Navy finished their 4 game road trip with a convincing win over the Air Force Academy, putting them halfway to taking home the Commander-in-Chief Trophy for the 7th straight season and only 12th time in the rivalry game history.
Kameron Smith was the life of the party again, completing 21 of his 38 passes for 211 yards and 1 TD as well as rushing for a career best 170 yards on 25 carries and another TD. Andre Byrd added 93 yards on 19 carries and 2 TDs and Mario Washington was the leading receiver once again with 4 catches for 39 yards and 1 TD.
It was a close game throughout, until the 4th quarter when Navy started to pour on the points.
Navy took their opening drive of the game in for a TD but Air Force responded with a solid drive of their own knotting up the score at 7-7. But, Navy was determined and took their next possession in for a TD as well (Alex Teich getting his first TD of the season on a 1 yard FB option).
Navy then stopped Air Force and proceeded to take their next drive down the field and scored on a 4 yard TD pass from Smith to Washington. Kicker Kyle Delahooke would miss the extra point, making the score 20-7.
After that, there were two consecutive drives that would stall for Navy and Air Force before Air Force stuck quickly on a 59 yard catch and run from QB Matt Saucier to WR Kyle Halderman, making the score 20-14 Navy at halftime.
"It was not looking good for us at halftime," said coach Niumatalolo. "We weren't having trouble moving the ball, but we couldn't stop them consistently at all. It seemed like it wasn't until the 4th quarter when we were down by 4 points that they decided it was do or die time and that's when everything started clicking for us."
Indeed, the 4th quarter has been a problem for the Midshipmen this season (previous having been outscored 17-7 in the 4th) but that certainly wasn't the case in this game. The Midshipmen offense exploded for 21 unanswered points and put the game well out of reach as the defense constantly took advantage of an Air Force team that is still trying to make the full transition from flexbone to spread offense.
Next, Navy has their first home game of the season, playing host to the Florida International Panthers.
"I can imagine no more rewarding a career. And any man who may be asked in this century what he did to make his life worthwhile, I think can respond with a good deal of pride and satisfaction: 'I served in the United States Navy.'" - President John F. Kennedy
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