Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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www.BLUEANDGOLD.com NOV. 7, 2016 41 BY MATT JONES L ast year was Navy's time to shine. The Midshipmen set a school record for wins (11) and earned their highest final Associated Press ranking (No. 18) since the 1963 sea- son. A large part of that success came from star quarterback Keenan Reyn- olds, who in his final season at Navy broke the record for most career total touchdowns in NCAA history with 88 and most rushing yards by a quar- terback with 4,559. All that was gone entering this season. Navy lost 15 starters from last year's team that played Houston for a spot in the American Athletic Conference championship game last November, including 10 on offense. So the fact that Navy creeped back into the top 25 in October and boasts wins over AAC powers Houston — which was ranked No. 6 in the coun- try at the time — and Memphis is a surprise to some. But according to Mike James, the publisher of TheMidReport.com, which covers Navy athletics for the Rivals network, it was just a matter of the pieces coming together. "It's not that the team wasn't ca- pable of this or no one thought they could, it's that no one knew what they were dealing with with this team since they lost so much from last year," James said. The Midshipmen were ranked 43rd by Phil Steele in the preseason, 61st by CollegeFootballNews.com, 63rd by Lindy's, 67th by Athlon and 81st by ESPN's Football Power Index. So how is Navy this good? James said it has a lot to do with recruit- ing, downplaying the idea that the Midshipmen can simply plug and play with their option offense. Navy joined the AAC in 2012 (it played its first year in the league in 2015), which boosted recruiting for the An- napolis, Md., school. Though it doesn't show in the re- cruiting rankings — Rivals lists the 2017 class 84th while many prior classes were not in the top 100 — it's paying off on the field. "The first classes that knew Navy was going to the AAC, they're ju- niors and seniors last year and this year, and I don't think it's a coinci- dence that last year and this year that Navy is ranked," James said. "Join- ing a conference just opened a few doors because people kind of associ- ate Navy with Houston or Memphis and know they're going to be able to play these teams and it's an increased profile. "Navy is just recruiting better, there's just more depth, and when someone goes down, it's a more talented guy than they're used to having. It's kind of a new world for Navy in that sense, but a lot of the old stereotypes about Navy and service academy football don't com- pletely apply anymore. There's some changes, it's a different program." More depth means injuries are less devastating. That's particularly the case when a team loses a quarter- back, such as senior Tago Smith, in the first game this season against Football Championship Subdivi- sion foe Fordham. Smith suffered a season-ending knee injury, and his appeal to the Naval Academy for a fifth season of eligibility was denied, The Capital Gazette reported. Luckily for Navy, Will Worth was ready to step in. In his limited work, the senior has won four games and amassed 1,187 yards of total offense and 15 touchdowns. In the upset of Houston Oct. 8, he rushed 32 times for 115 yards and a score, plus con- nected on 3 of 5 pass attempts for 76 yards with two touchdowns. "He and Tago have kind of been coming up side by side all along, so if you're going to lose a guy, the coaches had already been talking about the progress that Will Worth had made," James said. "If there's a silver lining, it's having a guy that's ready to step in and he was it." Worth is more of a power rusher, while Reynolds and Smith were more slashers. Navy has tailored the offense to Worth's strengths, and it has paid off. Despite running behind a brand new offensive line that didn't return a single starter from last year's team, the Midshipmen are winning games. James said Navy platoons many of its starters and backups, rotating in several slot backs, fullbacks and offensive linemen. The physical, run- heavy scheme necessitates that. "Navy runs two huddles in prac- tice, so they might not have been starting together last year, but GAME PREVIEW: NAVY Facts & Figures NOTRE DAME VS. NAVY Game Info Date: Nov. 5, 2016. Site: Everbank Field (67,164). Kickoff: 11:30 a.m. Television: CBS. Radio: This broadcast can be heard live on SIRIUS Satellite Radio (channel 129). Series Facts: This is the 90th all-time meeting between Navy and Notre Dame. The Irish beat the Midshipmen 41-24 in last year's matchup at Notre Dame Stadium. Coaches: Navy — Ken Niumatalolo (73-39, ninth season); Notre Dame — Brian Kelly (58-28, seventh season). Noting Navy: Notre Dame has a 47-7-1 all- time mark against the Midshipmen at neutral- site venues … The last time Navy beat the Irish was in 2010, a 35-17 defeat for Notre Dame … The 51-year-old Niumatalolo played quarter- back at Hawaii from 1987-89. While with the Rainbows, he ran an option-oriented offense under the direction of Paul Johnson, who was then the offensive coordinator … His father, Simi, was in the U.S. Coast Guard. CHUGGING ALONG After its banner 2015 season, Navy made it back to the top 25 An injury thrust senior Will Worth into the start- ing lineup at quarterback, but he performed well while accounting for 1,187 yards of total offense and 15 touchdowns through six games. PHOTO COURTESY NAVY