Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/899989
38 NOV. 20, 2017 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED BY LOU SOMOGYI IT'S ABOUT TIME There is ball control and time of possession … and then there is Navy. Like most triple-option programs, the Midshipmen play "keep away" versus the opposition at a different level. In last year's 28-27 victory against Notre Dame, Navy limited the Fight- ing Irish to six possessions. Accord- ing to research by the NCAA, that was the fewest by a Football Bowl Subdivision team since Northern Il- linois also had six during a 16-0 loss eight years earlier on Nov. 25, 2008. The opponent that year? Navy, of course. To help level the playing field against opposition such as Notre Dame that has vastly superior foot- ball talent, the Midshipmen football dicta centers on not beating yourself with turnovers and penalties, and shortening the game by keeping the clock running with the controlled ground attack. Entering the Nov. 11 weekend, Navy ranked No. 2 nationally in time of possession with an average of 35:28 to the opponents' 24:32. Power- oriented Wisconsin was No. 1, while triple-option programs Georgia Tech and Army West Point were Nos. 3-4. Last year, Navy owned the ball "only" 33:53 against the Irish, but more pertinent was the six series Notre Dame had on offense. Head coach Brian Kelly's troops scored on five of them with three touchdowns and two field goals (it punted on the one other series). Particularly amazing is Notre Dame had one possession apiece in the third quarter (a touchdown drive that lasted 5:17) and in the fourth quarter (a field goal after a march that took 4:29). That latter field goal with 7:28 re- maining cut the Irish deficit to 28-27 — but they never saw the ball again while Navy ran out the clock. On their previous series to take a 28-24 lead, the Midshipmen consumed ex- actly nine minutes on a 16-play, 75- yard march. There were six lead changes in last year's game, and an amazing nine in the 38-34 Irish victory versus Navy in 2013. Taking a two-possession lead in any contest is valued, but against the Midshipmen it especially is golden. ALOHI GILMAN IS ALREADY MAKING HIS PRESENCE FELT A primary reason why it is be- lieved Notre Dame should never lose to Navy (and didn't during an NCAA-record 43 straight wins in the series from 1964-2006) is they don't recruit from the same talent pool. Whereas the Irish perennially re- cruit top-10 to top-15 caliber classes, the current Navy seniors and juniors signed in 2014 and 2015 were not ranked in Rivals' top 100. The 2016 group did make it to No. 95, while the 2017 harvest came in at a more prominent No. 76. If this game were played strictly on paper, the Fighting Irish would be a minimum four-touchdown fa- vorite virtually every year. Imagine if Notre Dame's recruiting classes ranked from 75 to not even in the top 100 every season. Nevertheless, last year marked the fourth time Navy defeated the Fight- ing Irish the past 10 years. That's the second-best 10-year stretch the Midshipmen have had against Notre Dame, behind the 5-5 from 1954-63. GAME PREVIEW: NAVY Top STorylineS Head coach Ken Niumatalolo's Navy squad ranked second in the nation in average time of possession (35:23) heading into the Nov. 11 weekend. PHOTO COURTESY NAVY