It's hard because they are away from home for the first time," Brock said. "They are coming into a military academy. You pop in there, they are playing Division I football for the first time. They are not used to having adversity and they have a lot of rules they have to figure out."

Mealy has an advantage over freshmen who are only a couple months removed from their high school graduation ? the same offense is used at both Army and the prep school. He rushed for more than 800 yards and eight touchdowns.

"I'll do whatever it takes to get better," Mealy said. "Everybody gets a chance. I want to come in and get a sense of my game. If I have to play on the scout team and it helps the team, I'm fine with it."

Mealy played the waiting game at DeMatha, which has nine alums in NFL camps this summer. He rode the bench as the fourth-string tailback as a junior, playing behind Jeff Allen and Anthony Wiseman, who are both defensive backs at Division I Maryland, and Jordan Scott, who was the Patriot League rookie of the year at Colgate in 2005.

When he got his chance as a senior, Mealy broke out for 1,562 yards and 24 touchdowns in 2005.

"There's a run on tape where he breaks two or three tackles and outruns the corner for a 45-yard touchdown," McGregor said. "He can do anything he wants."

Kansas State offered a scholarship. He turned it down and took the SAT three times to get into Army prep.

"West Point is the total package," Mealy said. "In football, they have so much tradition and when you are done with football, you have a guaranteed job in the service."

Mealy made his own tradition at DeMatha. Juniors and seniors there are now watching his performances on tape and to see how he picked up a blitzing linebacker and how hard he ran.

Just like Westbrook.