The Navy football team?s offense, defense and special-teams units all came together and made plays when they had to during the Midshipmen?s 37-9 rout at Stanford last Saturday.
If they want to improve to 4-0, the Midshipmen will need a similar effort this Saturday, when they host Tulsa at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis. The Golden Hurricanes come to town with a 2-1 record after going 9-4 and winning the Conference USA championship a year ago.
“We?ve found ways to win,” Navy coach Paul Johnson said. “I think we?ve gotten big-time contributions out ofall the areas. That?s what you have to have if you?re going to be any good. I can promise you aren?t going to win here with just one element. You have to get some contributions out of everybody.”
Tulsa enters this week?s contest averaging more than 33 points a game and has the 17th-ranked passing offense in the country. Quarterback Paul Smith has completed 65.9 percent of his passes for 677 yards, six touchdowns and three interceptions. Wide receiver Ryan Bugg is his top target, having caught 11 passes for 102 yards and a score.
This could cause problems for a Navy secondary with injury problems. Safety DeJuan Price is doubtful with a pulled right quadriceps, while safety Ketric Buffin is questionable with a sprained right ankle.
Still, Tulsa coach Steve Kragthorpe knows not to take this game lightly since Navy shut out his team, 29-0, in their last meeting in 2004.
He added that it is important to remain disciplined on both sides of the ball, especially on defense, where Navy can burn up a lot of time on the ground with its triple-option offense. Navy also proved in the Stanford win it could throw the ball, as quarterback Brian Hampton completed 8 of 11 passes for 76 yards.
“I think the biggest thing that you have to do is to stay patient,” Kragthorpe said during his weekly press conference. “I think when you get the football, you can?t say, ?Gosh, we have to score in three to four plays because we may not get the ball back.?
“They are very, very disciplined. They play extremely fast and they play extremely hard. They have good talent. They are not a particularly big football team. You are not going to see an offensive line like a [Brigham Young], who we played a few weeks ago that has 300-pounders across the board, and that?s good. What you are going to see is a very athletic group of players.”
NAVY/TULSA NOTES
» The game is scheduled to start at 1:30 p.m. at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis.
» Navy linebacker Tyler Tidwell and Tulsa quarterback Paul Smith were great friends and grew up together in Oklahoma. They helped lead Deer Creek High to the Class 3A state title as sophomores. Smith?s father, Ron, coached that team. The following year, the elder Smith became the head coach at Owasso High, where his son played the next two years.
» Navy has won six straight games dating back to last year, which is tied for fourth-longest streak in the country. TCU currently holds the top mark in that category with 13 consecutive victories, followed by Ohio State and West Virginia at 10 each. Navy, Purdue and Boston College have six straight wins.
» Navy is currently ranked second in the country in rushing offense at 346.3 yards a game, while Tulsa is 57th in rushing defense at 120 yards a contest.
