David Cutcliffe’s third season has been a disappointment thus far, as the Blue Devils are marred in a six-game losing streak. Unfortunately for Cutcliffe and his squad, the Midshipmen of Navy—riding a three-game winning streak—are rolling. Coming off an emotional high after beating Notre Dame 35-17 Saturday at a neutral site in East Rutherford, N.J., Navy looks to continue its winning ways Saturday.
“[Navy] is a team coming off a huge victory,” Cutcliffe said. “They are in that other mode, the one we are searching for.”
The Midshipmen’s next win would make the team bowl-eligible for the seventh consecutive season, ever since then-head coach Paul Johnson brought the triple-option offense to Navy. Johnson is now at helm of Georgia Tech, but his successor Ken Niumatalolo hasn’t changed the game plan too much.
Currently in his third full season, Niumatalolo boasts an impressive 23-12 record. In addition to achieving the short-term success that the Blue Devils covet, Navy also has improved its growing program during Niumatalolo’s brief tenure as head coach. The Midshipmen defeated Missouri in the Texas Bowl last year on their way to a 10-win season, and Duke is well aware of Navy’s recent accomplishments.
“Everyone knows what [Navy] does and they still are able to have success,” senior linebacker Abraham Kromah said.
It all boils down to the triple option for the Midshipmen. Kromah and his fellow defenders have seen this offensive scheme once already this season against Army, as well as four times in the previous two seasons in matchups against the Yellow Jackets, the Black Knights and Navy.
Duke last faced the Midshipmen in 2008 in Wallace Wade Stadium when Thaddeus Lewis found Eron Riley for a 49-yard score in the fourth quarter—their third connection of the game—to seal the 41-31 victory. In that contest, Navy had success on the ground rushing for 207 yards on 46 carries.
This year, Navy ranks ninth in the Football Bowl Subdivision with 274.4 rushing yards per game, but the Blue Devil defense relishes the opportunity to try to shut down the run.
“You always want to rise to the challenge,” Kromah said. “It’s a linebacker’s dream. We do a lot of tackling and hitting.”
As the old football adage says, “The best defense is a good offense.” Ball control is a key aspect in a game against a run-first team. The Midshipmen average nearly 34 minutes of possession per game, good for sixth in the country. Part of the reason why Navy controls the ball for long stretches is its success on third down. The Midshipmen thrive on third down with a 52 percent conversion rate.
“If we could make a bunch of first downs and keep the football, we keep the Navy offense off the field,” Cutcliffe said.
Duke struggled to control the ball in its matchup with Army this year, keeping possession for fewer than 21 minutes of the game. This was a result of converting only one third down attempt and turning the ball over five times. Turnovers have plagued the Blue Devils this season—the team has a minus-12 turnover margin, whereas the Midshipmen boast a plus-9 margin.
“We have to keep the ball in our possession,” sophomore quarterback Brandon Connette said. “We can’t give the ball away, and we need players to step up and execute.”
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