Game 605: Navy tops SMU, 35-28, for a shot at American Athletic West crown
Annapolis, MD – In another close, hard-fought game to the end for the fifth week in a row for Collegefootballfan.com, Navy QB Malcolm Perry broke loose for a 70-yard TD sprint with six minutes left to play, and the Mid defense shut down the high-powered Mustang passing game late to win 35-28 over No. 25 SMU. Perry led the Mids with 195 yards rushing and two TDs while completing nine of 15 passes for 162 yards and a TD with the help of some great catches by a team not known much for their receiving prowess.
The win puts Navy in a position to win the AAC West if they can defeat Houston next week and if No. 18 Cincinnati, leaders in the East, can defeat No. 17 Memphis (10-1,6-1) tied with Navy in the West. The Bearcats would host the Mids for the championship with a win at Memphis next week.
Navy ball control is key
The Mids (8-2,6-1) controlled the ball early recovering a Mustang fumble, missing a FG, and forcing a punt before Chance Warren’s 22-yrd TD run. However, it got quickly wiped out by CJ Sanders 100-yard kickoff return for a Mustang TD. Until midway through the second, the Mids controlled the clock and the football keeping the Mustangs off the field with prolonged drives. By the end of the game., Navy controlled the clock 39:40 to 20:20 by avoiding turnovers.
On the other hand, special teams play, a few sacks of Perry, and a quick score gave SMU a 21-10 halftime lead. Shane Buechele (16 of 28, 251 yards, two TDS) hit James Proche for an eight-yard TD pass and his 33-yard pass to Sanders set up a nine-yard TD run by Xavier Jones.
Navy fights back
In the third, Navy cut the margin to one with Perry capping a 75-yard drive with a one-yard touchdown plunge, and Bijan Nichols converted a 25-yard FG on their second possession of the period. The Blue and Gold defense held SMU to two three-and outs during the third. Navy’s 378 rushing yards on the day outgained the SMU passing attack totaling of 251 yards to effectively keep their offense off the field.
Early in the last quarter, the Mids took a 28-21 lead with a 13-yard scoring pass to WR Ryan Mitchell (three receptions, 48 yards, one TD). Leading only by five, HC Ken Niumatalolo called for the two-point conversion and Slotback CJ Williams made an outstanding, leaping, horizontal catch falling flat on his back into the end zone to put USNA up by seven. The Mustangs came right back as Buechele connected with Rashee Rice for a 61-yard scoring pass to even the score. That was followed by Perry’s long burst up the middle for the 35-28 lead. The outcome still remained in question with SMU’ s passing attack averaging 328.1 yard per game and totaling 28 TD pass for the season.
Down to the wire once again
Starting from their 25 following a touchback, Buechele engineered a drive for a third and four at the Midshipman 12. His first attempt to Proche fell incomplete and on fourth down, his pass to Proche was nicely broken up by DB Cameron Kinley. The Ponies still had two time-outs remaining with 2:35 left in the game. Navy converted one first down, but on fourth and two from the 31, SMU spent their final time-out and Ken Niumatatolo left his offense on the field to go for it. With cheers echoing throughout Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium, SMU jumped offsides and a flag flew at the protest from the SMU sideline. Game over with another Navy first down to run out the clock.
Next!
SMU now out of contention for the West title faces Tulane (6-5) Both seek bowl bids. Navy saddles up for Houston for a title shot If Cincy offs Memphis, otherwise they will face off for the championship again the following week. We at CFF.com weighed a few playoff options for next week among the FCS, D-2, and D-3. Most likely we are favoring our D-2 option again based on having seen No. 2 seed Kutztown (11-1) play twice this season. They defeated Tiffin of Ohio, 33-31, this past Saturday, and they will host Notre Dame College of Ohio (11-1), champions of the Mountain East Conference. The Falcons defeated another PSAC team, West Chester, in game decided into the last minute of play, 31-24. Unlike the opening round of D-3 play, most of the D-2 openers resulted in close, competitive scores. We look forward to the same next Saturday in Game 606!