To most college football teams, the term "Band of Brothers" is either a reference to William Shakespeare's inspirational speech by Henry V on St. Crispin's Day, or the recent HBO miniseries about foot soldiers in World War II.

At Navy, however, Band of Brothers is just the most appropriate way to describe eight members of the football team, which plays Army on Saturday at Giants Stadium. Though both teams are made up of a close-knit group of athletes with future military commitments, Navy boasts the unusual distinction of having four sets of brothers on its squad.

"It's really something special," says senior offensive guard Grant Moody, whose younger brother Evan is a freshman. "I don't think we've ever had this many sets of brothers on the team before."

In addition to the Moodys, Navy also has Ben and Sam Mathews, a junior linebacker and a freshman running back; Nate and Jeremy Chase, a junior guard and a freshman linebacker; and identical twins Aaron and James Polanco, a sophomore quarterback and a freshman wide receiver. Each of them differs in ability and playing time, but each credits their brotherly bond as a major reason why they have been able to weather the difficult task of attending a military school where juggling sports, academics, drills and a personal life is never easy.

"I love having my brother here," said Ben Mathews, a starter in six of Navy's games this season at outside linebacker. "I get a chance to watch over him a little bit and make sure he makes it through all right. I didn't try and influence his decision to come here, I just told him about my experience and what to expect."

For Sam Mathews, Evan Moody, Jeremy Chase and James Polanco (all in their plebe year) the guidance their older siblings have offered has been invaluable.

"Nothing can really prepare you for what it's going to be like here," Evan Moody said. "But I think my brother did the best he could. Just the moral support of having him here and knowing I can go talk to him about whatever means a lot."

Aaron Polanco, who has served as the backup quarterback for the Mids most of the season, found out just how much he missed his brother during his freshman year, when James spent a year at Texas Tech before deciding to transfer to the academy.

"We would talk on the phone every night," Aaron said. "It was a big change from having him around every second growing up. I think we always knew we'd probably go our own way in college, but it was still difficult. When he decided to come here, it was great."

James Polanco admits he was probably more excited than his brother this year when Aaron ran for two touchdowns and nearly led Navy to an upset of Notre Dame after starter Craig Candeto went down.

"It's funny, some people probably think I'd be jealous or something, but I could watch him play like that all day. It was awesome. Everybody is always joking, asking me if we have that twin thing where you feel if the other one is hurt. If he takes a big hit, people will look at me and say, 'You OK? You OK?' "

Jeremy Chase figured he might spend his freshman year cheering for his brother, Nate, to see some action at guard, but when Nate went down with a knee injury and Chase shot up the depth chart at middle linebacker, their situations were quickly reversed. Jeremy has been an impact player on defense for Navy, while Nate has begun the long, difficult task of rehabbing after surgery.

"We don't talk about it much, but I'm sure he's proud of me," Jeremy Chase said. "He helped me out a lot when I got here, and I'm looking forward to him getting better so we can be out there together."

So far, only the Mathewses have seen action together in the same game. Both started against Rice and Boston College.

"I was definitely excited to see him out there," Ben said. "I knew he was capable doing the job, and it was a thrill to see him out there making plays."

There are still sibling rivalries, but mostly it's all in good fun. Though the Moodys are both offensive linemen, Evan and Grant have vowed to go up against each other in practice before Grant pulls off the pads for the last time. Sam Mathews says on the rare occasion he goes up against his brother in practice, Ben always has a little something extra for him.

"He tries to give me a good shot, but the problem is, he's too soft," Sam teased. "It doesn't work out for him."

"My little brother said that about me?" Ben said with a smile. "We'll definitely have to settle that one later."

Next for Navy

Matchup:Army (1-10) vs. Navy (1-10)

Site:Giants Stadium, East Rutherford, N.J.

When:Saturday, noon

TV/Radio: Chs. 13, 9/WJFK (1300 AM), WNAV (1430 AM)

Line:Navy by 3 1/2