Notre Dame Football Preview: Navy Midshipmen Offense
By Andrew Hall
Navy’s triple option attack enters Notre Dame Stadium as the nation’s top rushing offense. The Midshipmen are averaging 369.78 yards per game. The biggest question in the Middies attack is who will be under center. How will Notre Dame football stop the Navy attack?
Quarterback
Navy’s Quarterback will be determined when the Midshipmen take the field on Saturday. Zach Abey, the team’s leading rusher, has been fighting off an injury. He was replaced last week by Malcom Perry who moved from slot back.
Both players are No. 1 and No. 2 on the team in rushing. Abey carried the ball 1202 yards on 233 carries with 13 touchdowns. Perry has rushed for 736 yards and 7 touchdowns.
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Backfield
Navy’s Fullback Chris High ranks No. 3 on the team in rushing with 478 yards. As all Irish fans know, stopping the fullback is incredibly important.
But, stopping the fullback is not the only thing. After stopping the triple option from the inside out, the Irish must run the alley and stop the slot backs. This means stopping Josh Brown and Darryl Bonner.
Brown has rushed for 139 yards. On the other side, Bonner has carried the rock 26 times for 143 yards.
Receivers
Navy rarely throws the football. In fact, the Midshipmen rank 128th in the country in passing yards. Senior Wide Receiver Tyler Carmona has caught 12 passes 333 yards, a 27.75 yard average. He snagged 4 touchdowns in nine games.
Offensive Line
The Midshipmen Offensive Line is smaller as usual. From left to right, the Middies start Jake Hawk (Jr.), Robert Lindsey (Sr.), Parker Wade (Sr.), Evan Martin (Sr.) and Andrew Wood (Jr.). On the scales, they each weigh in at 295, 275, 280, 294 and 290.
How does that compare to Notre Dame’s Offensive Line? The Irish weigh in from McGlinchey to Kraemer at 315, 330, 305, 312 and 314. This is a significant difference. However, like everyone knows, the Midshipmen utilize cut blocks to neutralize the size differences. Notre Dame will need to get off these blocks to be successful on Saturday.