Dec. 5, 2005

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Navy Football Itinerary The Navy football team will be off from Dec. 5-7 and will resume practice on Dec. 8. The team will practice daily from Dec. 8-17 (practice times TBA), except for Sunday, Dec. 11. Head football coach Paul Johnson, assistant coaches and players will be available for interviews each day after practice. Please call Assistant Athletic Director Scott Strasemeier (410/293-8775-Work or 443/336-9023-Cell) at least 24 hours in advance to arrange an interview. A transcript of Johnson's daily press conference with the local media will be available at www.navysports.com(.)

The team will depart Annapolis for San Diego on Dec. 18. The team headquarters is the Manchester Grand Hyatt (619/232-1234).

The Midshipmen will practice at the University of California at San Diego (9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, Calif.) Dec. 18-20. Navy's practices at USD are closed to the public, but open to the media if they make previous arrangements with Scott Strasemeier (443/336-9023). Practice times are to be determined. TV may shoot the first 20 minutes of practice. Players and coaches will be available for interviews following practice each day while at USD. Navy's practice on Dec. 21 at Qualcomm Stadium will be closed.

There will also be media opportunities on Tuesday, Dec. 20, when the team visits Sea World and the San Diego Children's Hospital (time TBA) and on Wednesday, Dec. 21, when the two coaches will hold a press conference on the USS Midway at 10:30 a.m. (players will not be available at the press conference).

For more information on bowl activities contact Mark Neville at 619/285-5061 x309 (work) or 858/967-0901 (cell).

Navy Accepts Bid To Poinsettia Bowl... Naval Academy Director of Athletics Chet Gladchuk announced Nov. 21 that the Naval Academy had accepted an invitation to play in the inaugural San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl Thursday, December 22 at 7:30 p.m. (PST) at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, California. The bid also came with a bonus as the Mids will have the opportunity to play in the Poinsettia Bowl in 2008, 2009 or 2010 if Navy is bowl eligible (Navy can pick the year).

"Blue sky, 72 degrees, palm trees and sunshine in December works for us," said Gladchuk. "A beautiful setting in a Navy city in one of the finest football venues in the country has everyone excited. We have had discussions with the Poinsettia Bowl executives for quite a while and their attention to detail and enthusiasm for our team and fans leads one to believe that this will be our finest bowl experience yet. Three bowl games in a row is historic for the Academy and our congratulations to Coach Johnson, his staff and our players for reaffirming that Navy is one of the finest football programs in the nation."

"What better way to kick off San Diego's newest bowl game than to have the United States Naval Academy as one of the teams," said Poinsettia Bowl President Doug Sawyer. "We couldn't be happier that the Naval Academy has accepted our invitation."

"What better way to kick off a new bowl game in San Diego than to have Navy play in it," said Poinsettia Bowl Chairman Doug Sawyer. "The Naval Academy has one of the most tradition-rich college football programs in the country, and we're so pleased the Midshipmen will be bringing their traditions and exciting football team to our community."

"I'm excited the team has achieved one of their goals, to have a chance to go to a bowl game, and I'm excited to be going to San Diego," said Navy head coach Paul Johnson. "I was lucky enough when I coached in Hawaii to play there in the Holiday Bowl. It's a great city and I'm sure the kids will have a great time. We are excited about it. "

The bowl bid is a landmark achievement for the football program as it marks the first time in school history that Navy has gone to three-straight bowl games.

Tickets are on sale now at www.navysports.com(.), by calling 1-800-US4-NAVY or at the Ricketts Hall Box Office. Tickets are $45 for club seats and $35 for field seats. Fans not able to attend the game can purchase tickets to send a midshipman for $35.

"We strongly encourage Navy fans to buy their bowl tickets from the Athletic Association. Our goal is 20,000 tickets sold so it is very important for this year and for future bowl games that your purchase counts towards our allotment. If you can't make it to the game, we ask that Navy fans buy two tickets for our midshipmen to attend the game. The donation is 100 percent tax deductible."

Game Data... The Navy Midshipmen (7-4) travel to San Diego, Calif. to take on the Colorado State Rams (6-5) in the inaugural San Diego Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl, Thursday, Dec. 22, at Qualcomm Stadium (70, 561). The Poinsettia Bowl will kick off at 7:30 p.m. (10:30 EST) and will be nationally televised by ESPN2. Navy is making a school-record third-cosecutive bowl appearance.

The Poinsettia Bowl can be heard on the Navy Radio Network, which includes WBAL in Baltimore (1090 AM), Sportstalk 980 in Washington, D.C. (980 AM), and WNAV in Annapolis (1430 AM), as well as nationally on Sirius Satellite Radio (Channel TBA) or around the world at www.navysports.com, www.wbal.com, www.sportstalk980.com and www.wnav.com. Armed Forces Radio will carry the game live to our troops stationed around the world.

Bob Socci and Omar Nelson will call the action beginning with the Navy Football Pregame Show at 6:30 p.m. (9:30 EST)

Pete Medhurst and Joe Miller will get things started with the Navy Tailgate Show on 1430 WNAV and www.wnav.com at 5:30 p.m. (8:30 p.m. EST).

Monarch Sports Radio will broadcast the game live nationally.

Mids Blow Out Army For Fourth-Straight Year... Senior quarterback Lamar Owens (Savannah, Ga.) rushed for 99 yards and three touchdowns, while sophomore fullback Adam Ballard (Lewisville, Texas) rumbled for 192 yards and two touchdowns as Navy trounced Army for the fourth-consecutive year, 42-23, in front of a sold out crowd at Lincoln Financial Field (69,322). The win gives Navy the series lead, 50-49-7, for the first time since 1991.

The Navy offense, which scored on six-straight possessions, set two Army-Navy game records as the Mids rushed for 490 yards and ran up 531 yards of total offense on a defense that came in ranked 23rd in the nation.

The game turned late in the second quarter with Navy leading 14-10. Rob Caldwell (Jr./St. John, Ind.) and Keenan Little (Jr./Boiling Springs, N.C,) dropped Army running back Carlton Jones for no gain on a third-and-one play from the Army 40 and forced a West Point punt.

The Mids took the ball over at their own 34-yard line with 1:15 left and promptly moved down the field in eight plays with Owens capping the drive off with a one-yard dive to make the score 21-10.

Army got the ball to start the second half and Caldwell once again stopped Jones for no gain on third and one and forced an Army punt.

The Mids moved right down the field, marching 75 yards on seven plays with Ballard putting the nail in Army's coffin with a 28-yard touchdown run.

Ballard would later answer an Army touchdown with a 67-yard touchdown run on the first play from scrimmage to make the score 42-17.

Reggie Campbell (So./Sanford, Fla.) and Marco Nelson (Sr./Scottsdale, Ariz.) didn't let Owens and Ballard have all the fun, as Campbell rushed for 60 yards and a touchdown on three carries, while Nelson rushed for 77 yards on seven carries.

Jake Biles (Sr./Lorena, Texas) led the Navy defense with 13 tackles, while Little and Caldwell recorded 10 tackles each. David Mahoney (Jr./Fort Myers, Fla.) had three tackles for a loss.

Owens was named the Philadelphia Sports Writers Association Most Valuable Player for his efforts, marking the fourth-consecutive year that a Navy player has taken home the honor.

Scouting Colorado State... The Rams are making their ninth bowl appearance in the past 12 seasons and the 11th in school history. The Rams earned their sixth bowl trip in the last seven years with a 6-5 record and a 5-3 mark in the Mountain West Conference.

The Rams are averaging 26.5 points per game, 119.9 rushing yards per contest, 273.2 passing yards per game and 393.1 yards of total offense per game. Quarterback Justin Holland has completed 209 of his 336 pass attempts (62 percent) for 2,804 yards and 20 touchdowns. Holland's favorite target is David Anderson, who caught 77 passes for 1,095 yards and eight touchdowns. Kyle Bell has had an outstanding year running the football, rushing for 1,166 yards and nine touchdowns on 254 carries.

Defensively, the Rams are giving up 28.9 points per game, 200.6 yards per game on the ground, 211.6 yards per game through the air and 412.3 yards of total offense per contest.

Travis Garcia leads the defense with 82 tackles, five tackles for a loss and three sacks. Courtney Jones and Jesse Nading have recorded 10 tackles for a loss apiece, while Nading has four sacks.

Series History... This will be the first meeting between Navy and Colorado State.

Bowl History... This will be Navy's 12th bowl game appearance overall and a school-record third-straight postseason appearance.

Last year, quarterback Aaron Polanco accounted for four touchdowns and 237 yards of total offense as Navy defeated New Mexico, 34-19, in the Emerald Bowl. Navy wrapped up the victory over the Lobos with an NCAA record 26-play, 94-yard, 14:24 drive that was capped off by a Geoff Blumenfeld 22-yard field goal. The victory gave Navy a school-record tying 10 wins for the season and marked just the fifth bowl victory in school history.

Navy is 5-5-1 all-time in bowl games and owns a 1-0 mark in bowl games played in San Diego, as the Mids upset BYU, 23-16, in the first Holiday Bowl on Dec. 22, 1978.

Seniors Make History... Navy's four-straight wins over Army makes the Navy seniors just the fourth class in school history to go 4-0 (joining 1963, 1964 and 1977) and the seventh class to go undefeated (In 1943, 1944 and 1945 Midshipmen graduated in just three years because of World War II) against Army. The senior class also posted a 7-1 record against Service Academy teams, which is the best mark in school history since Navy started playing both Air Force and Army every year (1972).

One Win Away From Even More History... A victory over Colorado State in the Poinsettia Bowl would give Navy 18 wins over a two-year period (Navy went 10-2 last year), tying the school record for wins over a two-year span. Navy won 18 games in 1905-06, 1906-07, 1907-08. Navy's 25 wins over the last three years are the most since 1906-08 when the Mids won 26.

Johnson Dominant Against Service Academy Teams... Navy head football coach Paul Johnson is 7-1 (.875) as a head coach against service academy teams (3-1 against Air Force and 4-0 against Army), the best start for a head coach in school history against the other two service academies. Johnson is just the third coach in school history to win his first four games against Army, joining legendary head coaches Wayne Hardin (won his first five, 1959-63) and George Welsh (won his first four, 1973-76). No Navy coach has beaten Army in the dominant fashion that Johnson has, as the Mids have outscored the Black Knights, 186-54 (46.5-13.5), during his tenure.

Killer B's... Navy's fullbacks, or B-Backs as they are called in the Navy offense, have run over Army the last three years, rushing for 523 yards (174.3 yards per contest) and five touchdowns on 73 carries (7.2 yards per carry).

300 The Number... The Mids have won 17-consecutive games when rushing for 300-plus yards with their last loss coming against Rutgers on Sept. 27, 2003.

Johnson Tough With Time... Paul Johnson has posted a 12-5 record (.706) as Navy's head coach when having more than one week to prepare.

In 2002, the Mids posted a 2-2 record, defeating SMU and Army and losing to Northwestern and Notre Dame.

In 2003, Navy was 4-1, defeating VMI, Eastern Michigan, Central Michigan and Army and losing to Texas Tech in the Houston Bowl.

In 2004, the Mids were 4-1 (defeating Duke, Rutgers, Army and New Mexico and losing to Notre Dame) when having more than one week to prepare.

This year, Johnson is 2-1, losing to Maryland and beating Duke and Army.

Service Selection... On Nov. 15, Navy's 18 seniors found out what they will be doing after graduation. In four years, the seniors have been part of a renaissance in Navy football as the Mids have posted a 26-21 (.553) record, will go to three-straight bowl games, won a bowl game, and won two-consecutive Commander-In-Chief's Trophies (Navy can win a third by beating Army). It is the first class to graduate with a winning record since the Class of 1999 graduated with a 24-22 (.521) mark.

Navy's 18 seniors and their assignments: Jake Biles (Marine Corps Ground), Mike Brammer (Navy Pilot), Jeremy Chase (Surface Warfare), Cory Colistra (Marine Corps Ground), Dan Gibbon (Marine Corps Pilot), Marshall Green (Dental School), Ed Kotulski (Marine Corps Ground), Jason Monts (Navy Pilot), Kenny Ray Morrison (Surface Warfare), Marco Nelson (Surface Warfare), Lamar Owens (Surface Warfare), Luke Penrose (Surface Warfare), James Polanco (Marine Corps Ground), Lloyd Regas (Supply Corps.), Eric Shuey (Surface Warfare), Mick Yokitis (Marine Corps Ground), Dan Wendolowski (Marine Corps Ground) and Matt Williams (Marine Corps Ground).

Tale Of Two Halves... The Navy offense has been up and down on the first drive of the game, yet sensational on the first drive of the second half. The Mids have scored three touchdowns, thrown four interceptions and lost a fumble on the first drive of the game (five of Navy's 18 turnovers have come on the first drive). Navy has scored on the first drive of the second half in eight of the 11 games (six touchdowns and two field goals).

Score First!... Navy is 4-0 when scoring first this year and 3-4 when the opposition scores first. The Mids have won 11-consecutive games when scoring first, with the last loss coming in 2003 on Homecoming to Delaware.

The Red Zone Navy has scored 38 of the 47 times (.809) it has reached the red zone, including 31 touchdowns (.660). Navy's opponents have scored on 34 of their 43 opportunities in the red zone (.791) with 27 going for touchdowns (.627%).

On A Roll... Navy is 25-11 (.694) over the last three years after posting a 3-30 (.091) record the previous three years. The Mids are 14-2 (.875) at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium over the last three years, after losing 14 straight at home the previous three years.

Owens Putting Up Big Numbers... Senior quarterback Lamar Owens (Savannah, Ga.), who entered the season with 129-career rushing yards, rushed for 122 yards on 19 carries in his first-career start against Maryland. With the effort, Owens became just the 14th Navy quarterback to rush for over 100 yards in a game (54th time overall). He also joined Chris McCoy (26 carries for 273 yards on Sept. 9, 1995 at SMU) and Brian Madden (34 carries for 168 yards on Oct. 30, 1999 at Notre Dame) as the only Navy quarterbacks to rush for over 100 yards in their first-career start. He also rushed for 106 yards and a touchdown against Duke and 110 yards and a touchdown on 22 carries against Kent State, making him just the seventh quarterback in school history to rush for 100 yards in a game on three or more occasions in a career.

Owens, who has been getting into the end zone with regularity of late, scoring nine rushing touchdowns over the last four games, ranks third in the country in rushing yards by a quarterback, averaging 75.5 yards per contest.

Owens can also hurt you through the air as he is averaging a school record 10.3 yards per pass attempt this season, throwing for 1,155 yards on just 112 attempts, and averaging a school record 19.9 yards per pass completion on his 58 completions. He also owns the career mark for average yards per attempt, averaging 10.19 yards (1,193 yards on 117 attempts).

Owens has amassed 1,985 yards of total offense (830 rushing and 1,155 passing) on just 307 plays this year. His 6.5 yards per play ranks him fourth in school history for average yards per play for a season and his 5.94 average yards per play for a career (2,080 yards in 350 plays) ranks first in the school annals.

Owens needs just 127 yards of total offense against Colorado State to pass Aaron Polanco for fifth on the Navy list for total offense in a season.

Navy Ranked No. 1 In The Nation In Rushing Navy enters the Poinsettia Bowl ranked No. 1 in the country in rushing offense, averaging 305.18 yards per game. The Mids have never finished lower than third in the country in rushing during Paul Johnson's tenure at the Academy. Last year, the Mids finished third in the nation, averaging 289.50 yards per contest, while in 2003 the Mids led the nation in rushing, averaging a school-record 323.2 yards per game. In 2002, Johnson's first year at Navy, the Mids finished third in the nation in rushing, averaging 270.8 yards per contest. Navy is averaging a school-record 5.6 yards per rush this year.

Caldwell 10th In The Nation In Tackles Per Game Junior linebacker Rob Caldwell (St. John, Ind.) ranks 10th in the nation in tackles per game, averaging 11.5 per contest. Caldwell, who entered the season with 15-career tackles, has recorded 126 tackles this season. He has been in double figures in eight-of-11 games.

If Caldwell finishes the season as the team's leading tackler (he leads by 22 tackles with one game remaining), it will mark the fourth-consecutive year and sixth time in the last 14 years that a player from Indiana has led Navy in tackles. Safety Josh Smith (Attica, Ind.) led Navy in tackles in each of the last three years, and Javier Zuluaga (Indianapolis, Ind.) led Navy in tackles in 1992 and 1993. Caldwell would also be the first linebacker to lead Navy in tackles since Clint Bruce in 1995 and 1996.

Caldwell's 21 tackles against Air Force are tied for the sixth most in the country this year and the most by a Navy player since Smith had 21 against Connecticut in 2002.

Navy Tough On Punt Returners The Mids, led by their dimuntive gunners sophomore Reggie Campbell (5-6, Sanford, Fla.) and senior Marco Nelson (5-7, Scottsdale, Ariz.), have been tough against opposing punt returners, allowing just 4.86 yards per return. The 4.86 yard average is the 8th-best average in the country.

Disciplined Football Navy is back near the top of the national rankings for fewest penalties per game and fewest yards penalized per game, ranking fourth in fewest penalties (4.45 per contest) and fifth in yards penalized (35.91 per game). Last year, Navy finished second in the country for the fewest amount of penalties per game (4.17) and fifth in fewest yards penalized per game (35.83).