With Navy football?s season opener against East Carolina nine days away, head coach Paul Johnson cleared up his backlog at quarterback by naming sophomore Kaipo-Noa Kaheaku-Enhada the No. 2 signal-caller behind starter Brian Hampton.
Kaheaku-Enhada had been lumped into a group behind Hampton with sophomore Jarrod Bryant and junior Troy Goss. Bryant is currently listed as the No. 3 quarterback, with Goss now listed third on the depth chart at wide receiver. Johnson said he went with Kaheaku-Enhada over the others because he?s faster, more athletic and probably a little better running the option.
“Going off the scrimmages and going off last spring, it was close,” Johnson said of the competition. “It?s getting close to game time, and we had to make somebody No. 2. [Kaheaku-Enhada] is No. 2. Is that etched in stone? I don?t know. We?ll see what happens. You would hope the No. 2 guy doesn?t play quarterback too much.”
Johnson added that he moved Goss over to receiver officially to provide more depth at an area of need. Currently, senior Jason Tomlinson and junior O.J. Washington are the only Midshipmen with game experience at wide receiver after sophomore Tyree Barnes was sidelined with a knee injury and junior Kyle Kimbro resigned from the academy.
“I?m not going to qualify the statement with ?It?s etched in stone,? and ?He?s going to be a receiver forever,?” Johnson said of Goss. “Right now, we need him at receiver. Kaipo is still going to play receiver, too. It?s not like it?s any big deal. Nothing really has changed.”
Along with the departure of Kimbro, Navy also must deal with the loss of backup linebacker Keith Lisante. The 6-foot-2, 227-pound Lisante decided to quit the football team to concentrate on academics. He had appeared in 19 games over the previous two seasons after choosing Navy over Louisville, South Carolina and Connecticut, among others.
Although upset by the decision, Johnson said he can?t dwell on it with the season set to begin soon.
“Anytime you lose somebody, it?s a disappointment,” Johnson said. “But you move on. Let?s talk about the guys that are out here.”
NAVY NOTES
» Johnson is still trying to identifya starting punter for this season. The top two candidates, junior Greg Veteto and senior Ethan Gouge, have never appeared in a varsity game for the Midshipmen. Veteto is currently listed ahead of Gouge on the depth chart.
