thedrifter
11-19-07, 09:24 AM
Sports
Navy preparing for rival Army
Ron Snyder, The Examiner
2007-11-19 08:00:00.0
Current rank: # 10 of 8,600
BALTIMORE -
Bring on Army.
That is Navy’s mindset as it prepares for the 108th meeting with its rival service academy from West Point, N.Y. at M&T Bank Stadium on Dec. 1.
Army (3- extended its losing streak to five games with a 49-39 loss to Tulsa. But Navy (7-4) has a lot more momentum on its side, as it has won its past three games, including a 35-24 victory over Northern Illinois on Saturday.
The victory over the Huskies (2-9) enabled the Midshipmen to clinch their fifth straight winning season. But more importantly, the final game of the season at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium marked the 34th victory for the senior class in the past four years, tying it with the Class of 1908 for third on Navy's all-time wins list by a class. The Class of 1909 is the school's winningest group with 36 victories.
After facing Army, the Midshipmen end their season in the Poinsettia Bowl on Dec. 20, when they will face a team from the Mountain West Conference.
“I'm proud of our seniors,” Navy coach Paul Johnson said. “They get to go out on a winning note at home. That's something we talked about all week. We also clinched our fifth straight winning season, so this group of seniors doesn't know anything else. They have been a big part of turning things around.”
The accomplishments of Navy's seniors comes in the midst of a wild season that has included a rash of injuries, two, two-game losing streaks, its first victory over Notre Dame in 43 years and boating a defense that has given up nearly 40 points a game.
However against Northern Illinois (2-9), Navy put together one of its most complete games of the year as sophomore linebacker Ross Pospisil had a career-high 20 tackles, and senior Greg Thrasher had six tackles and pass breakup and an interception.
“There has been a lot of talk about the defense giving up all the points we have,” Thrasher said. “Coach [Buddy] Green told us to just finish up strong.”
Navy also forced Northern Illinois to punt four times, the most by an opponent this season. The Midshipmen's defensive performance came in the same week when they went with backup quarterback Jarod Bryant in place of an injured Kaipo-Noa Kaheaku-Enhada. Bryant finished with 139 yards rushing on 27 carries and completed 3-of-6 passes for 60 yards. Kaheaku-Enhada is expected to play against Army.
“It was a hard fought game,” Johnson said. “We made some plays, but we made some mistakes. I don't know if we were as sharp as we have been offensively. But, we still made enough plays to score 35 points and find a way to win the game. I thought we played much better defensively and when we look at the tape I don't think we'll find as many missed assignments as we've had.”
rsnyder@baltimoreexaminer.com
Examiner
Ellie
Navy preparing for rival Army
Ron Snyder, The Examiner
2007-11-19 08:00:00.0
Current rank: # 10 of 8,600
BALTIMORE -
Bring on Army.
That is Navy’s mindset as it prepares for the 108th meeting with its rival service academy from West Point, N.Y. at M&T Bank Stadium on Dec. 1.
Army (3- extended its losing streak to five games with a 49-39 loss to Tulsa. But Navy (7-4) has a lot more momentum on its side, as it has won its past three games, including a 35-24 victory over Northern Illinois on Saturday.
The victory over the Huskies (2-9) enabled the Midshipmen to clinch their fifth straight winning season. But more importantly, the final game of the season at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium marked the 34th victory for the senior class in the past four years, tying it with the Class of 1908 for third on Navy's all-time wins list by a class. The Class of 1909 is the school's winningest group with 36 victories.
After facing Army, the Midshipmen end their season in the Poinsettia Bowl on Dec. 20, when they will face a team from the Mountain West Conference.
“I'm proud of our seniors,” Navy coach Paul Johnson said. “They get to go out on a winning note at home. That's something we talked about all week. We also clinched our fifth straight winning season, so this group of seniors doesn't know anything else. They have been a big part of turning things around.”
The accomplishments of Navy's seniors comes in the midst of a wild season that has included a rash of injuries, two, two-game losing streaks, its first victory over Notre Dame in 43 years and boating a defense that has given up nearly 40 points a game.
However against Northern Illinois (2-9), Navy put together one of its most complete games of the year as sophomore linebacker Ross Pospisil had a career-high 20 tackles, and senior Greg Thrasher had six tackles and pass breakup and an interception.
“There has been a lot of talk about the defense giving up all the points we have,” Thrasher said. “Coach [Buddy] Green told us to just finish up strong.”
Navy also forced Northern Illinois to punt four times, the most by an opponent this season. The Midshipmen's defensive performance came in the same week when they went with backup quarterback Jarod Bryant in place of an injured Kaipo-Noa Kaheaku-Enhada. Bryant finished with 139 yards rushing on 27 carries and completed 3-of-6 passes for 60 yards. Kaheaku-Enhada is expected to play against Army.
“It was a hard fought game,” Johnson said. “We made some plays, but we made some mistakes. I don't know if we were as sharp as we have been offensively. But, we still made enough plays to score 35 points and find a way to win the game. I thought we played much better defensively and when we look at the tape I don't think we'll find as many missed assignments as we've had.”
rsnyder@baltimoreexaminer.com
Examiner
Ellie