Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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38 OCT. 17, 2026 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED GAME PREVIEW: NAVY Unfortunately for the Midshipmen, probably not. Freeman is too smart and too obsessed with win- ning to let that happen. He's also too scarred by his first game coaching against Navy, a 42-32 loss as Cincinnati's defen- sive coordinator in 2017 in which the Bearcats allowed 569 rushing yards. That's three shy of Navy's school record at the time, so yeah, Free- man is probably not overlooking the Midshipmen anytime soon. Could weather play a factor, given that this game is in Foxborough, Mass., in late October? Maybe, but Notre Dame is used to that by now and Navy's offense relies so much on laterals that it might favor the Irish anyway. Finally, there's the elephant in the room: This is Notre Dame's final game before its date with destiny on Nov. 7. Miami will loom large in Jack and Kathy Shields Family Hall. But again, this is not Freeman's first rodeo. He and his team's robust leadership will make sure any thoughts of the Hurricanes are suppressed until the calendar flips to November. Advantage: Notre Dame Todd D. Burlage: Notre Dame 49, Navy 13 A Navy program that won 10 games in 2024 and 11 in 2025, claiming bowl victories in both seasons, suffered through an uncharacteristically tough start to this season, winning only once in its first four games, with all three defeats coming in one-possession games. The Midshipmen will again feature their trademark triple-option rushing game against Notre Dame at Gillette Stadium Oct. 31 in Foxborough, Mass. But with a bye week for the Irish leading into this matchup, and with the tal- ent advantage Notre Dame always holds in this longstanding series, Navy falls for the ninth straight time in a rivalry that dates back to 1927. Steve Downey: Notre Dame 52, Navy 10 Navy opened the season as the American Conference favorites, but has been hampered by inexperience (17 first-time collegiate starters, tied for the most nationally), an injury to quarterback Braxton Woodson, poor pass defense (last in the FBS in passing efficiency defense) and costly turnovers at crucial moments (minus-2 turnover margin through four games). It all added up to a 1-3 start, including 0-2 in league play. The Irish are 4-0 against Navy under Marcus Freeman, winning the last three meetings by 39, 37 and 39 points. In those three blowouts, the Irish had a plus-6 advantage in turnover margin and averaged 235 yards per game on the ground while limiting Navy to "just" 185. This season, the Midshipmen are allowing just 96.3 rushing yards per game, but CJ Carr will have no problem carving up their porous pass defense en route to another easy Irish win. Eric Hansen: Notre Dame 48, Navy 3 Navy will be celebrating the 100th anniversary of its only national title in football when it plays the Irish Oct. 31 in Foxborough, Mass. That title, inciden- tally, came the season before Notre Dame and the Mids started their longtime series. There won't be much for Navy to celebrate this time beyond history. The Mids always have some innovative offensive schematic wrinkles, but they don't seem to have the dynamic quarterback this season to really cause problems for the opposition, a year after the Mids finished the season in the Associated Press Top 25. Compounding that is the fact that Navy teams that tend to cause the most problems for the opposition are the ones that can pair that ball-hogging, outlier offense with a really good defense. The Mids are actually decent against the run but entered the three-game stretch leading up to their Halloween matchup with the Irish as the worst pass efficiency defense in the nation. Now, here comes CJ Carr. Tyler James: Notre Dame 56, Navy 7 The memories of Notre Dame struggling with Navy become more distant by the year under Irish head coach Marcus Freeman. There's no shortcut to stopping Navy's option offense, but the discipline required to defend it has become ingrained in the Irish defensive identity. Getting a look at a different type of option offense earlier in the season against Rice added another op- portunity for Notre Dame to sharpen those skills. This isn't Navy's most efficient offense when it comes to scoring, which should be bad news for Navy's defense. The Midshipmen will have all kinds of trouble trying to slow down Notre Dame's offense, particularly the passing attack of quarterback CJ Carr. Notre Dame should be able to name its score, throttle Navy and turn its attention to a massive showdown with Miami. Kyle Kelly: Notre Dame 55, Navy 7 Navy's starting lineup is among the most inexperienced in college football and it has a three-game losing streak early in the season to accompany it. Meanwhile, Notre Dame has already prepared for the triple-option offense earlier this season (against Rice) and has a bye week before facing the Mid- shipmen. I have no doubts about the Irish winning and winning big. Mike Singer: Notre Dame 48, Navy 3 Despite several really good Navy teams over the last several years, Notre Dame has still dominated this rivalry, winning all but one matchup between the two teams dating back to 2011. Unfortunately, this is not a very good Navy team. The Irish will have backups playing in the third quarter. This one won't be close. Jack Soble: Notre Dame 51, Navy 7 We have played these games before. After seeing what Notre Dame did to Navy teams in 2024 and 2025 that were way better than this one, I can't see the Midshipmen ever coming close to the Irish as long as Marcus Freeman remains head coach. He prepares them too well for the option and doesn't mess around on the other side of the ball. My prediction includes 7 touchdowns and a safety for Notre Dame. Happy Halloween. Head coach Brian Newberry has led Navy to consecutive double-digit-win seasons, but the Midshipmen face a difficult rebuilding year after losing several key offensive playmakers. PHOTO COURTESY NAVY ATHLETICS Staff Predictions