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Athlon Sports
Navy Football: 2024 Midshipmen Season Preview and Prediction
By Athlon Sports,
1 day ago
Navy were only a few plays away from returning to the postseason in coach Brian Newberry’s first campaign, finishing the season 5-7. Some shifts in the offensive strategy have been the big emphasis of the offseason with the hire of Drew Cronic. Stretching the field just a bit more could be the difference-maker they need to get to the postseason again.
Like their counterparts at Army, the Midshipmen made a change at offensive coordinator this past offseason following one year with Grant Chesnut. Former FCS Mercer head coach Drew Cronic assumes that position for the upcoming campaign. Cronic runs a variation of the Wing-T system that tries to exploit mismatches on the edges, which he sometimes refers to as the “Sling-T.”
Perhaps unsurprisingly, Navy had the third-highest percentage of running plays in the nation last season, keeping it on the ground 71 percent of the time with its traditional option system. The Midshipmen had the 17th-ranked rushing offense in FBS and the best in the AAC with 194.6 yards per game. Fullback Alex Tecza is arguably the team’s best running back, netting team highs in yards (758) and rushing touchdowns (five) in 2023.
As a unit, the Navy defense did not really have one particular strength. The Midshipmen allowed only 22.4 points per game, mostly as a result of limiting opponents’ time of possession, as has long been a habit of theirs. Also notable: Navy’s opponents missed half of their 14 field-goal attempts last year.
Linebacker Colin Ramos will be one of the leaders of the defense after 110 tackles and a first-team All-AAC nod last season. Ramos also had two sacks and nine tackles for a loss. Another leader will be safety Rayuan Lane III, who was a third-team all-conference selection with 66 tackles and four interceptions last season in addition to two forced fumbles.
Senior Justin Reed is the leader on the defensive front. Reed is the only senior expected to see extensive playing time in that group, which is a break from tradition for the Mids. Reed and linebacker Luke Pirris tied for the team lead with 4.5 sacks apiece last season.
Punter Riley Riethman was a first-team All-AAC selection last season after booting 20 more punts than the next-closest punter in the league. He also kicked 20 more than 50 yards and landed 20 inside the 20-yard line. Kicker Nathan Kirkwood will hope to boost his long-range accuracy after missing three of his five attempts from beyond 40 yards.
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