The Navy football team?s senior class has a lot to be proud of. They are the only group of Midshipmen ever to qualify for a bowl game and retain the Commander-in-Chief?s Trophy over a four-year period. The group has also won a modern era-record 33 games over that span.
Navy?s seniors have one piece of unfinished business to take care of when they host Temple (1-10) in Saturday?s home finale at 12:30 p.m. The Midshipmen (7-3) are looking to snap a two-game home losing streak before facing Army in Philadelphia Dec. 2.
Like its previous two games against Eastern Michigan and Duke, Navy enters the Temple contest as a prohibitive favorite. The visiting Owls may lead the overall series 4-2, but they have had little success this season under first-year coach Al Golden. Through 10 games, Temple has scored an average of 11.4 points per game while allowing 45.4 over the same span. Making matters worse, the Owls allow 227.5 rushing yards a game while facing a strong Navy ground attack (324.5 yards per game).
“We are going to do what we do, regardless,” Navy Paul Johnson said. “If they were ranked No. 1 in the country against the run, we would still try to do what we do. We know we have to play well. If we execute and play well, we feel like we have a chance to move the ball on whomever, and if we don?t, we will struggle.”
Quarterback Adam DiMichele has completed 126 of 202 passes for 1,444 yards, 10 touchdowns and 11 interceptions to lead Temple?s offense. Wide receiver Bruce Francis leads the Owls with 29 catches for 447 yards, while running back Tim Brown paces the ground offense with 707 yards and two touchdowns.
Defensively, linebacker Walter Mebane is the Owls? top tackler with 58 stops, including 5.5 for a loss. Also, defensive backs George Coleman and Dominique Harris are tied for the team-high with two interceptions each.
Despite the obvious mismatches, Johnson refuses to let his team take their opponent lightly.
“I think they are a reallyyoung team,” Johnson said. “They are athletic and can run around a little bit. Certainly, they have gotten better as the year has gone along. They have played a killer schedule and [except] in games they haven?t been overmatched, like Clemson, Louisville and Penn State, they?ve played very well.”
Navy notes
» Although Temple leads the all-time series against Navy, 4-2, the Mids won the last meeting, 38-21, in 2005 in Annapolis.
» Navy coach Paul Johnson has a career coaching record of 97-34. If Navy wins its final three games, Johnson will have become the 26th fastest coach to reach the 100-win milestone.
» Temple is 1-21 over the last two seasons, with its lone win coming in the form of a 28-14 victory Oct. 28 at Bowling Green.
