Mids survive on last-second field goal
Freshman kicker Nichols hits 48-yarder to defeat Green Wave
Head coach Ken Niumatalolo was down on one knee with his head bowed, asking for divine intervention.
Standout quarterback Malcolm Perry admitted he also had his eyes closed and was praying.
It seems the only Navy football player who wasn’t nervous was rookie kicker Bijan Nichols. The lightly recruited freshman from Heath, Texas trotted onto the field like it was a routine extra point while the announced crowd of 31,118 at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium held its collective breath.
Nichols calmly drilled a 48-yard field goal as time expired to lift Navy to a heart-stopping 41-38 defeat of Tulane on Saturday night in Annapolis.
“I’ve seen him make that kick a lot at the end of practice when everybody is screaming and trying to get into his head – just trying to duplicate that exact situation on the field,” Perry said of Nichols. “I’ve seen him do it before and I was really confident in him, but my eyes were closed and I was praying.”
Niumatalolo, who knew the game-winning field goal was good by the raucous reaction of the fans, jumped off the artificial turf and sprinted onto the field with unrestrained joy.
“I’m proud of our players for how they hung in there and kept fighting. That was a great team win,” the 12th-year head coach said. “Hopefully, we don’t have too many more of these type of games – I’m not sure if I can handle it.”
Perry led the way as the Midshipmen rushed off the sidelines to mob Nichols, whose powerful boot that perfectly split the uprights would have been good from much further.
“I had a really good feeling that our offense was going to get me in range, so I knew to be ready,” said Nichols, who was not even part of the placekicking competition for much of August training camp. “Every kick is the same. I just had to go through my normal routine and do what I always practice doing.”
After Tulane tied the score at 38 with 1:01 remaining, it was Perry who put Navy in position to attempt the game-winning field goal. The Midshipmen started the final drive at the 25-yard line and the speedy quarterback sparked hope with runs of 9 and 10 yards.
Perry purposefully spiked the ball to stop the clock with 22 seconds and that gave the offensive coaching staff time to regroup and come up with a play. It turns out the best play was Perry improvising as he dropped back to pass, couldn’t spot an open receiver then took off.
In typical fashion, Perry weaved his way downfield making multiple defenders miss with lightning-quick cutback moves. The 5-foot-9, 185-pound senior’s spectacular 21-yard run brought the ball to the 33-yard line, which was close enough for Nichols.
“The thought process was to keep the ball in number ten’s hands. Let’s make sure Malcolm has a chance,” Niumatalolo said. “Just like against Air Force, Malcolm willed us down there to at least give (Nichols) a shot.”
Perry then picked up two additional yards while making sure the kick would come from the left hash mark.
“I asked (Nichols) just this week where does he feel most comfortable – left hash, right hash or middle?” Niumatalolo said. “Bijan said ‘Coach, I like the left hash more. I just feel like I can get my hips through better from that side.’ We normally center the ball, but I was like no I’m going to keep it on the left hash.”
Nichols came into the contest 3-for-5 on field goal attempts, having boomed a career-best 49-yarder against Memphis. In practice, the freshman from RockwallHeath High routinely makes field goals from 50 yards or longer.
“This kid has a strong leg. He gets the ball off fast and gets it up quickly. He’s as talented a kicker as we’ve ever had,” Niumatalolo said. “He’s also a cool for school kid. The way Bijan just talked, with that monotone voice, that’s him. He’s easygoing, nothing ever rattles him. You need a kicker like that who has some ice in his veins.”
Sophomore fullback Jamale Carothers rushed for 154 yards and three touchdowns and added a fourth score off a 31-yard reception for Navy, which improved to 6-1 overall and 4-1 in the AAC.
Perry contributed 142 rushing yards for the Midshipmen, who became bowl eligible for the 15th time in the past 17 seasons. Starting fullback Nelson Smith added 76 rushing yards for Navy, which continued its bounce-back season after finishing 3-10 in 2018.
Quarterback Justin McMillan completed 20 of 29 passes for 290 yards and three touchdowns to lead Tulane (5-3, 2-2), which had rallied from an early 24-0 deficit. Running backs Cameron Carroll and Tyjae Spears combined to rush for 131 yards for the Green Wave, who tied the score at 31 and 38 in the fourth quarter.
“It was a tough one, without question. It was very disappointing. We wanted to get a stop there and go into overtime,” Tulane coach Willie Fritz said.