Navy 31, Tulsa 21: First Impressions

After a sluggish start put the Midshipmen in a 14-0 hole, Navy settled down to roll off 31 unanswered points on the way to a 31-21 win over West Division rival Tulsa. The Mids had 421 rushing yards, with Zach Abey leading the way with 185 and three touchdowns. Malcolm Perry also topped the 100-yard plateau with 104 yards and a score on ten carries. The win moves Navy to 4-0, 3-0 in the American Athletic Conference. Tulsa fell to 1-4, 0-1.

Too many mistakes

For a while, it looked like Navy couldn’t do anything right. An illegal block penalty killed their first drive. They had a field goal blocked on their second drive. Malcolm Perry fumbled on their third drive after a 31-yard reception. On their fourth drive, both slotbacks were in motion at the snap on 3rd & 3, which led to an illegal motion penalty and 3rd & 8. That drive fizzled. In the second half, they had a clipping penalty that effectively ended the half’s opening possession. Later, a false start penalty on the goal line forced Navy to settle for a field goal. It was a bit of a mess.

The illegal block and clipping penalties were pretty questionable, in my opinion, but the Mids still had seven more that you can’t argue. It’s part of a disturbing trend. For a team that usually relies on discipline to win games, Navy hasn’t looked the part in 2017. They’ve committed more penalties than usual, missed field goals, and have yet to win the turnover battle in a game.

On the one hand, it’s a credit to the resiliency and talent of the team that they have been able to win without playing a perfect game. On the other hand, the Mids are coming up on a three-game stretch (vs. Air Force, Memphis, and UCF) where they’ll face teams that will make them pay for those mistakes. If Navy wants to put together a more focused effort, there’s no time like the present.

Defense adjusts

The Navy defense has been a breath of fresh air this year and came into this game ranked 15th in the nation in run defense at 96.3 yards per game. Tulsa had the #4 rushing offense, and early on, it looked like they would win the day. Navy’s scheme seemed to leave the quarterback unaccounted for, and Tulsa appeared to take full advantage as Chad President ripped off runs of 35 and 71 yards in the first quarter. Those plays each resulted in Golden Hurricane touchdowns that put the Mids behind early.

Defensive coordinator Dale Pehrson adjusted, and Navy’s defense was dominant for the rest of the game. Tulsa had 157 rushing yards in the first quarter. They had 72 the rest of the game. They converted four of five third downs in the first quarter but were only two of nine after that. D’Angelo Brewer is the conference’s leading running back but was limited to only 65 yards on 22 carries. In a departure from a year ago, Tulsa didn’t convert a single third down via the pass.

Navy’s defensive numbers are vastly improved over a year ago, but they had yet to face an offense that was truly capable of lighting up a scoreboard. Now they have, and they held that offense to 344 yards and 21 points. Considering the opponent, this was the defense’s best performance of the young season.

Abey shines

On the radio pregame show, Tom O’Brien said that Navy’s offense practiced against four different defensive fronts this week since they didn’t know how Tulsa would line up. As it turns out, they saw all of it, as Tulsa alternated between odd and even fronts throughout the game. The different looks didn’t phase Navy, which had 421 rushing yards and 511 total. Zach Abey was a workhorse, adding to his league-leading average with another 185 yards on 36 carries.

In the preview, we talked about how Navy might have a slow start since they didn’t know how Tulsa would defend them. While the slow start did indeed happen, it wasn’t because of any difficulty that Abey had in making his reads and directing the offense. The junior was smart with the ball and didn’t make bad decisions.

Tulsa’s defense isn’t good, but they have a clue against the option. They tried to give looks that would confuse the quarterback. They did not succeed.