Sports Comments: History within Navy's grasp

Many fans were understandably concerned about the future of the Navy football program after head coach Paul Johnson resigned to accept the same position at Georgia Tech.

Who would have thought that just two seasons into his tenure, successor Ken Niumatalolo would have Navy on the verge of its most successful season ever?

Navy has an opportunity to win 10 regular season games for only the second time in the 129-year history of the program (the other came way back in 1905 when Coach Paul Dillard led the team to a 10-1-1 record). If Navy can beat

Hawaii and archrival Army then knock off a Big 12 opponent in the Texas Bowl, it would set a school record with 11 victories.

While the 2007 victory over Notre Dame was historic since it snapped Navy's surreal 43-game losing streak in the series, this season's result was actually more impressive. That was a bad Notre Dame team that Navy beat two years ago, one that would finish among the worst in program history with a 3-8 record.

This year, Navy upset a very good Notre Dame team, one that was ranked No. 19 nationally at the time and featured a bevy of future NFL Draft picks such as quarterback Jimmy Clausen and wide receiver Michael Floyd.

Navy received 41 votes in this week's Associated Press poll, which would place it No. 31 overall. If the Midshipmen can close with two more wins and finish 10-3, there is a good chance they could enter the Top 25 during the regular season for the first time.

Johnson created a blueprint for success at Navy and Niumatalolo has been smart enough to follow it. The Midshipmen still run their patented triple-option offense with remarkable efficiency, still rank among the nation's leaders in rushing offense, still don't beat themselves with penalties and turnovers and still dominate time of possession against most opponents.

Navy currently ranks third nationally in rushing offense (282.5 yards per game), first in fewest penalties committed (3.73 per game), second in time of possession (average of 33.38 minutes) and No. 23 in turnover margin (plus seven).

Following that offensive formula has helped Navy win eight games or more for seven straight seasons. What sets this team apart from previous editions in the current triple-option era (2002-2009) is defense. During their streak of seven straight winning seasons, the Midshipmen have never defended this well.

Defensive coordinator Buddy Green has also created a formula for success on that side of the ball and it involves not giving up the big play and rallying to the football. Led by the terrific inside linebacker trio of Ross Pospisil, Tony Haberer and Tyler Simmons, this group of Mids has executed that strategy to perfection - keeping the ball in front of them, pursuing with relentless energy and tackling extremely well.

Delaware head coach K.C. Keeler and his assistants were amazed when watching film how often the Navy defense ended up with all 11 players around the football. That philosophy and mindset explains why the Midshipmen rank 36th in total defense (338.3 yards allowed per game) and 30th in scoring defense (average of 21 points allowed).

Navy has also been quite solid on special teams with kicker Joe Buckley and punter Kyle Delahooke both performing well. Put it all together, and this might be the Midshipmen's most complete squad in quite some time.

Johnson left Navy because of an intense desire to capture a national championship. It hasn't taken him long to get Georgia Tech tracking toward that type of success. The seventh-ranked Yellow Jackets (10-1) captured the Coastal Division title and clinched a spot in the Atlantic Coast Conference championship game last Saturday.

Many years ago, an innovative head coach named Ken Hatfield revived the Air Force football program by installing the wishbone offense with which he was so familiar. Hatfield led the Falcons to a 10-2 record and No. 13 national ranking in 1983 then moved onto bigger and better things, leading Arkansas to a pair of Southwest Conference championships and Clemson to an ACC crown.

Offensive coordinator Fisher DeBerry succeeded Hatfield and enjoyed a remarkable 23-year career as Air Force head coach, leading the program to 17 winning seasons, 16 Commander-in-Chief's Trophy titles and 12 bowl berths.

Could a similar scenario unfold at Navy? Johnson, like Hatfield, turned around a program that had reached rock bottom and was the architect of future success. Could Niumatalolo, like DeBerry, keep the Midshipmen on course for the next two decades?

Navy football fans can only hope that Niumatalolo stays around that long and maintains the winning formula that has worked so well the past seven seasons.