ANNAPOLIS, Md. – The Navy sprint football team (1-0, 1-0 CSFL South) opened its 2026 campaign with a commanding 27-6 victory over Penn (0-1, 0-1 CSFL South) on Friday night at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis, Md. The Midshipmen relied on a stifling defensive performance and a quick-strike offense to build a 27-0 lead through the first three quarters, putting the game out of reach for the visiting Quakers.
"Penn was a good team," head coach
Major Carter Reading, USMC said after the game. "We made some mental errors that we need to fix and get right. That being said, it was good seeing the backups get into the game tonight. The culture of this 2026 team is strong. We are ready to turn the page and look towards Army. We will fix what we need to fix and be ready for a tough challenge with next week's Star Game."
Offensively, the Midshipmen were able to generate 382 yards of total offense.
Needing nine total rushing yards to set the new Navy career rushing record, running back
Hunter Gennicks led the Midshipmen on the ground, racking up 97 rushing yards. The Indiana native now has 2352 career rushing yards, surpassing the previous record of 2263 by Eric Wellmon (2012-15).
The senior team captain averaged 6.5 yards per carry, adding a touchdown plunge to his stat line. Gennicks, who now has 27 career rushing touchdowns, is one rushing touchdown shy of tying Alex Totta (2019-22) and Eric Wellmon (2012-15) for the program record with 28.
Broderick Freeman provided a major spark early in the third quarter by capping off a quick four-play drive with a 19-yard rushing touchdown to extend Navy's lead to 27-0. The junior finished with 31 yards on the ground.
Quarterback
Luke O'Connell commanded the passing attack, finishing the game with 194 passing yards on 10-for-14 passing with a pair of touchdowns. O'Connell connected with junior
Andrew Daly for a team-high 89 yards receiving, including a 63-yard touchdown strike in the first quarter for Daly's first collegiate catch.
Ibi Denson also caught a touchdown pass, running over a defender to complete a 30-yard TD catch.
The Midshipmen defense set the tone early, pitching a shutout in the first half to help Navy build a 20-0 lead entering the locker room.
The pass defense successfully pressured Penn's freshman quarterback John Franchini in his collegiate debut, limiting his output and forcing him to throw an interception. In the red zone, Navy prevented the Quakers from finding the end zone for the vast majority of the game, only yielding a single touchdown following a 14-play, 80-yard drive late in the contest.
Jake Frazier and
Sam Stotler led the team with seven tackles apiece.
Cooper Arnold,
Drake Murrell, and
Lex Willson paced the dquad with one sack apiece, while Murrell led the team with 3.0 tackles for loss (for a loss of 16 yards).
Lexington Megerle recorded Navy's lone interception, while
Matthew DeVito recorded the Mids' sole fumble recovery.
In the first quarter,
Luke O'Connell connected with Daly for a 63-yard touchdown pass to open the scoring. Kicker
Jacori Sutton converted the extra point to give Navy a 7-0 lead.
The Midshipmen extended their advantage in the second quarter as Gennicks capped off an offensive drive with a 1-yard rushing touchdown. Sutton's successful extra-point kick extended the lead to 14-0. Just before halftime, O'Connell threw his second touchdown pass of the night, finding Denson for a 30-yard score with six ticks remaining on the clock, bringing the score to 20-0 heading into the break.
After establishing a 20-0 halftime advantage, Navy's offense wasted no time extending the lead in the second half. On their opening drive of the third quarter, the Midshipmen marched efficiently down the field in just four plays. Freeman broke free and scampered for a 19-yard touchdown run to put the home team up 27-0 just two minutes into the frame.
Defensively, the Midshipmen held strong against the Quakers' attack for the vast majority of the game, keeping Penn off the scoreboard until the final minutes of the contest. The Navy defense continually pressured Penn's freshman quarterback John Franchini, forcing an interception and limiting the Quakers to a single late-game touchdown pass to Andy Faletta to account for the final 27-6 margin.
Up next, Navy continues the season at home as the Midshipmen take on Army in the annual Star Game, which is part of the overall Army-Navy Star Series, presented by USAA. The game is set for 6:00 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 25 at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium. The game will be streamed on YouTube and live stats will be available.
