West Point has been a family affair for the West clan for three generations.
On Saturday, Kyle West, the starting quarterback on Army’s undefeated sprint football team, will put the family legacy again on the line as the Black Knights host Navy to determine the Collegiate Sprint Football League championship. Both teams enter the game undefeated at 7-0 and have won the last eight titles since Penn won the championship in 2016.
West is a second-generation sprint football player at West Point. His dad, Mark West, a 1991 graduate of the academy, was a three-year starter on the team and is now in his 15th year as its head coach. His brother Keegan was the starting quarterback for three years and graduated from West Point in 2019.
But it goes a lot deeper than that. His mom, Holly, a member of the class of 1991, played soccer for Army. Grandfather Gus graduated from the academy in 1962 and uncle E.G. Fishbeurne graduated in 1994. His sister Lexi played soccer and graduated in 2021 and younger sister Daisy is a freshman at West Point and is on the varsity women’s soccer team that just won the Patriot League title.
“I always wanted to serve, like the rest of my family,” said Kyle. “My family inspired me to come to West Point and pursue a career in the army. Watching my brother and sister when they were here and how they enjoyed the experience, I could not imagine going down another path. Adding in sprint football and the opportunity to continue to play football, almost made the decision too easy.”
The fact that he grew up in nearby Highland Falls, N.Y. and played football at James I. O’Neill High School, also played a role. Kyle was on his high school football team for four seasons and started at quarterback in his junior and senior seasons when the team won back-to-back section championships.
There was some interest from Division II and III schools, but his size, at 6-1 and about 165 pounds, did not make him very attractive to Division I schools.
“What makes sprint football amazing is that it gives lighter kids a chance to play collegiate football,” Kyle said. “The weight limits change everything about the game, the strategies utilized and how the game is played. For me, as a quarterback, I think there is more pressure to get the ball out early.”
This season, West has completed 99 of 153 passes for 1,389 yards and 16 touchdowns. He has just four interceptions. He has also rushed for 132 yards on 38 carries and scored five touchdowns.
“Army is a blessing to me,” West added. “I have been gifted with great coaches here and have made a number of great friends who are on the team. Offensive coach Mike Sala and I meet nearly every day and we talk through concepts and gaps within the defense. He listens to my ideas and I think he believes in me.”
Then, there is the acknowledgement that the sprint team has extended his football career.
“When I was finishing my high school career, I never thought I would put pads on again,” he said. “Being able to step out in collegiate field and play football and do with the brothers that I love makes me so grateful.”
And, what about beating Navy?
“I always get the butterflies starting on the Sunday before the Navy game,” West said. “This is the biggest rivalry in all of America. It gets better because we have so many fans in attendance and, typically, we are the two best teams in the conference. It is also the “star” game, so we are playing for a lot.
“The bottom line is the camaraderie between teammates and the fact that we back each other up. I love this team so much that we could be playing in a parking lot and I would be happy.”
