Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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40 PRESEASON 2023 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED GAME PREVIEW: NAVY on offense this year, and I'm really ex- cited for that." First-year Midshipmen coach Brian Newberry brought in Kennesaw State offensive coordinator Grant Chestnut to run the new variation of the classic Navy system. Newberry and Chestnut are obviously keeping the changes close to the vest, so no one outside of An- napolis, Md., knows exactly what it will look like. "The way that we've evolved… I love what we're doing," Newberry said. "I think it's creative. I think it's unique. I think it's different from what anybody else in the country is doing. It's our own." According to Capital Gazette reporter Bill Wagner, one of the aspects the coaching staff is adding to its offense is the tight end position, which Navy traditionally did not use in the pass- ing game. Chestnut and new tight ends coach Jon Williams are trying to change that. The Midshipmen will also mix forma- tions much more than their opponents will be used to seeing from them. "[It's] the appearance of what we're doing, being multiple with our forma- tions, the looks that we show people, potentially shifting and doing those things," Newberry said. "Being able to go from under center to the gun and marry that up." Newberry, who had been Navy's de- fensive coordinator since 2019, also lauded the edge and toughness Chest- nut brings. From his experience, New- berry said, the offense didn't have that the past few years. Another unknown out of Navy's fall camp: the starting quarterback. The Midshipmen could trot out senior and returning starter Tai Lavatai, who is coming off a season-ending injury that cost him much of the offseason, or se- nior Xavier Arline, who started against Notre Dame in 2022. They could also go younger, with sophomores Tedros Gleaton and Blake Horvath. Gleaton was No. 1 on the depth chart released at the start of fall camp, but Newberry declared it a wide-open competition. IRISH OFFENSIVE LINE PREPARED FOR 'EVERYTHING' The second half of last year's Navy game is still fresh in Notre Dame's mind. It especially lingers for the offensive line. Navy zero-blitzed Notre Dame to death, and the Irish had no answer. The Midshipmen sacked junior quarterback Drew Pyne five times in the second half alone, holding Notre Dame scoreless in the final 30 minutes to make the game closer than the Irish would have liked it. "It was frustrating," graduate student center Zeke Correll said. "They were giving us some tough looks. Cover-zero blitz every play is definitely not your typical defense that you'll see. They had a good plan for us." Newberry remains in charge of the 2023 NOTRE DAME SCHEDULE Date Opponent (TV) Time (ET) Aug. 26 vs. Navy* (NBC) 2:30 p.m. Sept. 2 Tennessee State (NBC) 3:30 p.m. Sept. 9 at NC State (ABC) 12 p.m. Sept. 16 Central Michigan (Peacock) 2:30 p.m. Sept. 23 Ohio State (NBC) 7:30 p.m. Sept. 30 at Duke TBA Oct. 7 at Louisville TBA Oct. 14 USC (NBC) 7:30 p.m. Oct. 28 Pittsburgh (NBC) 3:30 p.m. Nov. 4 at Clemson (ABC) TBA Nov. 18 Wake Forest (NBC) 3:30 p.m. Nov. 25 at Stanford TBA * at Aviva Stadium in Dublin, Ireland Junior linebacker Colin Ramos recorded 1.5 of the Midshipmen's 5 sacks against the Fighting Irish in last year's meeting. He is the team's top returning tackler with 79 (8.5 for loss and 4 sacks). PHOTO COURTESY NAVY ATHLETICS 2023 NAVY SCHEDULE Date Opponent (TV) Time (ET) Aug. 26 vs. Notre Dame* (NBC) 2:30 p.m. Sept. 9 Wagner (CBSSN) 3:30 p.m. Sept. 14 at Memphis (ESPN) 7:30 p.m. Sept. 30 South Florida (CBSSN) 3:30 p.m. Oct. 7 North Texas (CBSSN) 3:30 p.m. Oct. 14 at Charlotte TBA Oct. 21 Air Force (CBS) 12 p.m. Nov. 4 at Temple TBA Nov. 11 UAB (CBSSN) 3:30 p.m. Nov. 18 East Carolina 12 p.m. Nov. 25 at SMU TBA Dec. 9 vs. Army^ (CBS) 3 p.m. * at Aviva Stadium in Dublin, Ireland ^ at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Mass.