Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM PRESEASON 2023 41 GAME PREVIEW: NAVY Navy defense, but he might not attack Hartman the way he attacked Pyne. Ac- cording to Pro Football Focus, Hartman finished the 2022 season with 9.1 yards per attempt, 25 touchdowns and 5 inter- ceptions when blitzed. He averaged 8.2 yards per attempt with 13 touchdowns and 7 interceptions when not blitzed. Whatever it is, though, Notre Dame knows Newberry will have something up his sleeve. "I think we have to prepare for every- thing," junior offensive tackle Joe Alt said. "Just knowing that, you've got to watch the film from last year and you know they're not going to come with the same thing just because they did it last year, but maybe they're going to take a couple things. We've got to be ready for all of it." The way Alt sees it, the Irish went away from trusting their fundamentals in the second half against Navy last No- vember. They focused too much on the blitzing and not enough on what made them an effective unit in the first place. "[Fundamentals are] going to be your home place," Alt said. "That's where you're always going to be safe. Some- thing I take to heart." Junior offensive tackle Blake Fisher blamed communication. When he watched the film, he could see that the front five weren't talking to each other before the snap and making sure every possible rusher was accounted for. Correll, Fisher and Alt enter 2023 with 3,954 snaps. Communication shouldn't be an issue for them, but with two new starters at guard, they need to be at the top of their game in the season opener. ✦ 1. New Coach For the first time since 2006, Notre Dame will face the Midshipmen without Ken Niumatalolo holding the title of Navy head coach. Niumatalolo parted ways with the program after a 4-8 record last fall. He landed at UCLA in an advisory role. Niumatalolo helped Navy snap a longstanding losing streak against Notre Dame with a 46-44 victory in 2007, his first year as head coach. Navy had not beaten Notre Dame since 1963. The Irish won 43 meetings in a row prior to Navy's win in '07, which was not Niumatalolo's only triumph in the rivalry series. Navy also won in 2009, 2010 and 2016. Navy had losing records in four of the last five seasons, though, so the pro- gram replaced their old skipper with Brian Newberry, who was Niumatalolo's defensive coordinator for four seasons. After holding assistant gigs at places like Washington and Lee, Lehigh and Elon as well as the University of the South, Northern Michigan and Kennesaw State, the 1997 Baylor graduate received his biggest break in coaching. "It is a great honor and privilege to lead this program," Newberry said. "It is a great responsibility that I fully accept and embrace. I could not be more excited about the future of Navy football." 2. Quarterback Uncertainty Navy has two senior quarterbacks in Tai Lavatai and Xavier Arline who have combined to start 39 games. It's not a given either of them will start versus Notre Dame. Newberry proclaimed the Navy quarterback competition to be wide open on July 29. "I'm excited about that," he said, "with two young guys and the guys we have coming back." Sophomores Blake Horvath and Tedros Gleaton are the two young guys. They took most of the reps with the ones and twos in spring ball with Lavatai recovering from an ACL injury suffered last October and Arline, who started last year's game against Notre Dame, reeling from nagging ailments brought on by playing lacrosse. Navy quarterbacks are labeled by some as obsolete in a triple-option offense, but think again if you're in that camp. Remember when former Midshipmen signal-caller Keenan Reynolds finished fifth in Heisman Trophy voting in 2015? Navy went 11-2 that year. Even in Annapolis, a QB can make all the difference. 3. PJ Volker Promoted To DC A five-year linebackers coach veteran with Navy, PJ Volker was upgraded to defensive coordinator after Newberry's promotion to head coach. It was a sign that Navy still wants to stick to some of the principles that made the Mids successful under a head coach who won more games for the program than anyone who had ever come before him in his decade and a half on the job. Expect the Navy defense to still be hard-nosed and unrelenting while play- ing with chips on all 11 shoulders. "He has been an integral part of our success with his input and game- planning," Newberry said of Volker. "He's creative, he's sharp and the players love him. He's a fiery guy that motivates our players, and I have a certain level of trust in him." — Tyler Horka Senior quarterback Xavier Arline started last year's game against Notre Dame, but he must beat out three others to win a wide-open competition in fall camp. PHOTO COURTESY NAVY ATHLETICS Three Things To Know About Navy