PHILADELPHIA — Coach Brian Newberry said this past week that Navy football “expects to win, believes it can win and finds a way to win.”
The Midshipmen showed on Saturday just how true those words are.
Blake Horvath scored on a 51-yard run on the Mids’ final possession with less than a minute to play, then threw a 2-point conversion pass to fullback Alex Tecza as Navy pulled out an improbable 32-31 victory over Temple at Lincoln Financial Field.
Navy (6-0, 4-0 American) faced fourth-and-1 from its own 49-yard line, its unbeaten season and College Football Playoff chances dangling by a thread, when Horvath kept on a power running play and found a huge hole up the middle. Horvath quickly accelerated past the second level and outraced several defenders into the end zone to pull the Midshipmen within one, 31-30, with 39 seconds left in the game.
“It was straight power and our guys blocked it awesome,” Horvath said. “Alex had a great block, Ben Purvis had a great block. It opened up, we creased it and just executed it perfectly.”
On the road on a day that his defense got shredded, Newbery elected to go for two and the win rather than kick a tying extra point and head to overtime. Horvath delivered once again, rolling right and finding Tecza in the end zone to put the Mids ahead, 32-31.
“Full trust in Alex and getting him the ball in that situation,” Horvath said. “I felt comfortable being in a situation where I could run it or hit him on a flat route. Alex got open and caught it.”
Newberry had told offensive coordinator Drew Cronic before the final possession that he planned to go for two after Navy scored a touchdown.
“I felt like we needed to go for the win right there. I didn’t really want to go to overtime against this group. I didn’t feel like we were playing well on defense. I thought we had a better chance to convert there,” Newberry said. “Drew called a great play and having the ball in [Horvath’s] hands with the game on the line… he’s a special player and made it happen. A big-time play and a big-time finish.”
Temple had 39 seconds to answer and worked its way into field goal range with one second left. But with no timeouts remaining, it was unable to set up a field goal attempt. The Owls had to settle for quarterback Evan Simon’s desperate deep pass that was broken up by safety Giuseppe Sessi as the Navy sideline erupted in joyous celebration as players stormed the field.
“I’m so proud of our players. Just the way we finished, the way they stayed the course, the way they kept believing in each other,” Newberry said. “It’s a special group as far as the character and connection. That’s why we win these close games.”
Horvath rushed 19 times for 155 yards and two touchdowns. He also threw for 141 yards and a score. All totaled, Horvath accounted for 296 of Navy’s 384 total yards of offense.
Navy rallied from 10 points down — on two occasions — to tie the score at 24 with just over six minutes to play, but Temple marched 75 yards in 11 for a go-ahead score while taking 5:18 off the clock.
Temple moved inside Navy’s 30 as the clock ticked under two minutes to play, forcing Newberry to begin using his timeouts. Instead of milking the clock and kicking a potential winning field goal at the final whistle, Simon completed a 22-yard pass to Kajiya Hollawayne to the Navy 1. Tailback Jay Ducker powered his way into the end zone on the next play and Temple went up 31-24 with 1:16 to play.
However, Horvath proved that was more than enough time, and the Midshipmen have now started 6-0 for the second straight season. They also became bowl eligible going into a bye next week.
“At the end of the day, our guys found a way,” Newberry said. “I don’t know if I’ve ever been more proud of a football team. Those are the guys we want as leaders and officers in the Navy and Marine Corps because they are the definition of warriors.”
Simon completed 25 of 36 passes for 345 yards and a touchdown to lead Temple (3-3, 1-1), which executed its game plan to perfection up until the end. Ducker rushed for 98 yards and two touchdowns for the Owls, who won the time of possession battle (34:02 to 25:58) and held the Midshipmen well below their season averages for points and total yards.
Strong safety Avery Powell and linebacker Curly Ordonez (eight tackles apiece) led a Temple defense that limited Navy to seven points and forced four punts in a first half in which Navy struggled.
After taking the early lead on a 50-yard pass from Horvath to tight end Cody Howard, Navy was shut down and Temple took a 17-7 lead at the break. After the initial 79-yard touchdown drive, the Mids only managed 27 total yards combined on their next four possessions — going three-and-out three times.
Temple outgained Navy 325 to 111 in the first half.
“The game really went perfectly for them in the first half. We were fortunate the score was what it was. To our defense’s credit, we got some big stops down in the red zone,” Newberry said.
Navy got the ball to start the second half and desperately needed to move the ball and put points on the board.
Facing fourth-and-3 from his own 48, Newberry knew another punt would be demoralizing and thus rolled the dice. Navy converted in a big way with Horvath finding Eli Heidenreich open on a slant route for a 35-yard catch and run that got the visitors into the red zone.
A few plays later, Horvath paid off the nine-play, 79-yard drive with a 2-yard touchdown run that got Navy within 17-14. However, Temple quickly responded, needing only six plays and 3:17 to go 72 yards for a touchdown — a 26-yard scoring strike from Simon to JoJo Bermudez.
But after struggling for most of the first half, the Navy offense suddenly hit its stride in the third quarter. The Mids put together another long touchdown drive of 75 yards in nine plays. The big play was a 32-yard catch and run by Heidenreich.
Tecza dove in from 2 yards out to pay off the drive, again getting Navy within a field goal.
After forcing a Temple punt, Navy took over at its own 10-yard line with 14:48 remaining and put together a gutsy drive with Horvath converting fourth-and-4 and third-and-11 situations.
However, the drive stalled and Nathan Kirkwood converted a 48-yard field goal that tied the score 24-24 with 6:34 remaining in the game.
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