--- title: "Two West Point graduates are facing off in the Super Bowl" description: "Two former West Point Black Knights, Cole Christiansen and Brett Toth, are playing for the Chiefs and the Eagles, respectively." date: "2025-02-09" modified: "2025-02-09" authors: - name: "Nicholas Slayton" job_title: "Contributing Editor" link: "https://taskandpurpose.com/authors/nicholas-slayton/" url: "https://taskandpurpose.com/culture/super-bowl-west-point-eagles-chiefs/" categories: - "Culture" tags: - "sports" --- # Two West Point graduates are facing off in the Super Bowl ![Composite of two football players. One in a Kansas City Chiefs uniform, the other in a Philadelphia eagles uniform.]() *Cole Christiansen (left) and Brett Toth will be part of the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles teams at Super Bowl LIX. Icon Sportswire photo by Terence Lewis via Getty Images; Getty Images photo by Brooke Sutton; Task & Purpose composite.* Today is Super Bowl LIX. In a few hours fans will find out if the Kansas City Chiefs can secure their third championship in three years, or if Saquon Barkley and the Philadelphia Eagles can break their streak. There’s a lot to look forward to, even outside of Kendrick Lamar’s halftime show. But the game also features a matchup between two U.S. Military Academy graduates. Cole Christiansen plays as a linebacker for the Chiefs while Brett Toth is an offensive lineman with the Eagles. Both will be at Caesar’s Superdome in New Orleans when the [Super Bowl]() starts at 6:30 p.m. Eastern Time. The two were formerly teammates at [West Point](), now they’re on opposite sides of football’s biggest game. Both players were given waivers allowing them to defer service in order to play professional football. Christiansen (class of 2020) entered the NFL in 2020, after serving as team captain for the Black Knights. Initially signed to the Los Angeles Chargers, he joined Kansas City in 2022. He played nine games this regular season, but is currently on the practice squad going into Super Bowl LIX. He’s currently a second lieutenant in the Army. After graduating West Point, Toth (class of 2018) was serving as a second lieutenant when he was signed to the Eagles. After being waived, he was claimed by the Arizona Cardinals and was on the team for a year before returning to the Eagles in 2020, where he played his first professional game. Since then he’s been off and on the active roster. He did not play in any regular season game this past year, but did play during playoff games. He’s currently a first lieutenant in the Army. This is actually the second time the two were members of teams facing off in football’s biggest game. Both were signed to their respective teams in Super Bowl LVII in 2023, where the Chiefs won 38-35. Kansas City won the following Super Bowl against the San Francisco 49ers, where Christiansen was on the field. Super Bowl LIX starts at 6:30 p.m. Eastern Time. ## The latest on Task & Purpose - **The Army is moving** [**WWII-era barracks**]() **across a base to house visiting troops** - **Army** [**Black Hawk pilot**]() **killed in mid-air collision remembered as a ‘volunteer patriot’** - **A National Guardsman lost their rifle when it** [**fell off a truck**]() **on a Delaware highway** - [**3rd Infantry Division**]() **identifies two soldiers killed in training accident** - **Air Force** [**shaving waivers**]() **will soon expire under new policy** ## Author Nicholas Slayton is a contributing editor for Task & Purpose, covering conflict for over 12 years, from the Arab Spring to the war in Ukraine. His previous reporting can be found on the non-profit Aslan Media, The Atlantic, Al Jazeera, The New Republic, The American Prospect, Architectural Digest, The Daily Beast, and the Los Angeles Downtown News. You can reach him at nicholas@taskandpurpose.com or find him on Twitter @NSlayton and Bluesky at @nslayton.bsky.social. ### Author social links [Twitter]()