Sorry for being so late on this one. Real life has been time-consuming lately.

Wags weighed in on Navy football’s recent troubles, ending his piece with this bit:

Play-calling has also been an issue as the Midshipmen seem to get further away from their true identity with each passing week. It was understandable to throw the ball quite a bit after falling behind against Notre Dame and Penn State. Having Miller repeatedly drop back against a San Jose State squad that ranked fourth nationally in sacks made no sense. Offensive coordinator Ivin Jasper called for a pass on first down three times in the first half alone on Saturday and the results were predictable — two sacks and a quarterback hurry.

Navy needs to get back to doing what made it so successful during a run of eight straight winning seasons, which means running the read triple-option. Of course, that’s easier said than done if the line can’t block it and Miller can’t read it.

After reading this, and seeing other comments here about how the Navy offense is “losing its identity” and whatnot, I think we need a little bit of Navy offense 101.

Continue reading “SAN JOSE STATE 12, NAVY 0” →

Imagine how good
This defense would be if they
Could get off the field.

OK fans, this is an abbreviated drinking game because it’s not like we have a lot of history with SJSU.  So, if the announcers do or say any of the following, you should do what I write!

1.  Mentions the song “The Way to San Jose” in any way ==> DRINK A SHOT.  TAP YOUR IPAD IN HONOR OF SILICON VALLEY.  LOOK TO HEAVEN AND POINT TO STEVE JOBS.

2.  Talks about how Navy’s offense isn’t built for 3rd and 20 (like anybody’s offense is built for that) ==> DRINK SOMETHING.  MAKE LIP FLAPPING RASPBERRY SOUND.  CALL YOUR MOTHER.  SHE LOVES YOU.

3.  Talks about how Navy’s offense isn’t a “quick strike offense” ==> REPEAT #2 TWICE EXCEPT FOR THE CALL YOUR MOTHER PART.

4.   Shows Navy’s turnover margin for year ==> DRY HEAVE. DRINK.  SAY “WELL, THAT’S LEGIT.”

5.  Catch all: any service academy related cliche that deals with discipline, academics, unnecessary suffering, or lack of real college life ==>  DRINK. THINK TO YOURSELF “WOW, WHAT WAS I THINKING?”  THEN, FOR NO REASON, STAND IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROOM AT PARADE REST.

That San Jose State would even have a I-A football program in 2012 wasn’t always a given.

Football in the Cal State system has always been a bit of a dicey proposition thanks to tight budgets and low attendance. Schools like Long Beach State and Cal State-Fullerton both dropped the sport in the early 1990s, and there was a time in the early 2000s where it looked like San Jose State might follow suit. SJSU football lost several scholarships because of academic issues, and budget cuts in 2004 led the school’s faculty to pass a resolution to drop the sport from the I-A ranks. The resolution was non-binding, but as the school was in the process of hiring a new president, the faculty wanted to make a statement to whoever was hired about what direction they felt the school should be moving.

Continue reading “Game Week: San Jose State” →

How is one supposed to feel about a win over VMI?

On one hand, they aren’t very good, even for a 1-AA team. We knew that going into the game. Blowout wins over lower-level competition don’t prove very much, and they don’t do anything to inspire confidence in how Navy will perform against the rest of their schedule. A win is a win, but classes weren’t cancelled on Monday because of it.

On the other hand, we’re talking about a Navy team that was 0-2 after a pair of blowouts to start the season. They needed SOMETHING positive to happen, and winning by 38 points while outgaining the opposition 510-222 is certainly positive. Not that there weren’t issues– and we’ll get to those– but even wins like this can help build confidence. The sloppiest win is always better than a well-executed loss.

That’s how I see Saturday’s game, anyway. Not that I felt that way at the time; I was just as frustrated as I suspect you were. Nevertheless, it was a pretty thorough pounding, and it felt good to see Navy get into the win column.

Continue reading “NAVY 41, VMI 3” →

Concussions end career of Navy CB Jonathan Wev – Washington Times.

Sort of had a feeling this was coming. Just awful.

Forty-one to three
Never has domination
Felt so frustrating

It usually takes me a few days to churn out a game post (or a few years in the case of the Texas Bowl). It stinks sometimes, especially after losses; by Wednesday, most of us have moved past the last game and have started looking forward to the next one. The reason it takes so long is that the video clips are a bit time-consuming to put together. First, I have to copy the game from my DVR onto DVD. Once the game is on DVD, I watch each play several times in slow motion until I understand exactly why the play turned out the way it did. If there’s anything noteworthy, I write down the timestamp of the play in my notebook with a short description, then move on to the next play. Once I’m done with the game, I pop the game discs into the DVD player that I have hooked up to my computer, capture the plays that I wrote down in my notebook, and begin editing them. Once all the movies are done, I upload them to YouTube and start writing. Unfortunately, since the paying job and family obligations force me to share my time with things that aren’t Navy football, I’m lucky if I get it all cranked out by Wednesday night.

Continue reading “What you see vs. what you think you see” →