President Trump celebrates Navy football, touts accomplishments of second term
· Yahoo Sports
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump paid tribute to the Navy football team while using the platform of a special White House visit to tout some of the policies and accomplishments of his second term in office.
Trump presided over the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy presentation in the East Room of the White House on Friday morning. Navy captured the coveted 175-pound piece of hardware for the second straight year after beating service academy rivals Air Force and Army.
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Navy compiled an 11-2 record after beating Cincinnati of the Big 12 Conference in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl.
“These players achieved one of the most impressive seasons in Navy football history and I just want to congratulate the Midshipmen. I met them backstage, and they’re great,” Trump said during his opening remarks. “You didn’t just win the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy, you made history as one of the greatest teams to ever wear the proud uniform of Navy football.”
Trump then recognized several dignitaries in the audience and used those introductions to highlight highlights of his administration’s agenda. He noted that Secretary of War Pete Hegseth was not in attendance because he was in the White House situation room monitoring the current conflict with Iran.
Trump then went on to highlight the military success the United States has enjoyed since launching, along with Israel, a joint attack on Iran.
“The difference between them and us is they had a Navy two weeks ago; they don’t have a Navy anymore. It’s all at the bottom of the sea,” Trump said. “Fifty-eight ships knocked down in two days. And we have the greatest Navy in the world, it’s not even close.”
Trump recognized Air Force General Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He noted how the general goes by the nickname of “Raisin Caine” and praised him for eliminating ISIS in four weeks.
In introducing White House doctor Ronny Jackson, Trump noted that Jackson has held the role through four presidents. He previously served under George Bush, Barack Obama and Joe Biden.
“They asked Ronny who was the healthiest of them all, and he said President Donald J. Trump by far. If he didn’t eat junk food, he’d live until he was 200 years old,” Trump said with a smile.
Trump recognized Federal Communications Commission chairman Brendan Carr and stated that he was “trying to make the fake news real and respected again.”
Turning back to Navy football, Trump mentioned how he advocated and supported a Congressional resolution that allows service academy athletes to pursue professional sports immediately after graduation. That new policy was tucked deep within Section 557 of the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2025.
Trump noted that Navy has won 21 games, the most successful two-year stretch in program history, since the rule was changed. Rayuan Lane III, a 2025 Naval Academy graduate, was drafted by the Jacksonville Jaguars and was a standout on special teams last season.
Navy has at least two more NFL prospects this year with slotback Eli Heidenreich and nose tackle Landon Robinson likely to get drafted.
“I was able to get a military academy deferment policy, and we’re pushing very hard to make it permanent,” Trump said. “So do I get credit for the success of the team?”
As was the case during last year’s CIC presentation ceremony, Trump took time to single out certain Navy football players for recognition. He introduced starting quarterback and offensive captain Blake Horvath, saying he was “fantastic” and could both run and throw.
“What do you think — NFL material?” Trump asked the Navy players.
Trump highlighted Heidenreich for setting several Navy single-season and career receiving records and asked him to step forward for a handshake.
“I can see by the size of those hands that you have no trouble catching that ball,” Trump told Heidenreich.
Trump introduced Robinson and noted he had stood alongside the Navy defensive captain during the Army-Navy pregame coin flip and described him as “humongous.” Robinson stepped forward to shake hands with the president, who turned toward the crowd and said, “I just hit the muscle in his arms, and it feels like steel!”
Referring back to his notes on Robinson, he noted that the 295-pound first-team All-American could bench press 465 pounds and squat 600 pounds. That gave the president an opportunity to talk about his administration’s efforts to keep men out of women’s sports.
“Maybe I’ll put Landon into women’s sports,” Trump joked.
Trump also highlighted senior slotback Brandon Chatman, saying there was “no player who better represents the heart and soul of your team.”
Senior fullback Alex Tecza was also highlighted by the president for making a long run that set up the game-winning touchdown in the Army-Navy Game. Horvath was impressed that the president took time to single out individual members of the Navy football team for special praise.
“I think it’s really cool how the president does that with the teams he brings to the White House. He just kind of personalizes it instead of making it a copy-and-paste speech every year,” Horvath said. “It means a lot that the president cares about the event enough to put those personal references in his speech each year. It’s always an honor to be recognized by the President of the United States, no matter who you are.”
Toward the end of the ceremony, President Trump announced that the Navy players would be invited back to the Oval Office and presented with a personal gift. “We’re giving them a special medal. A very beautiful, expensive medal, and if I see it on eBay tonight, I’m going to be very upset,” he said.
It turns out the president presented each of the players with a large challenge coin, and Horvath said he will forever cherish his.
“Those challenge coins are a really cool memento to have of the day spent at the White House. Whenever we pull that out, we can reflect on how cool that experience was,” Horvath said. “It was very cool to interact with the president in an informal setting.”
Newberry was inside the Oval Office the entire time as the Navy football players filed in 10 at a time. He talked to Trump about renovations to the Oval Office, which looks different from the way it did a year ago when the Navy visited.
“It’s always a tremendous honor. I didn’t know what really to expect the first time, so there were a lot of nerves. It wasn’t quite as bad this time. The president was awesome and treated us very well,” Newberry said afterward. “The president was generous with his time and very engaging and warm. It was a great experience. The time we get to spend back in the Oval Office is really special. It was a great day for Navy football.”
It marked the first visit to the White House for Kelly, who grew up in the Washington-metro area and attended St. John’s College High in northwest D.C.
“That was an incredible honor. Obviously, something I’ve never experienced before and one that I am very grateful for,” Kelly said. “For the President of the United States to open up his home to honor our team and players is really, really special. It was everything I could have hoped for and more.”
Kelly noted that the Football Bowl Subdivision national champion and the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy champion are the only college teams invited to the White House each year.
“Being able to go to the White House and have the president personally present the trophy is of great value to Navy football, and we’re honored that we’re back for the second year in a row,” Kelly said.