In an attempt to cover this somewhat chronologically, I'm going to start off by saying what a good job Navy's defense did on the first series of the game. The only question I have is what the hell happened after that?...
...Speaking of "what the hell" kind of moments, have we gotten to the bottom of Duke's first touchdown yet? I've heard a lot about how the coverage was bad all day, but Darius Terry actually had great position on the ball and should have prevented the Duke wide receiver from making the play. Obviously the guy ran two or three yards out of bounce, but the call on the field was that he was forced out. From the replay it looked like he probably started out before Terry's back made contact with him, and even in that situation I don't know how you can say he was forced out when Terry is playing the ball. A dumb call and a fluke play but at least it gives the defense a lesson in never quiting on the play...
...Kaipo-Noa did a very good job throwing the ball around early, largely due to very good pass protection from the O-line. I was for the most part really impressed with Kaipo's accuracy, which we knew coming into the season was much better than it was last season. The interception he threw though was horrible, contrary to the belief of the fan in front of me, who placed the blame on Reggie Campbell. Anytime you stare down a 5'6 receiver who is double covered your asking for trouble, and that interception is definitely on you. Kaipo-Noa struggled with reads early and didn't gain much running the ball, but he did do a good job in the second quarter of making something out of nothing. He didn't have the amazing make ten people miss run Jarod had later in the game, but give Kaipo credit. He's not exactly a dear in the headlights out there...
...I think we're seeing a transition from Ballard to Kettani at the fullback position. That's not to say both won't still get carries, but with Kettani's speed and first step it just makes more sense to have Eric in there. One thing he does need to do better is work on picking his legs up as he hits the hole. I saw him stumble on one to many arm tackles during the game. Other than that the guy is a beast, as is Ballard, who still maintains his status as a legitimate badass...
...I've been telling everyone and their mother about Greg Sudderth's sick nasty athletic ability, and on Saturday we finally saw it as he climbed the latter between two defenders to pull down a long grab at the Duke two yard line. Sudderth has ideal size and body control which make him perfect for the wide receiver position, it's just a shame it took the coaching staff so long to realize he couldn't tackle. On a related note, OJ Washington and Tyree Barnes also made plays in the pass game, only confirming the fact that this is the best group of Navy wideouts in a long time.
...A number of people have been asking what's been going on with Reggie Campbell. I don't think he's in any kind of a "funk" so much much as he's just not getting the ball enough. I say this with a degree of reluctance, because I know how fast Navy fans are quick to jump on the "get the ball to the slots" argument that has become the stuff of "Ask the AD" legend. Still, Reggie has looked good when he has gotten the ball on the outside, and I have to say I was very much surprised to see him not get the ball more against Duke, especially with Shun White out. I know we tell ourselves that we're an offense of interchangeable parts, and as much truth as there is in that we all realize that Campbell's is on another level athletically than much of team. Not to incur the wraith of Paul Johnson, but this only semi-knowledgeable blogger would like to see Reggie get the ball more...
...Defensively we played about 50 people on Saturday. That's probably not an accurate number, but you get what I mean. Anytime you see Ram Vela on the field at nickelback, you know Coach Green is reaching down deep (not a shot at Ram, who should be a starter by the time he's a senior.) This is both a good and bad sign. On the negative side of things, you realize that guys weren't getting the job done. Yet by the same token you have to realize it was a very humid day and Coach Green had to try to keep guys fresh. Our defense is bad, I know, but more specifically we're not getting good play out of our defensive ends and our second cornerback. I use the term second cornerback to denote whoever is opposite Rashawn King, who is money against the run and pass. I know Terry had a great game against Ball State and had some good coverage even against Duke (In which he was burned for a couple of touchdowns), but between him and Greg Thrasher we don't have a lot of vertical speed. This is a concern this year with the simplified defense and the new safety package, which is putting a lot of stress on the corners to keep the wide receiver in front of them. As far as our ends go, we're just not keeping containment, which is honestly all they have to do. We did see some ability from Blake Carter (against the run) and Nate Frazier, who despite being doubled most of the game got good penetration and even recorded a sack on a stunt in which he came all the way around the tackle...
...Irv Spencer had two chances at turnovers, but dropped a second quarter interception and inexplicably lost a fumble recovery. Not getting the fumble recovery maybe almost cost us the game, as Duke would go on to score before the half before Kaipo's interception in which they would go on to score again. Had he recovered that fumble, it's probable that Navy goes into the half with a ten point lead. A similar thing happened last week against Ball. We're just not catching the breaks this year...
...I refuse to talk about the quarterback situation in terms of a controversy. It doesn't matter how much I like Jarod or whether or not I think he could do a better job than Kaipo, it's not my call and I realize that the coaching staff has a much better grasp on this than anyone else. I will say that I hope Jarod can be integrated more into the offense, because as he showed on Saturday, he's a gifted and versatile athlete who can do any number of things for your football team. All for putting him back there with Reggie of kickoffs say "I..."
...From what I'm hearing Shun White just suffering a sprain and should be back and ready to go this week. Speaking of slotbacks, how about Bobby Doyle? Between him, Greg Shinego, and Scott Oswald we are solid as far as the three deep goes...
...September 22nd is hereby Joey Bullen Day. Honestly, if he's not the clutch Navy performer of the decade, I don't know who is. Props to coach Johnson for going with him even though he hasn't been great in practice...
...We need a horse collar rule in college football...
...How big was Navy's win? Well, as Bill Wagner claims today in the Capital, it just may have saved the season.
..I guess the fans in section 30 should not have laughed our collective butts off when Peter Vaas told his guys before the half that "it ain't even close to being over" before a silenced Navy-Marine Corps stadium. I guess he was right...
(Photo courtesy of Paul W. Gillespie of the Annapolis Capital)
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