Sept. 23, 2007
Final Stats
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Navy sprint football running back Enrique Harris (Jr./Crawfordville, Fla.) ran for 160 yards on 24 carries with a touchdown to earn game MVP honors as the Midshipmen defeated Army, 30-17, in front of 4,000 fans at the Allegiance Bowl at Saratoga Springs High School Field on Saturday afternoon.
With the win, Navy improved to 2-0 on the year and upped its winning streak to seven-consecutive games over the Black Knights. Army recorded its first loss of the year to fall to 1-1 on the young season.
"After going down 14 points in the first quarter, we outscored Army, 30-3, for the remainder of the game," stated Navy head coach Maj. Jake Jenkins, USMC. "It was truly impressive on both fronts - being able to shut down their offense and put 30 points on the board.
"Even without the long run, Enrique (Harris) would still have had my vote for the game's MVP. Every time he touched the ball, he gained yardage. He also did a solid job blocking, opening up some big holes for our tailbacks to run through. He was a workhorse this game and I'm glad to see that he received the recognition for his efforts."
Army took a 14-0 lead in the opening-15 minutes of the contest before Navy's defense forced turnovers on three-consecutive possessions to grab its first lead of the game, 17-14.
Defensive back Jason Feipel (Sr./Walcott, Iowa) picked off a Robert Miner pass which set up Navy's first score of the game, a 35-yard field goal off the foot of David Reifenberg (So./Ft. Wayne, Ind.).
On the ensuing kickoff, Army fumbled and Navy's Hunter Armour (Sr./Malibu, Calif.) came up with the loose ball on the Army 27-yardline. Six plays later, quarterback Jon DeWitt (Jr./Mendham, N.J.) delivered a 20-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Nash Bagby (Jr./Waco, Texas) to pull the Mids within four at 14-10.
During Army's next offensive possession, Miner fumbled the snap and Navy's Galen Landis (Jr./Hershey, Pa.) came up with the ball on the Army 35-yardline. The Midshipmen would eventually capitalize once again, as Green ran a quarterback sneak into the endzone from a yard out to give Navy a 17-14 advantage with four minutes remaining in the first half.
After the Black Knights traveled 78 yards on 15 plays to knot the game at 17 to close out the first half, the Midshipmen defense limited their archrival to 74 yards of total offense for the remainder of the contest.
Following a scoreless third quarter, Navy pulled away with a steady dose of its rushing attack. Harris broke the 17-17 tie with a 47-yard touchdown scamper 17 seconds into the fourth quarter. Reifenberg tacked on a pair of field goals, 32 and 27 yards, in the final stanza to close out the scoring on the day.
Navy's defense took advantage of six Army turnovers, four interceptions and two fumble recoveries, in scoring 23 of its 30 points on the afternoon. The Midshipmen also tallied six tackles for a loss of 19 yards and deflected away six passes in the win. Feipel led the defensive backfield with two pickoffs, the first two of his career, for 21 return yards. Linebacker Brian Smith (Jr./Gainesville, Fla.) paced the team with 10 tackles, while fellow linebacker Tyler Hawkins (So./Canyon Country, Calif.) chipped in with nine stops. Linebacker Chris Combellick (Jr./Carmel, Ind.) also intercepted a pass and delivered six tackles in the win.
The Midshipmen held a 38:31-21:29 advantage in time of possession and out-gained Army, 417-332, with 313 of those yards coming on the ground. In addition to Harris's 160 yards, Richard Engel (Sr./Medford, N.J.) produced 90 yards on 21 carries and Nate Stewart (So./Fitzgerald, Ga.) chimed in with 41 yards on seven rushing attempts.
In his first-career start, DeWitt produced a touchdown on the ground and through the air. The Navy signal-caller rushed for 18 yards and completed 6-of-22 passes for 104 yards. DeWitt founded wide receiver Tommy Tellson (Jr./Bedford, Texas) two times for 44 yards, including a 34-yard connection midway through the fourth quarter.
The Midshipmen will return to action on Sunday, Oct. 7, when they open CSFL play against defending league-champion Cornell (2-0) in Pride Bowl XXIX at Kean Alumni Stadium in Union, N.J. Kickoff is scheduled for 2 p.m.
