Oct. 25, 2010

Setting the Stage
• Meeting for the 39th time in series history, Navy (5-2) and Duke (1-6) will square off on Saturday at 3:30 pm. The game sponsors for Saturday's game are SAIC, Verizon Wireless and USAA.
• Saturday is Homecoming for the Midshipmen. This will be the 61st year Navy has held Homecoming at a football game. The tradition started in 1950 with the Mids losing to Northwestern, 22-0. Navy is 38-22 all-time on Homecoming, including a 13-10 victory over Wake Forest last year.
• CBS College Sports will broadcast Saturday's contest with Tom McCarthy (play-by-play), Randy Cross (analyst) and Kaylee Hartung (sideline) calling the action from Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium (34,000) in Annapolis, Md.
• The Navy Football Tailgate Show on 1430 WNAV (Annapolis) will air at 1:30 pm with Pete Medhurst, Joe Miller and Wylie Baker live from Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium.
• The Navy Football Pregame Show with Bob Socci, Omar Nelson, John Feinstein and Pete Medhurst will get underway at 2:30 pm, followed by game action beginning at 3:30 pm on the Navy Radio Network and Sirius Satellite Radio (Ch. 152). XM subscribers can listen to the Duke broadcast on Ch. 192.
• Following the contest, Pete Medhurst and Joe Miller will recap the day's events in a 60-minute postgame show live on 1430 WNAV and WFED 1500, 1050 AM and 104.3 FM.

Pre-Game And Halftime Festivities
• Pregame festivities will get underway at 1:15 pm with the Navy Football Team Walk. Originating at the Blue Angel in the southwest corner of the stadium, the team will make its way down the sidewalk and through NavyFest before walking up the drive to the stadium. Fans are encouraged to line up on both sides of the sidewalk to cheer for the team.
• The March-On of the Brigade of Midshipmen will take place at 3:16 pm.
• Saturday's fly-over will feature two Boeing F/A-18F Super Hornets from the "Jolly Rogers" of Strike Fighter Squadron ONE ZERO THREE based out of Naval Air Station Oceana, Va. Piloting the lead aircraft will be Lt. James McMillan with Weapon Systems Officer Lt. Jonathan Sheater and piloting the wing aircraft will be Lt. Doug Silverman, with Weapon Systems Officer Lt. James Hannify. McMillan, Sheater and Silverman are Academy graduates. The Jolly Rogers returned in July from its most recent deployment following a rigorous 16 of 22 months conducting carrier-based, combat operations from the USS DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER in support of Operation ENDURING FREEDOM.
• The 1960 Navy football team will be honored at halftime in recognition of its outstanding season 50 years ago that resulted in a berth in the Orange Bowl. The Midshipmen compiled a 9-2 record that year with victories over Boston College (22-7), Villanova (41-7), Washington (15-14), SMU (26-7), Air Force (35-3), Penn (27-0), Notre Dame (14-7), Virginia (41-6) and Army (17-12). The only two losses came to Duke (19-10) and to Missouri in the Orange Bowl (21-14). The team was coached by the legendary Wayne Hardin and led by Heisman Trophy winner Joe Bellino, who scored 18 touchdowns on the season while rushing for 834 yards and catching 17 passes for 280 yards. Joe Matalavage was the team captain.

Saturday's Storylines
• Navy enters Saturday's game ranked tied fourth in the country in turnover margin (+1.4), ninth in rushing offense (274.4), 15th in pass defense (174.0), and 19th in scoring defense (18.0).
• Duke wide receiver Conner Vernon is tied for 16th in the country in receptions per game (89.3) and is 20th in receptions per game (6.1). Kicker Will Snyderwine is tied for 19th in field goals per game (1.6), while Abraham Kromah is tied for 20th in tackles per game (10.0).
• Navy's 66 wins over the last eight years are tied with Alabama and Boston College for the 17th most in the country.
• Senior quarterback Ricky Dobbs needs just one rushing touchdown to set the school record for career rushing touchdowns. Dobbs is currently tied with Chris McCoy, who rushed for 43 touchdowns as a quarterback from 1995-97.
• The two are also tied for 10th on the NCAA chart for career rushing touchdowns by a quarterback. Dobbs is just one touchdown behind Indiana's Antwan Randle-El for ninth on the all-time list, two behind Brad Smith of Missouri for eighth and needs four more rushing touchdown to tie West Virginia's Pat White, Central Michigan's Dan LeFevour and Louisiana-Lafayette's Brian Mitchell for fifth on the list.
• Dobbs needs two touchdowns to pass McCoy for the school record for career touchdowns. McCoy scored 44 touchdowns (43 rushing, one receiving) in his career.
• Dobbs has rushed for 2,167 yards in his career, which is eighth on Navy's career rushing list. He needs just eight yards to pass the late Alton Grizzard (1987-90) for seventh on the list and 145 yards to pass Shun White (2005-08) for sixth.
• Navy senior corner Kevin Edwards has come up with or forced at least one turnover in four of the last five games.
• Navy is 33-9 (.786) at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium since 2003. The Mids are 11-2 (.846) at home under head coach Ken Niumatalolo. Senior quarterback Ricky Dobbs is 6-0 (1.000) at home as a starter.
• Since 2003, Navy has won 18 games against BCS opponents, which are the most by a non-BCS team during that timespan. Four of those 18 wins have come against Duke, the most of any BCS opponent.
• Navy will honor the 1960 Orange Bowl team at the half. 1960 Heisman Trophy winner Joe Bellino will be in attendance.

The Last Time ...
Duke 41, Navy 31 Sept. 13, 2008 | Wallace Wade Stadium | Durham, N.C.
• Duke outscored Navy, 21-7, in the second half to hand the Midshipmen a 41-31 defeat in Durham.
• Navy, who played without starting fullback Eric Kettani for all but three plays and starting quarterback Kaipo-Noa Kaheaku-Enhada for the entire second half, gained just 130 yards on 27 plays against the Blue Devil defense.
• Navy held a 14-10 lead early in the second quarter on the strength of a 73-yard touchdown run by Shun White and an 11-yard touchdown pass from Kaheaku-Enhada to Greg Shinego.
• The Mids had a chance to take an 11-point lead, but on third-and-two from their own 43, White fumbled a pitch from Kaheaku-Enhada and Duke linebacker Vincent Rey scooped it up and ran 37 yards for the touchdown to give the Blue Devils a 17-14 lead.
• Navy came back to tie the game at 17 on a 27-yard field goal by Matt Harmon. The key play on the drive was a 26-yard reception by Barnes who made a spectacular catch with three Blue Devil defenders around him. Kaheaku-Enhada left the game after that play with heat exhaustion.
• The Navy defense forced Duke to go three-and-out on the next series and, after a 16-yard punt return by Mario Washington, the Mids regained the lead at 24-17 on a 17-yard touchdown run by Bobby Doyle.
• With just 14 seconds to go in the half, Joe Surgan nailed a career-long 52-yard field goal.
• On second-and-10 Duke Thaddeus Lewis hit Sheldon Bell for just two yards, but Navy's Corey Johnson was called for a questionable personal foul that gave Duke the first down. Four plays later, Lewis hit Eron Riley with a five-yard touchdown pass to give the Devils a 27-24 lead.
• The Navy offense continued to struggle on the next series and when quarterback Jarod Bryant was stopped short on fourth-and-one, the Blue Devils took over at the Navy 38-yard line. Six plays later, Tielor Robinson scored from two yards out to take a 34-24 lead.
• The Mids cut the lead to three when Bryant hit Barnes with a wide receiver screen and he raced 68 yards down the left sideline to make the score 34-31.
• Lewis hit Riley with a 49-yard touchdown pass early in the fourth to give the Blue Devils a 41-31 lead.

Senior Class Makes History
• With a 35-17 victory over Notre Dame at the New Meadowlands Stadium, the Navy senior class became just the third class in school history to beat the Irish three times in their careers.
• The Mids beat Notre Dame, 46-44, in triple overtime in 2007, snapping an NCAA-record 43-game losing streak to the Irish in the process. The Mids followed up by capturing a 23-21 win over the Irish in 2009.
• The only other Navy classes to beat Notre Dame three times were the Class of 1937 and the Class of 1964.
• The win also marked the first time since 1960-61 and the fourth time ever that Navy has defeated Notre Dame in back-to-back years and the first time since 1960 that Navy defeated Notre Dame at a neutral site.

Mids Receive Votes In Both Polls
• The Navy football team (5-2), coming off a 35-17 whipping of Notre Dame, received votes in both the Associated Press and USA Today/Coaches Polls.
• The Mids received five voting points in the Associated Press Poll, which puts the Mids eighth among those receiving votes. Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times ranked the Mids 24th, while Bill Cole (Winston-Salem Journal), John Niyo (Detroit News) and Ray Fittipaldo (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette) had the Mids 25th. East Carolina, who Navy plays on Nov. 6, received seven points, while Maryland received one point.
• Navy received 26 voting points in the coaches poll, which puts the Mids third among those receiving votes. Navy trails Hawai'i by 14 points, Nevada by 22 points and 25th-ranked Michigan by 24 points. East Carolina received 20 points, while Air Force received one point.

Mids Rout Notre Dame In A Meadowlands Massacre
• Junior fullback Alexander Teich rushed for a career-high 210 yards on 26 carries, while senior quarterback Ricky Dobbs ran for 90 yards and three touchdowns to lead Navy to a 35-17 victory over Notre Dame in front of 75,614 at the New Meadowlands Stadium.
• The Navy defense was equally impressive, stopping Notre Dame on a fourth-and-goal play from the one-yard line on the Irish's initial possession and picking off Dayne Crist twice (sophomore safety De'Von Richardson and junior corner Kwesi Mitchell).
• The win gave Navy's senior class three wins in four years over the Irish as it became just the third class in school history to accomplish that feat, joining the classes of 1937 and 1964.
• The win also marked the first time Navy has beaten the Irish in consecutive years since 1960-61 and it was the Mids' first win over Notre Dame at a neutral site since 1960.
• Navy rushed for 367 yards on the day, the most ever by a Navy team against Notre Dame, while Teich's 210 yards rushing were the most by a Navy player against the Irish.
• After senior linebacker Tyler Simmons and junior nose guard Jared Marks stopped Crist at the one-yard on the opening drive of the game, the Mids answered with a 99-yard drive on just six plays with Teich ripping off a career-long 54-yard run and capping the drive with a spectacular 31-yard touchdown reception off a screen pass from Dobbs. Teich had to leap a player for the Dobbs pass, caught it one-handed, then sprinted 31 yards before diving in the end zone to get Navy on the board first.
• After a Notre Dame field goal, the Mids moved 77 yards in 12 plays with Dobbs scoring from the three to make it 14-3.
• Notre Dame answered with a touchdown of its own to cut the lead to 14-10 and then forced Navy to punt on the Mids' next drive. However, senior punter Kyle Delahooke got off a perfect 44-yard punt that was downed at the Notre Dame three-yard line and then three plays later Richardson picked off Crist at the Notre Dame 30-yard line giving the Mids one more chance to score before the half.
• Navy took over the ball at the 30 yard line with 1:59 remaining and one timeout left and easily moved the 30 yards on five-straight runs without ever needing to use the timeout as sophomore slot back Gee Gee Greene capped the drive with a spectacular run from the nine to put Navy up 21-10.
• Greene's touchdown seemed to deflate the Irish as Navy took the second half kickoff and moved 77 yards in seven plays with Dobbs scoring from the nine to make it 28-10.
• After Mitchell's interception, Navy moved 73 yards in 10 plays with Dobbs scoring from the one to put the Mids up 35-10 midway through the third quarter.
• Notre Dame would add a late touchdown in the fourth to make the final 35-17.

Mids Run Over, Around And Through The Irish
• Navy's 367 yards rushing against Notre Dame are the most by a Navy team against the Irish in series history (84 games). The previous high was 348 yards in last year's 23-21 win. They are the only two 300-yard rushing games in series history by Navy.
• Fullback Alexander Teich rushed for a career-high 210 yards for the Midshipmen, the most yards rushing by a Navy players against Notre Dame in series history. It was also the first time in school history that a Navy fullback rushed for more than 200 yards in a game.
• In Navy's last three wins against Notre Dame, the fullbacks have combined for 523 yards and three touchdowns on 78 carries (6.7 per carry, 174.3 per game)

Home Sweet Home
• Navy is 33-9 (.786) at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium since 2003.
• The Mids are an even better 11-2 (.846) at home under current head coach Ken Niumatalolo.
• Navy has not gone undefeated at home since 2004 when the Mids turned in a 6-0 mark against Duke, Northeastern, Vanderbilt, Rice, Delaware and Rutgers.
• Senior quarterback Ricky Dobbs is 6-0 as a starter at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium.

Alexander The Great
• Junior fullback Alexander Teich has filled in quite nicely for starter Vince Murray. Against SMU, Teich producted a then career-high 95 yards and two touchdowns on 21 carries.
• He scored the game-winning touchdown against the Mustangs with his four-yard run with 1:38 remaining.
• The SMU game was just a warm-up for Teich, as he exploded for 210 yards on 26 carries against Notre Dame and caught a 31-yard touchdown off a screen pass. It was the most yards by a Navy back in series history and it marked the first time in school history that a fullback rushed for over 200 yards in a game.
• Teich started six games in 2009, including the first four games. He suffered a severe ankle injury against Air Force and lost his job to Murray.

Cardiac Mids
• Five of Navy's seven games this year have been decided by eight points or less, with the Mids going 3-2 in those contests.
• Eighteen of Ken Niumatalolo's first 35 games as a head coach have been decided by seven points or less with the Mids posting an 11-7 record in those games.
• Seven of Navy's last 13 wins have been decided by seven points or less.