Notre Dame lost again. The Fighting Irish had to play a tough Navy team on Saturday and weren’t able to come out on top. The Midshipmen’s 28-27 win was the first time that the program beat Notre Dame since 201o. Additionally, it was Navy’s fourth win in 10 games in this series, which is notable because the Midshipmen didn’t beat Notre Dame between 1964 and 2006.
Navy won this game by triple option-ing Notre Dame to death. This definitely came through in the box score – Navy ran the ball 56 times for 320 yards with four touchdowns and its starting quarterback threw eight passes – but beyond that, Ken Niumatalolo’s team just did not let the Fighting Irish get their hands on the football.
Notre Dame had six total possessions against Navy. Four in the first half, two in the second half.
— Brian Fremeau (@bcfremeau) November 5, 2016
Six possessions in an entire football game is ridiculous. The time of possession may not necessarily show this, as Navy “only” had the ball for 33:53, but the Fighting Irish offense only getting six chances to score is a testament to how well Navy kept possession of the football. Plus even though Navy ran the ball down Notre Dame’s throat, its offense went to the air when it was time to win the game.
https://twitter.com/CBSSports/status/794974656314781696
All credit to Navy because, you know, it won the football game, but this is the latest gut-wrenching loss for a Notre Dame team that had Playoff aspirations coming into the season. The team has absolutely had some bad luck, as evidenced by the fact that it has lost six games by a combined 29 points and every loss has come in a one-possession game.
But Notre Dame is the kind of school where down years are not acceptable. The Fighting Irish have to win out to become bowl eligible, and while the team is talented enough to maybe do it, the schedule is brutal (it ends with Virginia Tech and a trip to USC). Plus there’s nothing to suggest that the team will suddenly turn it around and catch fire after nine games.
Still, while Notre Dame is the bigger story in this game, Navy really does deserve a ton of credit for perfectly executing its game plan and coming out on top. There were a few questions about how the team would replace star quarterback Keenan Reynolds, but Will Worth has done a great job leading the Midshipmen offense. And with a 6-2 record that includes a win over Houston, this looks more and more like a team that could be deserving of going to a really good bowl game.
