President-elect Donald Trump headlined a list of GOP political figures that descended on Northwest Stadium for the 125th Army-Navy Game.
Trump arrived approximately an hour before kickoff, entering via motorcade underneath the stadium in Landover, Maryland, home to the Washington Commanders.
Key Republican figures, some who will play significant parts in Trump’s second administration, joined the president-elect in a stadium suite, including Vice President-elect J.D. Vance, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, House Speaker Mike Johnson, Pennsylvania Senator-elect Dave McCormick and Fox News host Pete Hegseth, who is Trump’s embattled pick to lead the Pentagon. Trump waved to the crowd from the glass-enclosed box before kickoff.
DeSantis made the rounds on the field before the game, meeting with West Point cadets from the Sunshine State. A Navy veteran, DeSantis has been rumored to be a replacement pick for Trump as secretary of defense if Hegseth is unable to be confirmed.
Trump attended the 2016 Army-Navy Game in Baltimore as president-elect and then three more times as president. Both No. 22 Army (11-1) and Navy (8-3) carry the most combined wins ever into this year’s matchup, the 125th in one of college football’s most historic rivalries.
• George Gerbo can be reached at ggerbo@washingtontimes.com.
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