2009 NCAA - Navy
The US Naval Academy's football team barely missed a beat last fall under new head coach Ken Niumatalolo, who took over for his long-time boss Paul Johnson. The Midshipmen, not surprisingly, stuck with the run-oriented spread option that has now led them to six straight bowl games and Commander-in-Chief's trophies. The beat goes on at quarterback, where junior Ricky Dobbs will take over after making several relief appearances last fall. Injuries forced him to start in a 34-7 win over SMU, where rainy conditions (or SMU's inability to stop the run?) led to the first Division I-A game in 11 years where a team did not throw a pass. Don't be fooled by Dobbs's ability, however, as he threw for 28 touchdowns as a senior at his Georgia high school. Indeed, Dobbs can stretch any enemy defense that crowds the box. But his 42-carry, 224-yard, four-touchdown effort against SMU is much more likely for this team, which will continue to try to grind down opponents on offense.
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Navy
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The seamless transition of last season is certainly noticed, but two things signal a possible alarm toward regression. One, the Navy defense slashed more than 14 ppg off its total last year from 2007 but lose three of the four starters in the secondary. Secondly, the Midshipmen were plus-15 in turnovers last fall. This defense has guys who can make plays, but it is a bit undersized. Turnovers won't come as easy from the offenses on the slate this fall. |
| ASK the bookie? - With trips to Ohio State, Pittsburgh, Notre Dame and Hawaii on the slate, as well as visits from Wake Forest and much-improved Temple, getting bowl eligible and keeping the CIC trophy might not constitute a bad season, even if it results in a win or two fewer from 2008. |
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