Navy Midshipmen football

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First season

1879

Staff

Head coach

Ken Niumatalolo

1st year, 0–1

Stadium

Home stadium

Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium

Stadium capacity

34,000

Stadium surface

FieldTurf

Location

Annapolis, Maryland

League/Conference

Conference

Independent

Team records

All-time record

615–507–57

Postseason bowl record

6–7–1

Awards

Heisman winners

Pageantry

Colors

Navy Blue and Gold

Fight song

Anchors Aweigh

Mascot

Bill the Goat

Marching band

United States Naval Academy Drum and Bugle Corps

Rivals

Air Force Falcons
Army Black Knights
Notre Dame Fighting Irish

Website

NavySports.com

The Navy Midshipmen football team represent the United States Naval Academy in NCAA Division I-A college football. They are independent (not in a conference). Navy has 19 players and 3 coaches in the College Football Hall of Fame and won the National Championship in 1926 according to the Boand and Houlgate poll systems. The 1910 team also was undefeated and unscored upon (the lone tie being a 0-0 tie).^[1] The mascot is Bill the Goat. Ken Niumatalolo has been the coach since 2007.

1 Rivalries
2 Bowl results
3 Coaches
4 Awards
5 See also
6 References
7 External links

[edit] Rivalries

[edit] Army

Main article: Army-Navy Game

The Army-Navy Game, an annual game generally played on the last weekend of the college football regular season in early December, pits the football teams of the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York (Army) and United States Naval Academy at Annapolis, Maryland (Navy) against one another. It is one of the most traditional and enduring rivalries in college football, and is televised every year by CBS. It was in the 1963 Army-Navy game that instant replay made its debut.

This game has always had inter-service "bragging rights" at stake; in past decades, when both Army and Navy were often national powers, the game occasionally had national championship implications. However, as top-level college football has developed into primarily a training ground for the National Football League (NFL), the high academic entrance requirements, height and weight limits, and the military commitment required of West Point and Annapolis graduates has reduced the overall competitiveness of both academies. In fact, only once in the last 40 years have both Army and Navy entered the game with winning records (1996).

Despite the fact that Army and Navy are no longer nationally competitive on a regular basis, the tradition of the game has ensured that it remains nationally televised to this day. One of the great appeals of this game to many fans is that its players are largely playing for the love of the game, since almost none will ever play in the NFL. The game is especially emotional for the seniors, called "first classmen" by both academies, since it is typically the last competitive football game they will ever play. (The 1996 game was an aberration, as both Army and Navy went to bowl games afterwards, and Navy has gone to a bowl game in each season since 2003.) During wartime the game is even more emotional because some seniors will not return once they are deployed. For instance, in the 2004 game, at least one senior from the class of 2003 who was killed in Iraq, Navy's J. P. Blecksmith, was remembered. The players placed their comrade's pads and jerseys on chairs on the sidelines. Much of the sentiment of the game goes out to those who share the uniform and who are overseas.

[edit] Commander in Chief's Trophy

Navy celebrates winning the Commander in Chief's Trophy after winning the 2005 Army-Navy Game on December 3, 2005.

Main article: Commander in Chief's Trophy

The Commander in Chief's Trophy is awarded to each season's winner of the triangular college football series among the United States Military Academy (Army), the United States Naval Academy (Navy), and the United States Air Force Academy (Air Force). In the event of a tie the award is shared, but the previous winner retains the trophy.

First awarded in 1972. the Commander in Chief's trophy was the idea of Air Force General George B. Simler, the commander of Air Training Command and former Air Force Academy athletic director; who felt the need for such a trophy as a means to ensure the Air Force games played against traditional rivals Army and Navy were given some meaning at least slightly more significant than all other normal collegiate opponents that those two storied programs were to play on any given Saturday.

Typically, the Navy-Air Force game is played in early October, the Army-Air Force game is played in mid-November, and the most significant game, between Army and Navy is played in early December, typically in Philadelphia - however the game has also been played in such locations as New York, Baltimore, Chicago and Pasadena.

When Navy has possession of the trophy, it is displayed in a glass case in Bancroft Hall, the Midshipmens' dormitory.

[edit] Notre Dame

See also: Notre Dame Fighting Irish football rivalries#Navy

Navy has played Notre Dame, also an independent, in 81 games without interruption since 1927 with a record of 10-70-1. From 1963, when Navy beat Notre Dame 35-14, to 2006, Notre Dame won 43 consecutive games against Navy, the longest such streak in Division 1-A football. This streak ended on November 3, 2007, when Navy beat Notre Dame 46-44 in triple overtime. Notre Dame plays this game to repay Navy for helping to keep Notre Dame financially afloat during World War II. This series is scheduled to continue indefinitely.

[edit] Maryland

The intrastate rivalry between Maryland and Navy is referred to as the "Crab Bowl." Starting in 1905, the two teams have played sporadically over the years. Many of the early games were lop-sided and Navy leads the series 14-6. In 2005, the two teams met in their most recent game and Maryland won, 23-20. The two schools are scheduled to play again to open the 2010 season.

[edit] Rutgers

Although the two teams only began a regular series relatively recently in 1995, the games between the two schools are often close and sometimes have controversy as in the 2004 and 2007 editions of the series. The rivalry dates to 1891 as the two schools are each other's oldest active rivals. The schools have met 22 times with Rutgers leading 11-10-1 all time after the 2007 victory. Army is Rutgers's second oldest active rivalry. Navy and Rutgers have played every year since 1995 with the exception of 2002 and are currently scheduled through at least 2014.

[edit] Bowl results

Navy Bowl Scoreboard (Won 6, Lost 7, Tied 1)
Season	Bowl game	Opponent	Result	Notes
1924	Rose Bowl	Washington	T 14-14
1955	Sugar Bowl	Mississippi	W 21-0	"Team Named Desire"
1958	Cotton Bowl	Rice	W 20-7
1961	Orange Bowl	Missouri	L 21-14	1960 Heisman Trophy winner Joe Bellino
1964	Cotton Bowl	Texas	L 28-6	Texas was ranked #1 and Navy #2
1978	Holiday Bowl	BYU	W 23-16	First Holiday Bowl, Navy ranked #17 in final UPI Poll
1980	Garden State Bowl	Houston	L 35-0
1981	Liberty Bowl	Ohio State	L 31-28
1996	Aloha Bowl	California	W 42-38
2003	Houston Bowl	Texas Tech	L 38-14
2004	Emerald Bowl	New Mexico	W 34-19	Navy ranked #24 in final AP & Coaches' Polls
2005	Poinsettia Bowl	Colorado State	W 51-30	Inaugural Poinsettia Bowl
2006	Meineke Car Care Bowl	Boston College	L 25-24
2007	Poinsettia Bowl	Utah	L 35-32

[edit] Coaches

The current coach is Ken Niumatalolo.

Navy Coaches, by year, through end of 2006 Regular Season
Coach (Alma Mater)	Seasons	Years	Games	W	L	T	Pct.
Vauix Carter	1	1882	1	1	0	0	1.000
Ben Crosby (Yale)	1	1892	7	5	2	0	.714
Josh Hartwell (Yale)	1	1893	8	5	3	0	.625
Bill Wurtenburg (Yale)	1	1894	7	4	1	2	.714
Matt McClung (Lehigh)	1	1895	7	5	2	0	.714
Johnny Poe (Princeton)	1	1896	8	5	3	0	.625
Bill Armstrong (Yale)	3	1897-99	25	19	5	1	.780
Garrett Cochran (Princeton)	1	1900	9	6	3	0	.667
Doc Hillebrand (Princeton)	2	1901-02	21	8	11	2	.429
Burr Chamberlain (Yale)	1	1903	12	4	7	1	.375
Paul Dashiell (Lehigh)	3	1904	34	25	5	4	.794
Joe Reeves (USNA)	1	1907	12	9	2	1	.741
Frank Berrien (USNA)	3	1908-10	29	21	5	3	.776
Doug Howard (USNA)	4	1911-14	36	25	7	4	.750
Jonas H. Ingram (USNA)	2	1915-16	19	9	8	2	.526
Gil Dobie (Minnesota)	3	1917-19	20	17	3	0	.850
Bob Folwell (Penn)	5	1920-24	38	24	12	2	.658
Jack Owsley (Yale)	1	1925	8	5	2	1	.688
Bill Ingram (USNA)	5	1926-30	49	32	13	4	.694
Rip Miller (Notre Dame)	3	1931-33	29	12	15	2	.448
Tom Hamilton (USNA)	5	1934-36, 46-47	45	21	23	1	.478
Hank Hardwick (USNA)	2	1937-38	18	8	7	3	.528
Swede Larson (USNA)	3	1939-41	27	16	8	3	.648
Billick Whelchel (USNA)	2	1942-43	18	13	5	0	.722
Oscar Hagberg (USNA)	2	1944-45	18	13	4	1	.750
George Sauer (Nebraska)	2	1948-49	18	3	13	2	.222
Eddie Erdelatz (St. Mary's)	9	1950-58	84	50	26	8	.643
Wayne Hardin (Coll. of Pacific)	6	1959-64	62	38	22	2	.629
Bill Elias (Maryland)	4	1965-68	40	15	22	3	.413
Rick Forzano (Kent State)	4	1969-72	43	10	33	0	.233
George Welsh (USNA)	9	1973-81	102	55	46	1	.544
Gary Tranquill (Wittenberg)	5	1982-86	55	20	34	1	.373
Elliot Uzelac (W. Michigan)	3	1987-89	33	8	25	0	.242
George Chaump (Bloomsburg)	5	1990-94	55	14	41	0	.255
Charlie Weatherbie (Okla. St.)	7	1995-2001	75	30	45	0	.400
Rick Lantz (Central Conn. St.)	<1	2001	3	0	3	0	.000
Paul Johnson (W. Carolina)	6	2002-2007	74	45	29	0	.608
Ken Niumatalolo (Hawaii)	<1	2007-Present	1	0	1	0	.000

v • d • e

Navy Midshipmen Head Football Coaches

Carter • Crosby • Hartwell • Wurtenburg • McClung • Poe • Armstrong • Cochran • Hillebrand • Chamberlain • Dashiell • Reeves • Berrien • Howard • Ingram • Dobie • Folwell • Owsley • Ingram • Miller • Hamilton • Hardwick • Larson • Whelchel • Hagberg • Hamilton • Sauer • Erdelatz • Hardin • Elias • Forzano • Welsh • Tranquill • Uzelac • Chaump • Weatherbie • Lantz • Johnson • Niumatalolo

[edit] Awards

[edit] 1926 National Championship

1926 National Championship Team

Three undefeated teams with nearly identical records would cause a stir among fans and pollsters today, but this was the case when Navy earned its lone national championship in 1926, as the Midshipmen shared the honor with Stanford and Alabama. A 7-7 tie between Alabama and Stanford in the 1926 Rose Bowl gave Stanford a 10-0-1 mark, while the Crimson Tide and the Mids each had identical 9-0-1 records. The Midshipmen opened the '26 season with a new coach, Bill Ingram. A former Navy standout from 1916-1918, Ingram took over a Navy team that had only won seven games in the previous two seasons combined. One of the keys to Navy’s 1926 squad was a potent offense led by All-America tackle and team captain Frank Wickhorst, who proved to be a punishing blocker for the Navy offense. One member of the Navy offense that appreciated the blocking of Wickhorst was Tom Hamilton. The quarterback and kicker had a pair of 100-yard rushing games en route to All-America honors. Navy's biggest win that year was against Michigan in front of 80,000 fans in Baltimore. The Mids scored 10 second half points to upset the Wolverines, 10-0. Navy’s offense tallied 165 yards behind the powering attack of Hamilton and Henry Caldwell who scored Navy’s lone touchdown on a one-yard plunge. Jubilation from the victory continued after the game, as the Midshipmen tore down the goal post at each end of the field and carried away all the markers that lined both sides of the field.

Navy headed into its season finale against Army with a 9-0 record. The game was to be played in Chicago at Soldier Field, which had been built as a memorial to the men killed in World War I. It was only natural Army and Navy would be invited to play the inaugural contest there. James R. Harrison of the New York Times described the game as "the greatest of its time and as a national spectacle." Over 110,000 people witnessed the Midshipmen open up a 14-0 lead on the Cadets, only to see Army fight back to take a 21-14 lead early in the third quarter. The Navy offense responded behind its strong ground game led by running back Alan Shapley. On fourth down and three yards to go, Shapley ran eight yards for a touchdown to tie the game at 21. As the final quarter concluded, Army mounted a brief threat only to miss a 25-yard field goal. The tie gave the Midshipmen a share of the national championship based on retroactive rankings by both the William Boand and Deke Houlgate mathematical poll systems.^[2]