When Army fans think of the Tulane series, the Michie Miracle of 2007 or the 2024 American Conference Championship likely come to mind. Given Army’s reputation for running the triple-option, aerial explosions seem much less likely. However, two Army option quarterbacks had arguably the two most unexpected passing performances in program history against the Green Wave.

Army’s first foray into the wishbone actually came not in 1984 but back in 1974 under then-Head Coach Homer Smith. Unfortunately, the roster lacked a quarterback who could run that offense. Two non-quarterbacks, yearling running back Greg McGlasker and cow safety/running back Scott Gillogly, therefore battled for this unlikely starting job. Gillogly won and ran the offense well, rushing for 397 yards and nine touchdowns in 1974. Unsurprisingly, however, he struggled as a passer. He completed just 30 of 75 passes for 466 yards, a forty percent completion percentage, in ten starts. 

Gillogly went just 1/8 for 8 yards against Notre Dame and 1/7 for 14 yards against Penn State in 1974. However, he somehow became an elite passer against Tulane that same year. 

Gillogly completed nine of his eighteen passes for 185 yards and an 80-yard touchdown in a 31-14 loss to the Green Wave. His 185 yards accounted for 40 percent of the 466 yards he accumulated in his 10 starts in 1974 and 31 percent of his 595 career passing yards in 13 starts. The 80-yard touchdown pass was Gillogly’s only touchdown pass in 1974 and one of only two in his career. In fact, that touchdown alone went for more yards than he threw for in any other game in his entire career. Without that Tulane performance, Gillogly’s 1974 completion percentage drops from 40 to 32 percent. 

Ultimately, Gillogly would break his collarbone in Army’s fourth game in 1975, ending his career. Nevertheless, like so many graduates before and after him, his greatest exploits came away from the gridiron. The National Football Foundation inducted him as a scholar-athlete in 1975 with a 3.63 GPA in the Academy’s pre-med program. He later became a renowned orthopedic surgeon. Not bad for a safety-turned-quarterback.

24 years after Gillogly’s aerial show against Tulane, another unexpected quarterback took to the skies. Everyone expected a drop-off at quarterback after future Green Bay Packers draft pick Ronnie McAda graduated following Army’s famed 1996 season. Still, hardly anyone envisioned the lows the passing game hit in 1997. 

QB Johnny Goff completed 27 of 86 passes (31 percent) for 384 yards and a single touchdown with five interceptions that year. Goff’s 1.2 percent touchdown percentage in 1997 edges Gillogly’s 1974 (1 TD in 75 passes) and Matt Silva’s 2003 rate (1 TD in 80 passes) for the worst single season in program history. Goff’s 1997 season made him one of five FBS quarterbacks over the last 50 years to throw at least 86 passes and complete fewer than 32 percent of them.

Goff’s 384 yards and backup QB Adam Thompson’s five passing yards combined to give Army its lowest season total ever until 2017. For reference, the 1991 team completed 19 passes with a former wide receiver, Myreon Williams, starting at quarterback for most of the year and still finished with more yards than the 1997 team. 

While Goff improved in 1998, the passing game still left much to be desired. He threw for 431 yards on 17 fewer passes but still had a two-to-six touchdown-to-interception ratio. Nevertheless, Goff had a career day through the air in the 1998 Tulane game. He completed 10 of his 20 passes for 178 yards and a 49-yard touchdown pass to Gary Williams. Goff also added 148 rushing yards on just 16 carries.

The 14th-ranked, 8-0 Green Wave unexpectedly found itself in a dogfight thanks to Goff’s surprise air show. Tulane needed a touchdown with 35 seconds left in the second quarter to enter halftime tied at 21. Although they pulled ahead in the second half, they did not seal the game until Tulane QB Shaun King scored with under two minutes to give Tulane a 49-35 win.

Johnny Goff went throw-for-throw with a future NFL Playoff-starting quarterback who finished tenth in that year’s Heisman Trophy voting. Quarterbacks dream of games like this. Goff’s 178 yards against Tulane accounted for 22 percent of his career passing yards in 20 starts and 41 percent of his 1998 output in nine starts. 

Despite his struggles through the air, Goff nearly etched himself into Army history against Notre Dame in 1998. He commanded the offense masterfully in a 20-17 loss to the then-#18 Irish, one of just two one-score losses to Notre Dame in the 16 games since Army’s last series win in 1958. 

Goff and Gillogly’s amazing performances against Tulane bode well for Cale Hellums. Last week, Hellums threw for 151 yards against Louisiana Tech. If history is any indicator, he could be due for at least 200 this week. However, Goff and Gillogly’s efforts both came in losses. Thus, while Goff and Gillogly’s passing exploits make for nice feel-good stories, Army fans hope for the complete opposite against the Green Wave on Saturday.

Go Army! Beat Tulane!!!