The Notre Dame Fighting Irish take on the undefeated Navy Midshipmen. Get ready for an epic battle for the Rip Miller trophy. Notre Dame leads the all-time series with an 80-13 record. Their most recent win was last year’s week zero’s opener in Dublin, Ireland. Today’s breakdown reviews the series’ history, the top players, and the biggest match-ups.

Keeping the Doors Open

Both teams are in college football playoff contention. Still, it is important to understand why they are playing in the first place. During World War II, Notre Dame, an all-boys school, struggled with an enrollment of as few as 700 students. To prevent Notre Dame from closing, the president offered the Navy a larger space for the v12 program. The Navy accepted the offer. As a result, the series has continued every year since 1927, outside of the 2020 pandemic season.

Elimination Game

This year’s game is not only for bragging rights. It could also serve as an elimination game for a spot in the college football playoffs. While Notre Dame has many big wins, two losses to non-power four teams is hard to justify. Navy has to remain perfect to get one of the playoffs’ last spots.

Going for a Perfect Season

The good news for the Navy is that they have been perfect. They have won every game and dominated doing so, winning every game by double figures. Another win will deliver their first 7-0 season since 1978. Only five other teams have won all the season games. The Navy’s playing is perfect when at MetLife Stadium. That includes upsetting Notre Dame in 2010.

Navy’s Offense & Defense

The Navy’s dominance starts with their offense. The Midshipmen are one of the top teams at running the football and the top four in points per game. Their running game starts with quarterback Blake Horvath. He leads the team with 621 rushing yards. Horvath only ranks behind Army’s Bryson Daily in most QB rushing yards.

Horvath is also a great passer. His 888 passing yards are the most passing yards for a Navy QB since 2019. His three touchdowns in a game are the most for a Navy QB since 2012. Then there are His six straight games of over 100 passing yards have been the most for a Navy QB since 1993. Cornerback DaShaun Peele’s 3 picks are strong. They included two pick-sixes last week, with linebacker Colin Ramos leading the defense.

Notre Dame’s Defense

For Notre Dame, their five-game winning streak starts on the defensive end. The Fighting Irish are in the top five in points allowed, only allowing more than 16 once this season. They are also top ten in yards allowed per game. This is despite the injuries taking place. They lost top cornerback Benjamin Morrison for the rest of the season to a hip injury. Safety Xavier Watts and linebackers Jack Kiser and Drayk Bowen lead the defense. Don’t forget to keep an eye out for these names:

• Jaiden Ausberry
• Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa
• Howard Cross III
• Leonard Moore
• Rylie Mills
• Rob Heard
• Jordan Clarke
• Christian Gray
• RJ Oben
• Jaden Mickey
• Jaylen Sneed

Notre Dame’s Offense

While their defense remains excellent, they are still looking for consistency on offense. There was the offseason surprise. Quarterback Riley Leonard was different from what Notre Dame expected, transferring from Duke. He has six touchdowns and three interceptions and has yet to pass for 300 yards in a game this season. Leonard has struggled to pass. Still, he brought a dual-threat element alongside running backs Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price. Clemson’s transfer of Beaux Collins leads Notre Dame as a wide receiver. Other offense players to watch include:

• Kris Mitchell
• Mitchell Evans
• Jayden Harrison

The Spread

As always, we look back to last year. We look to see how these coaches performed against our spreads, known as the CAPE rating. Brian Newberry finished 117th in the nation. His team finished 5 points below expectations per game last season. It was his first year, so it was a big unknown. To his credit this season, he ranks in the top 10. Last year, Marcus Freeman and Notre Dame were 15th in the nation for CAPE. They beat our average points spread by 6.6 points per game on average.  

What is to Come

Will Notre Dame continue their dominance in this rivalry? Will Navy keep their undefeated season alive? Find out with University Foot-ball.

Author – Tarohn Finley