Opfer works way up Army football ranks

Ayden Opfer's rise through the college football ranks at a young age has been about as efficient as Army's triple-option offense. Opfer, a 27-year-old St. Mary Central Catholic graduate, went from intern to director of operations for football at Army West Point in fewer than three years. Opfer was an intern at Army in the summer of 2019. After spending two years working at Temple University, he joined the creative media team at Army in April 2021 before his job got a bit complicated. Opfer also was needed in the operations department, an experience that led to a promotion earlier this year. He handled the extra workload well and now is Army's director of operations. "A little bit of everything," he answered when asked what his new job entails. Among Opfer's duties: planning team travel, meals, managing the Black Knights roster, overseeing player eligibility and addressing myriad other topics germane to a Football Bowl Subdivision program. After a vacancy on the staff occurred last year Opfer did advance ops for the service academy, arriving at the site of road games two days early to map out routes, meals and make sure hotel accommodations were seamless. The trial earned him his new title. "Doing all that helped me take over and expand to operations," he said. "It's not something I take for granted." Opfer, a 2017 Bowling Green State University graduate, is a big fan of the culture at West Point, where he was a video and graphic design intern in the summer of 2019. "I definitely love it here and knew what it was in terms of culture and what I wanted from a workplace," he said. "It's a pretty special place. You can tell in the weight room and in team meetings with the way the guys carry themselves. "The players show up on time. There's accountability with the staff and players." Unlike most FBS programs, the transfer portal and Name, Image and Likeness aren't issues at West Point, the temporary home for about 4,000 future Army officers. "We're not relying on half our starters to be transfers," Opfer said. "We develop our own talent and it's cool to see guys grow." Opfer is a fan of head coach Jeff Monken, who has a 58-43 record in eight seasons at Army. He also has four wins over Navy since 2016 and a 4-1 record in bowl games. "The head coach and everyone is willing to do the dirty work," Opfer said. "Coach Monken is not going to expect you to do something he wouldn't do himself. He's business-like but also reasonable. He's very respected in his role. "The way everyone carries themselves, we expect to compete and win. There's no hoping and wishing." The Black Knights capped last season with a 24-22 last-second win over Missouri in the Armed Forces Bowl. Army drove 51 yards in eight plays in 1:11 to set up a game-winning 41-yard field goal. Opfer said SEC member Missouri was a confident bunch before the game in Fort Worth, Texas. "They ran out of the tunnel and they were kind of laughing at our intro video because it was kind of war specific," he said. "They thought they were gonna coast. Any time you can beat a Power Five team, especially the SEC, it's extremely satisfying." Army's triple option offense has proven to be an equalizer against many powerful programs. For example, the run-dominated Black Knights took Oklahoma to overtime in 2018 and gave Wisconsin a scare last year before losing 20-14. One of the few independent teams at the highest level of college football, Army's reputation as a dangerous underdog sometimes can lead to scheduling challenges. The Black Knights originally were scheduled to play at Tennessee on September 17 this season, but the Volunteers backed out of that matchup last year. The game was supposed to be played the same week the Congressional Medal of Honor Society Convention will be held in Knoxville. Tennessee plays in Neyland Stadium, a sprawling venue named after legendary coach Robert Neyland, a West Point graduate. "We were looking forward to that and they canceled on us," Opfer said. Army opens the 2022 season Sept. 3 at Coastal Carolina. The Black Knights' home opener at historic Michie Stadium will be a week later against Texas-San Antonio. Army's matchup against Air Force will be played November 5 in Arlington, Texas, at the home of the Texas Rangers baseball team. The annual Army-Navy game is December 10 in Philadelphia. When asked where his favorite road venue will be this season, Opfer went with a beach and food theme. "Either Myrtle Beach (for Coastal Carolina) or Philly (Army-Navy)," he said. "I know all the spots (in Philadelphia) so I can make sure our guys get a local cheesesteak, not the tourist traps." Opfer, who lives 10 minutes north of West Point in the town of Cornwall, enjoys the atmosphere at Michie Stadium, which opened in 1924. "It's a national historic landmark so it has that feeling like when you walk into an older stadium," he said. "It's been the same, for the most part, for 50 years. It's almost like there's a pureness to the game." Army home games feature plenty of pageantry, including Apache helicopter flyovers. "They time it up so the second our team runs onto the field they fly overhead," Opfer said. "It's pretty sweet."