The Army Black Knights are off to a 1-2 start in 2025, a rough follow-up to their impressive 12-2 campaign in 2024. Led by head coach Jeff Monken, the team will look to turn things around Thursday night in a key matchup against American Conference rival East Carolina.
Monken, now in his 12th year as Army’s head coach, shares a last name with Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken, but are the two related? Here’s everything to know about the Army head coach’s family and their deep roots in football.
Is Jeff Monken Related to Ravens’ OC Todd Monken?
Yes, Jeff Monken is related to Todd Monken. The two are cousins, and while both began their careers in college football, Todd has found success in the pros, becoming the Baltimore Ravens’ offensive coordinator in 2023. Todd isn’t Jeff’s family’s only member to build a football career.
Jeff has been coaching since 1989, starting as a graduate assistant at Hawaii. He landed his first head coaching job at Morton High School in Illinois in 1995, then became Georgia Southern’s running backs coach in 1997. After a brief stint with Navy, he returned to Georgia Southern as head coach in 2010.
In 2014, Jeff took over as Army’s head coach and has been there ever since. Coaching runs in the family, and it was always a destined path for Jeff.
Over ten of Jeff Monken’s family members have spent time coaching at the high school, college, or professional level. His father, Mike, who passed away in 2023, was a legendary head coach at Morton High School and was inducted into the Illinois High School Football Coaches Hall of Fame.
Jeff’s brother, Tom, and Todd Monken’s younger brother, Ted, have also worked as high school football coaches in Illinois. Coaching runs in the family, and the path has paid off most for Jeff and Todd.
In his 12 years with the Black Knights, Jeff has compiled an 83-59 record and led Army to six bowl appearances, winning five. The 2024 season marked the third time he guided the program to double-digit wins, setting a career high with 12 victories. He hopes to replicate that success in 2025.
While the Black Knights haven’t started the season as planned, they aim to turn things around against East Carolina. A win over the Pirates would give Army its first conference victory, making Thursday night’s game crucial.
Army’s game against East Carolina kicks off at 7:30 p.m. ET on Thursday, September 25, with coverage on ESPN.
