TAMPA— Navy and USF entered today’s game on opposite trajectories. The Bulls had won two straight while playing their best football of the season. The Midshipmen had lost two straight and were reeling. But when they faced each other, both teams resumed course.

Navy (7-2, 5-1 American Athletic Conference) kept their hopes for a conference title alive with a 28-7 win over USF (4-5, 2-3) before 34,091 at Raymond James Stadium. Eli Heidenreich led the Mids with 84 rushing yards and a touchdown. Daba Fofana added 75 yards on the ground, while Alex Tecza had 84 total yards and a touchdown reception. Quarterback Bryce Archie was 26-43 for 282 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions for the Bulls. Receiver Sean Atkins had seven catches for 70 yards.

“It's a good win,” said Navy head coach Brian Newberry. “I'm really proud of our team, proud of the way they prepared, getting ready for this game during the week and coming off of two tough losses for us, and a really uncharacteristic one last week. Just really proud of our guys.”

Navy topped the 300-yard mark on the ground for the third time this season, ending with 321 yards. The defense, meanwhile, limited an explosive USF rushing attack to only 60 yards. That combination, along with USF’s high-tempo scheme, allowed Navy to control the clock for 38:32.

“I think South Florida is a very talented team that had played really well the last two weeks,” said Newberry. “We talked about being able to stop the run and running the football. We dominated the rushing game today and controlled the passing game. Hate not to get a shut out there at the end, but that's okay.”

Navy got off to exactly the start they needed after struggling the last two weeks. After converting on third down and four, the Mids scored the game’s first points when Heidenreich took an option pitch up the left sideline 60 yards and into the end zone.

“They were really aggressive all day,” Horvath said of Heidenreich’s touchdown. “I knew to just trust the guys, just let them make plays. We have really athletic guys and that's what I did. Alex [Tecza] had a great block on that play, got the edge sealed really well, and Eli took off.”

USF took the ensuing drive all the way to the Navy 19 after a 37-yard throw and catch from Archie to JeyQuan Smith. But Kyle Jacob intercepted Archie’s pass over the middle at the 10, and returned it to the 21. The Mids capitalized on the opportunity with a methodical 13-play drive, with the last 20 yards coming on Brandon Chatman’s option pitch on the right side for a touchdown. The Mids had a 14-0 lead in the game’s first 12 minutes.

Newberry was pleased with his team’s fast start after emphasizing it all year.

“It was huge,” he said. “Huge. You saw the result in the last two weeks when we lost. We had horrible starts. It’s something we talked about a lot. Start fast and finish strong, and I thought we did that.”

“I think it was big, just for the whole team, to allow us to play more free and open," said Horvath. "When you're playing from behind sometimes, you play tense in different areas, so I think it just helped everybody play more free. We can make more plays and take more risks in that way.”

The Bulls went three and out on their next possession after Payten Singletary made a valiant attempt on a pass thrown behind him but couldn’t come down with it. The Mids took over on their 38-yard line after the punt. They picked up a first down, but on the ensuing third down play, Horvath was hit as he threw by Jhalyn Shuler. The play was ruled a fumble that USF recovered at their 49.

The Bulls moved into Navy territory after converting on third and ten. Archie hit Atkins on a crossing route for 18 yards to take the ball to the Navy 33. After taking a shot at the end zone, the Bulls ran the ball twice and faced fourth and five from the 28. When Archie dropped back to pass, he was met in the backfield by Luke Pirris and Landon Robinson for a loss of seven yards. The Mids took the ball at their 35-yard line.

After picking up a first down on back-to-back six-yard runs by Horvath and Tecza, Navy’s drive stalled near midfield. Horvath threw an incomplete pass over the middle as he was pressured on first down, and a tunnel screen on third down lost a yard. Riley Riethman’s punt went 40 yards, where Heidenreich tackled Atkins at the USF 15. USF couldn’t pick up a first down, though, after Justin Reed stopped Nay’Quan Wright for a one-yard gain on third and two. Heidenriech caught Andrew Stokes’ 49-yard punt at the Navy 26, where he was promptly tackled. The Mids took over with 8:41 left in the second quarter.

Once again, the USF defense held their ground. After a false start penalty, Horvath was stopped for no gain on an option keeper. His second-down pass fell incomplete, and the swing pass on third down was well short of the line to gain. Another Riethman punt gave USF the ball at their 33.

The Bulls appeared to get a long run up the right sideline on their next possession, but offsetting penalties brought the play back. They were forced to punt after a pair of incomplete passes. Navy still couldn’t move the ball, though. After taking possession on the 28, they were flagged for another false start on second down and ultimately forced to punt. Riethman sent the ball 59 yards, but Atkins brought it back 22 yards to give USF the ball at their 35 with 4:35 left in the half.

Navy caught a break on the next possession. On second and eight, Michael Brown-Stephens broke open over the middle but dropped a well-placed pass from Archie at the Navy 16. Archie was sacked by MarcAnthony Parker on the next play, and USF punted again, with the ball downed at the Navy 14.

Taking the ball with 3:31 to play in the half, Navy opened with a double-reverse pass that was checked down to Heidenreich for a six-yard gain. Daba Fofana picked up a first down on the next play with a nine-yard run over the left side. Navy’s next three runs only gained seven yards, though, and the Mids were forced to punt again. After a penalty on the return, USF took possession with 1:04 on the clock at their 16-yard line.

USF was able to move the ball into Navy territory, advancing to the 43 with :23 to play after a face mask penalty. On the next play, though, Archie was hit as he threw by Kenneth McShan. Ira Oniha intercepted the pass on the Navy 11 and returned it 36 yards to the 47. With :14 before halftime, Tecza ran off right tackle for 15 yards. After a timeout with :09 on the clock, Horvath found Tecza over the middle at the USF 30. The fullback took advantage of good downfield blocking and weaved his way into the end zone. Nathan Kirkwood’s extra point made it a 21-0 lead as the teams headed to the locker room.

“It was a good play call by Coach Cronic,” said Tecza. The backers were playing hot all day. I think we were their keys a lot coming up the field. That's a play we're not going to call first, second play of the game. That's a play we call later on the line. Looking at what the defense does, obviously the linebackers were popping, so I kind of replaced them. I knew Blake was going to give me the ball. It was a weird play. With nine seconds, I didn't really know whether to get down for a field goal or if I could score. So I kind of just ran as fast as I could into the end zone. Ended up working out.”

“I saw his eyes light up when he made the cut because he saw that the middle was so open,” said Horvath. “I just had to get it to him, and then he made an insane play. So hats off to him, and hats off to the offensive line for giving me time.”

“It's huge because you want to end the half with the football, knowing that they've got the first possession in the second half,” Newberry said. “That score right there with two seconds left was big. It's great momentum.”

USF took the ball after halftime but went three and out after Archie’s pass on third and three sailed out of bounds. Navy took over on their 33 and picked up a first down on a run by Fofana up the middle for eight yards on third and two. On the next play, though. USF swarmed Chatman in the backfield for a three-yard loss. Navy punted three plays later, with Riethman’s angling the ball out of bounds to put it at the USF 10.

The Bulls picked up a first down on third and 10 when Archie found Atkins on a crossing route for an 11-yard gain. Then on third and two, Archie kept the ball and ran 35 yards over the right side for 35 yards, moving USF to the Navy 36. But once again, Navy’s defense rose to the challenge. On the ensuing second down, Robinson sacked Archie nine yards behind the line, forcing a fumble that Jordan Sanders recovered. The Mids took possession at their 44-yard line with 8:30 remaining in the quarter.

Navy couldn’t do anything with the good field position, though, moving only seven yards before going three-and-out. USF started the next drive on the five yard line. After picking up a first down, they got a 22-yard pass from Archie to Atkins to move them to the 38. Three incomplete passes later, though, the Bulls punted again.

This time, the Mids put together a 13-play drive that went 87 yards in 7:08. After taking possession at their 13-yard line, Navy picked up a first down on second and nine when Horvath ran over right tackle for 13 yards. Three plays later, he gained five yards on another run over the right side on third and two. The teams switched sides at the end of the third quarter, then on third an four from the 46, Tecza was stopped for only a two-yard gain. Instead of punting, though, the Mids ran a fake, which Landon Robinson took 34 yards down the left sideline, putting the ball at the USF 18.

“It's a tough call right there,” said Newberry. “It felt like we were getting the look that we had practiced for. Landon Robinson is one of our smartest players. He's a great at ID-ing the fronts and setting the protection. So if we got the look that we thought we were going to get, we gave him the green light to call it. We got the look, we executed perfectly.”

“They just gave us the right look,” said Robinson. “It was a good opportunity. The offense needed a little booster there so we did what we had to do and they gave us the right look.”

Horvath was sacked for a seven-yard loss on the next play, but on third and 19, Fofana ran over the right side for 17 yards. Facing fourth and two from the 10, Navy elected to go for it. Horvath rewarded the decision by taking the ball around the right side and diving for the pylon and a touchdown. That made the score 28-0 with 11:45 left in the game.

After the kickoff USF took possession at the 25 and completed two six-yard passes for a first down. Then on third and eight, he found Smith over the middle for a 48-yard gain to the Navy 13. The Bulls advanced to the Navy 5, but on fourth and two, Jacob and Griffen Willis combined to stop Archie on a keeper for no gain. The stop gave Navy the ball with 8:29 to play.

Navy took 4:30 off the clock before punting back to USF, who took the ball at their 25 with 3:59 to play. This time, the Bulls finally found the end zone. Against Navy’s reserves, Archie completed passes of 21 and 20 yards before finding Brown-Stephens in the end zone from 13 yards out to make the score 28-7 with 1:06 left to go. The onside kick attempt failed, and the Mids ran out the clock to end the game.

Afterward, Newberry was excited about what this result meant for his team.

“This is what it's all about. We're going to be playing meaningful football in November. We control our destiny, and I'm really proud to get us to this point. I know we're going to be ready to play next Saturday. No doubt about that.”