September 13, 2009
Navy gave Ohio State all that it could handle, and them some, as this Navy team---a supposed 21 1/2 point underdog took Ohio State to the perverble woodshed and nearly pulled off one of the most remarkable near upsets of a top 25 ranked team in recent Navy Football history. Navy lost this game by it's fingernail in a 31-27 victory by the Ohio State Buckeyes. Do not be fooled!!....Navy gave Ohio State all that it could handle in this game.
Navy was down 29-27, after an 85 yard touchdown pass from Navy quarterback Ricky Dobbs, that caught Ohio State in unawares...then Navy went for the two point conversion that was picked off at the one yard-line and run back by Ohio State which resulted in two points for Ohio State, now Ohio State led this game 31-27. Ohio State then proceeeded to run out the clock for the victory. The point spread was 21 1/2 and Navy killed that piece of bettor's garbage real quick, Navy won this game for those who took Navy and the 21 1/2 point spread.....Way to Go NAVY!!!!
Let me tell you personally how I feel about this.....I AM DARNED PROUD OF THIS NAVY FOOTBALL TEAM!!!....THEY NEARLY PULLED OFF ONE OF THE MOST SPECTACULAR UPSETS IN NAVY FOOTBALL HISTORY.
Coach Ken Nuimatalolo should be very proud of this team too!!!!!!!!!
Keep on winning Coach Ken....GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Navy!!!!!
Beat.....................Louisiana Tech!!!
Here is a few official links covering the game, contained below:
Washington Times:
Support Navy football coverage in the Washington Times by clicking on this link:
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/sep/07/untested-mids-hold-their-own/
Untested Mids hold their own
New starters don't crumble vs. Buckeyes
By Mike Fratto <http://www.washingtontimes.com/staff/mike-fratto/> (Contact <http://www.washingtontimes.com/staff/mike-fratto/contact> )
COLUMBUS, Ohio | One of the biggest unknowns for Navy entering the season was the contribution it would get from its skill position players.
The Midshipmen graduated starters at quarterback, slotback, fullback and wide receiver, leaving a talented yet largely untested group to replace them.
Based on their performance in a near-upset of No. 6 Ohio State on Saturday, it appears the 2009 Mids are composed in high-pressure situations and the triple option should continue to thrive to the level it has in recent years.
There were mistakes along the way - three fumbles (two lost), a botched kickoff return and two untimely interceptions - that ultimately cost Navy the game, but the fact remains that the undersized Mids fared well against the perennial powerhouse.
"We have some skilled kids that people haven't seen but we're very excited about," coach Ken Niumatalolo said. "We just have to go back to work."
At the heart of the attack was quarterback Ricky Dobbs, who in his second career start was 9-for-13 passing for 156 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 83 yards on 18 carries and two more scores.
It was certainly an up-and-down day for Dobbs, whose fumble led to a Buckeyes touchdown. Then he had to watch linebacker Brian Rolle take his two-point conversion attempt 99 yards the other way on the game's decisive play.
But he did direct two long touchdown drives, including a vintage Navy clock-killing 15-play, 99-yard drive in the third quarter. Navy converted eight of 12 third downs and nearly matched Ohio State in total offense (363 to 342).
"Ricky has a bright future. The sky is the limit for him," Niumatalolo said. "For him to come in here in a hostile environment like this, to play the No. 6 team on the road, to have a chance to tie it up at the end, that's all we could ask."
He had help along the way. Sophomore fullback Alexander Teich averaged 4.7 yards a carry and made a key block on both of Dobbs' touchdown runs up the middle.
Sophomore slotback Marcus Curry had only four carries, but that didn't stop him from emerging as a potential playmaker. Curry missed the first week of fall practice with a virus, but he recovered and worked his way back up the depth chart as camp progressed.
Against the Buckeyes, he converted his first two career receptions into touchdowns, including an 85-yard catch-and-run in which he outran the left side of Ohio State's secondary.
"The way the guy was covering me, it was man-to-man, and he was playing more on the outside. So I knew that I was going to run a vertical, so all I had to do was make a move like I was going to go out and then continue to run straight," Curry said. "As soon as I made that move, Ricky put it right on the money, and I had just enough gas to get into the end zone. I was dying, though."
Navy's offense featured six first-time starters Saturday - two on the offensive line and four at skill positions - and it showed in the first half. After scoring a touchdown on their opening drive, the Mids were stifled. Their next three possessions went punt-fumble-punt.
But they recovered to put up 20 points in the second half against a team expected to compete for the national title.
"Really I think in the second half, we just got all the jitters out," Curry said. "I know me personally, it was the first time that I've played. To come in the Horseshoe, in front of all those fans, in the first series I was just like, 'Wow, do I still know what to do?' [I was] looking around a little nervous.
"But in the second half I was dialed in. Our whole team was dialed in at that time, and we were just ready to go out and play football like we knew how."
which resulted in two points for Ohio State, this made the score 31-27.
Cleveland Pain Dealer:
Ohio State's close call a credit to Navy
by Bill Livingston Plain Dealer Columnist <mailto:blivingston@plaind.com>
Saturday September 05, 2009, 6:52 PM
COLUMBUS -- Ohio State was looking ahead to Southern Cal. You will hear that.
No, wait. Ohio State had to defend Navy's seldom-seen triple option offense, which is a perfect fit for the small, quick, brainy players at service academies. You will hear that too.
But the only thing worse than a crash course in preparing for a triple option team, what with with a certifiable national television mega-game with Hollywood's Team on the horizon, would be losing to such a team. Ohio State scrambled out of the Horseshoe with a 31-27 victory in the season opener on a sunlit Saturday afternoon that probably put a chill on their prospects for the season.
It should not have been so close. But, in a way, it was no surprise that it was.
The close call was not entirely a result of the Buckeyes' schedule concerns or the schematic stumpers Navy posed. The close call was also a result of the fact that the Naval Academy embodies something far more than football. Navy's play ratified the core philosophy in Annapolis.
Ohio State coach Jim Tressel told his players, "You'll remember this day the rest of your life. It will remind you how proud you are to be an American, to compete against folks like that and know that our country is in their hands in the future."
The pageantry is always outsized in the "Big Life, Big Stage, Big Ten," but the patriotic components separated this from the usual opener against a Mid-American Conference team or maybe Youngstown State. The pregame fighter jet flyover; the Midshipmen standing in front of the seats they never sat in, directly beneath the oversized American flag on its towering pole; the cordiality of the 105,092 Ohio State fans -- it was supposed to be a respectful occasion.
It was not, however, supposed to be suspenseful one.
But after Navy quarterback Ricky Dobbs shed tacklers in his wake on a 24-yard touchdown run, the score was 29-27, Ohio State, with 2 minutes, 23 seconds to play. Navy's players have been through basic training, after all. A 15-point deficit midway through the fourth quarter of a football game is not going to cow them. But Dobbs' two-point conversion pass for senior Navy slotback and former Chardon High School star Bobby Doyle became a two-point boomerang as Ohio State linebacker Brian Rolle ran 99 yards with the interception to create the final margin.
Still, the Mids got more of the second-effort yards Saturday. Taking the hit and carrying on the fight has been a tradition in the U.S. Navy at least since John Paul Jones. Yet OSU's defense, despite periods of control, never completely throttled the triple option rushing game. A better choice than Dobbs' arm might have been a run.
The Buckeyes struggled through a missed extra point; a late, high throw over the middle by Terrelle Pryor that became an interception; penalties that sabotaged great third-quarter field position; and Tressel's foolish spurning of a field goal that would have made the fourth-quarter deficit three scores. They have serious work to do.
Asked if Navy's players were better-conditioned, Dobbs said: "It's bigger than conditioning. Our motto is 'Be strong, endure, and never quit.' It's that 'never quit' mentality."
"It's why they're the best in the world at what they do," said Pryor. "We're fortunate to have that type of people who will never give up in a war or fight for our nation."
This game probably raises a red alert among OSU fans. But to harp on all the things Ohio State did wrong, or on all the things the Buckeyes will have to do better against the Trojans, is to miss the point of how resourceful and resilient was Navy.
It is what they do, after all. Their players' responsibilities do not end when they step outside the white lines. For Doyle and other seniors, they will really soon begin.
Annapolis Capital
Support Navy football coverage in the Annapolis Capital by clicking on this link:
http://www.hometownannapolis.com/news/nas/2009/09/06-24/Navy-falls-shy-of-upset-at-Ohio-State.html
Navy falls shy of upset at Ohio State
By BILL WAGNER, Staff Writer <mailto:bwagner@capitalgazette.com>
Published 09/06/09
COLUMBUS, Ohio - Navy came within a failed two-point conversion attempt of possibly shocking the college football world on the first Saturday of the season.
Quarterback Ricky Dobbs led a furious fourth quarter rally that gave Navy a chance to tie the score and force overtime against sixth-ranked Ohio State. However, Dobbs had a two-point conversion pass intercepted by linebacker Brian Rolle, whose 99-yard return gave the Buckeyes two points and a heart-stopping 31-27 victory over the Midshipmen.
"The linebacker did a great job of reading Ricky's eyes and made a great jump on the ball," Navy head coach Ken Niumatalolo said. "That's football, that's sports. Ricky made a decision. That was not necessarily a bad decision. The linebacker just made a great play."
Navy attempted an onside kick in hopes of getting the ball back and mounting a game-winning touchdown drive, but Jon Teague booted the ball out of bounds and Ohio State salted away the final 2½ minutes to escape with its 31st straight victory in a home opener.
"Well, it was a great football game and we have to tip our cap to the young men from the United States Naval Academy. We knew they would fight to the last play and they did just that," Ohio State head coach Jim Tressel said.
Navy came into the game a 22-point underdog, yet the players and coaches were deeply disappointed afterward because they felt a monumental upset got away.
"We're not into moral victories. We weren't coming here to experience the atmosphere. We were coming here to win," head coach Ken Niumatalolo said. "Our kids are down. We hate losing, regardless of who we play."
A record season-opening crowd of 105,092 at Ohio Stadium watched in disbelief as the Buckeyes almost blew a seemingly comfortable 15-point lead in the final 6½ minutes of the fourth quarter.
It appeared the game was over after Ohio State safety Kurt Coleman intercepted a Dobbs pass with
9:31 to go. The Buckeyes drove to the visitors' 15-yard line and could easily have kicked a short field goal to take an 18-point lead. Instead, Tressel went for it on fourth-and-two and tailback Dan Herron was stopped a yard short by inside linebacker Tyler Simmons.
"I thought they would kick the field goal and make it a three-score game, but their coach was going for the dagger," Niumatalolo said.
"I certainly should have kicked a field goal on fourth-and-two, which was a huge mistake," Tressel admitted.
Navy took over at its own 15-yard line and Dobbs promptly connected with slotback Marcus Curry for an electrifying 85-yard touchdown pass to close the gap to 29-21.
Momentum shifted even more on the ensuing possession when Ohio State quarterback Terrelle Pryor had a pass across the middle sail over the intended receiver and into the hands of Navy safety Emmett Merchant. A 28-yard return by Merchant set up the Mids at the home team's 33-yard line and three plays later Dobbs broke through a huge hole up the middle and raced untouched 24 yards into the end zone to slice the deficit to 29-27.
With 2:23 remaining, Niumatalolo called for the same pass play that produced the tying two-point conversion in the shocking victory over Notre Dame in 2007, but this time it did not work.
Dobbs said slotback Bobby Doyle was the intended target in the end zone and was most concerned with throwing the ball low and away from the safety that Doyle had gotten separation from. He was surprised to see Rolle step in front of the pass.
"Rolle just came out of nowhere and broke on it," said Dobbs, who tossed another interception and lost a fumble. "I take sole responsibility for this loss because of the turnovers I had. As an offense, we had way too many turnovers."
Navy committed three turnovers from scrimmage in addition to the two-point conversion pass that was picked off. While that latter play does not count as an interception or turnover in the official statistics, it was one in the mind of Niumatalolo.
"Turnovers killed us. When you turn the ball over four times, you're not going to beat anybody, much less Ohio State," he said. "We put the defense in horrible field position."
