Navy looking to get past Temple for a win on Senior Day

Temple is still in search of its first conference win of 2022 as it heads to Navy (2-5, 2-3 The American) on Saturday.

“We’re both the same,” Navy head coach Ken Niumatalolo said. “We’re both programs desperate for a win, both of us do not like where we’re at. ... They can’t do anything about Tulsa, we can’t do anything about Houston, but we can both do something about this game.”

The matchup will serve as Navy’s Senior Day game, an emotional one Niumatalolo is looking forward to.

Niumatalolo has a high level of respect and reverence for the class of 2023. This is somewhat of a rebuilding year for the program, as the Naval Academy is still recovering from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Students of the academy could barely leave their rooms during the pandemic and seldom could travel in pairs.

Given the heavy mental toll that the pandemic took on players, many of them left the program for reasons that Niumatalolo understood.

“The seniors that are playing on the field, they’ve done a nice job,” Niumatalolo said. “Any senior that is still here is a tough person ... We’ve got to find a way to get this W for the seniors.”

The program, which is normally veteran-led, is relying a lot more on sophomores like leading rusher Daba Fofana, and juniors like quarterback Tai Lavatai. However, they don’t have as much experience as previous classes. While the Naval Academy was hit hard by COVID, so was the Naval Academy Preparatory School where Niumatalolo said “you earn your stripes to be a tough sucker.”

Temple is coming off a Friday night 27-16 home loss to Tulsa. In the game, Temple allowed 299 rushing yards. Going against a team in Navy that runs the triple-option all game long, Temple will have to patch up its defense against the Midshipmen. Navy is coming off a 38-20 loss against Houston.

The Midshipmen still run their triple-option offense, but they have changed some things schematically. They pass a bit more frequently and get their offensive linemen both down the field and out wider this season.

“We find secondaries have been way more aggressive coming downhill, not worrying about getting cut,” Niumatalolo said. “So we’ve had to change to become more aggressive.”

Against Temple, Niumatalolo is expecting high energy and physicality.

“They play with great energy,” Niumatalolo said. “You can tell that effort and running to the ball is a premium for them. You don’t play hard unless you’re coached to play hard.”

Against a Temple defense that allowed 299 rushing yards to Tulsa and is allowing almost 180 rushing yards per game, Navy could find some success on the ground. As Temple head coach Stan Drayton said last week and as Chief of Staff Everett Withers pointed out Monday, the Owls have a problem with missing assignments in the run game.

Withers correctly noted that Temple cannot afford that against Navy as their time-of-possession takes drives away from opponents. He also said that defenses cannot change their scheme in a week just to match the triple-option offense.

Instead, they have to gameplan within their current scheme to prevent its many different elements.

“I think it was 210-plus yards on seven explosive plays [against Tulsa,” Withers said. “Every one of those seven plays was a missed assignment.”

These two teams were in similar positions last season when they played. In his weekly availability leading up to that game, Niumatalolo made it clear that Navy would not be taking Temple lightly.

On Monday, Niumatalolo iterated the same message.

Niumatalolo pointed out that, like his Navy team, the Owls make a lot of good plays and a lot of plays that they wish they could have back. He also had good things to say about freshman quarterback E.J. Warner.

“[Warner] seems like he has a really good head on his shoulders,” Niumatalolo said. “Manages the team and makes really good decisions. The future is bright for this young man and I think he’s only going to get better.”

Temple and Navy kick off from Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday. The game will be broadcast on CBS Sports Network and OwlScoop.com will have updates through gameday.