Nov. 3, 2006

Box Score |

ANNAPOLIS, Md. - Navy junior tailback Richard Engel (Medford, N.J.) ran the ball 34 times for 168 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Midshipmen to a 17-6 win over Army to capture the N-Star in front of 1,432 fans at Rip Miller Field on Friday night. The win pushed Navy's winning streak over Army to six-straight games and third-straight N-Star victory.

The Midshipmen conclude the season with a 5-1 mark, 3-1 in CSFL action. The Black Knights ended their campaign with a 3-3 record, 2-2 in league play.

"This was my fourth Army-Navy experience and its just unbelievable how hard these guys play," stated Navy head coach Maj. Joseph R. Clearfield, USMC. "My hat goes off to Army for how they played tonight. This was how football was meant to be played, with 11 guys flying around with reckless abandon."

Engel gained 122 of his 168 yards in the opening half on 20 carries, many of which he followed the blocks provided by sophomore fullback Enrique Harris (Crawfordville, Fla.), who produced 61 yards on 11 rushing attempts.

"Richard and Enrique are an unbelievable tandem in the backfield," stated Clearfield. "Richard is just 172 pounds of spring steel, he just wants the ball, his eyes light up and looks for guys to run over."

Both defenses controlled play over the majority of the first-15 minutes, forcing five punts and no completed passes.

However, the Midshipmen were able to sustain a 12-play, 71-yard drive between quarters that resulted in a 22-yard David Reifenberg (Ft. Wayne, Ind.) field goal to put the hosts ahead, 3-0.

Two drives later, the Black Knights marched down the field and looked to take the lead with a 13-yard touchdown pass from Robert Miner, but was called back as wide receiver Wesley Pritchett was flagged for offensive pass interference. On Army's next play, sophomore defensive back James Campbell (Kansas City, Mo.) picked off Miner's pass at the three-yardline to end the scoring threat and keep the score at 3-0 going into halftime.

Army received the ball to start the second half and put together a 13-play, 70-yard drive that stalled on Navy's five-yardline. On the 22-yard field goal attempt, the snap bounced to holder Nate Navarro and Sam Herbert's kick pushed wide right.

Following a Navy three-and-out, the Midshipmen defense rose to the occasion once again, as senior defensive captain Ryan Engle (Reed City, Mich.) came up with a fumble on Navy's 37-yardline.

From there, the Midshipmen offense spread out with senior quarterback Chris Marsh (New Alexandria, Pa.) connecting on both of his pass attempts for 32 yards, soon followed by an Engel four-yard touchdown run with 3:04 remaining in the third quarter to extend the lead to 10-0.

"We started calling some plays for Chris and he completed his passes in the second half," Clearfield said. "With the passing game working better later in the game, it really opened up the offense with some big plays."

The Black Knights would not go quietly, as they struck on a 49-yard touchdown pass up the right sideline from Miner to Geoff Phillips to narrow Navy's advantage to 10-6. However, seniors Adam Birchenough (Homer, N.Y.) and Danny Davis (Phoenix, Ariz.) came around the left side and blocked Herbert's point-after attempt and kept the Midshipmen lead at two possessions.

"That blocked was a big lift for our team," said Clearfield. "Keeping Army from pulling within a score gave us back the momentum we would need to close out the game."

The Midshipmen chewed up 6:37 on their following drive, but freshman Stephen Phillips (Barhamsville, Va.) 37-yard field goal attempt sailed wide right to keep the lead at four with 3:26 remaining.

Navy's defense answered the call again; forcing four-straight incompletions to get the ball back less than a minute later. From there, the Midshipmen put the game away as Engel ran for his second four-yard score of the night to put the Mids on top, 17-6.

"Our defense was tremendous tonight," Clearfield stated. "Army put together some good drives in the second half, which you would expect out of a good team. I am was quite pleased at how our defense responded each time they faced a challenge."

Senior defensive lineman Dave Novotney (Chesterton, Ind.) led the defensive unit with 11 tackles, two of which came in the backfield. Engle produced nine tackles, while sophomore linebacker Brian Smith also contributed nine tackles, five of which came during the third quarter. Senior defensive back Mike Molloy (Missoula, Mont.) came up with eight tackles and batted away a pass.

Offensively, Marsh ended the night 7-of-17 passing for 94 yards and no interceptions. Sophomore wide receiver Tommy Tellson (Bedford, Texas) caught three passes for 36 yards and also hauled in three laterals for eight yards rushing.

Friday's game marked the final game for Navy's 18 seniors, which includes: K.C. Dalton (Reno, Nev.), Ryan Engle (Reed City, Mich.), Chris Marsh (New Alexandria, Pa.), Danny Davis (Phoenix, Ariz.), Dorian Smith (Alexandria, Va.), A.J. Storrs (Cincinnati, Ohio), Marcus Walters (Richardson, Texas), Travis Chambers (Houston, Texas), Steve Scarver (Pataskala, Ohio), Mike Molloy (Missoula, Mont.), Matt Haldeman (Allentown, Pa.), Donald Jordan (Accokeek, Md.), Adam Birchenough (Homer, N.Y.), Dave Novotney (Chesterton, Ind.), Jason Barnes (Laguna Hills, Calif.), Cory Baxter (North Kingstown, R.I.), Ryan Kelly (Annapolis, Md.) and Mitchell Dow (Yorktown, Va.).

"This group of seniors went 26-2 over their four years here," said Clearfield. "In their final game of their career, they left it all on the field."