Mids need to clean up act to break out of two-game skid
Niumatalolo unhappy with recent rash of turnovers, penalties in close losses
Navy was a hot mess during the 2000 and 2001 seasons. The Midshipmen were a mistake waiting to happen during that dismal period when they compiled a 1-20 record under coach Charlie Weatherbie.
Things were so bad that it was almost guaranteed that at least once during every postgame news conference Weatherbie would utter the line for which he is best remembered: “We shot ourselves in the foot.”
When Paul Johnson took over as coach in 2002, his first priority was to teach the Mids not to beat themselves. It was not an easy task to break the bad habits and Navy made many of the same mistakes in going NAVY@TEMPLE Tonight, 8 TV: ESPN Radio: 1090 AM, 1430 AM Line: Navy by 8 2-10 in Johnson’s first season.
However, Johnson and his staff showed the team how to play winning football and Navy turned things around in 2003 — finishing 8-5 and earning a berth in the Houston Bowl.
Thus began the greatest era in Navy football history. Johnson led the Mids to five straight winning seasons before departing for Georgia Tech in December 2007. Ken Niumatalolo was promoted to head coach and he has further refined the program’s winning formula. Niumatalolo and his staff have created a culture of accountability, attention to detail, discipline, teamwork and work ethic. Navy has compiled an 82-44 record Niumatalolo
under Niumatalolo, the winningest coach in program history. The Mids have won eight games or more in 12 of the past 14 seasons, easily the most successful stretch in its 114 .
That background helps explain why Niumatalolo is so distressed by what he has been seeing this season. Navy has consistently hurt itself with turnovers, penalties and mental mistakes. The Mids overcame those problems while winning five straight games, but could not do so against a pair of ranked opponents from the American Athletic Conference.
Navy paid for its transgressions in suffering consecutive losses to No. 22 Memphis (30-27) and No. 15 Central Florida (31-21). . The Mids entered a bye week 5-2 overall and 3-2 in the AAC with four of the wins having come by 10 points or fewer.
“We’re not really playing Navy football this season. I feel like we’re very fortunate to be 5-2,” Niumatalolo said. “We’re committing way too many turnovers and penalties. We’re having assignment busts. Those are things we normally don’t do.”
Niumatalolo discussed it with offensive coordinator Ivin Jasper and defensive coordinator Dale Pehrson.
“That’s my biggest concern coming into the bye week. Addressing those issues and getting things cleaned up so we can find a way to win games,” Niumatalolo said the Monday after the Central Florida loss. “It’s hard enough to win games. We don’t want to lose games by beating ourselves.”