# 2020 Navy Midshipmen football team

The 2020 Navy Midshipmen football team represented the United States Naval Academy in the 2020 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Midshipmen were led by thirteenth-year head coach Ken Niumatalolo and played their home games at Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium. Navy competed as a member of the American Athletic Conference (AAC).

## Preseason
### Award watch lists

Listed in the order that they were released
| Award | Player | Position | Year |
| Chuck Bednarik Award | Diego Fagot | LB | JR |
| Doak Walker Award | Jamale Carothers | FB | SR |
| Bronko Nagurski Trophy | Diego Fagot | LB | JR |
| Wuerffel Trophy | Cameron Kinley | CB | SR |

### AAC preseason media poll

The preseason poll was released on September 1, 2020. The Midshipmen were predicted to finish in fifth place in the conference.
Media poll :
| Predicted finish | Team | Votes (1st place) |
| 1 | UCF | 204 (10) |
| 2 | Cincinnati | 201 (7) |
| 3 | Memphis | 192 (2) |
| 4 | SMU | 146 |
| 5 | Navy | 125 (1) |
| 6 | Tulane | 118 |
| 7 | Houston | 114 |
| 8 | Temple | 88 |
| 9 | Tulsa | 49 |
| 10 | East Carolina | 42 |
| 11 | South Florida | 41 |

## Schedule

Navy had games scheduled against Lafayette and Notre Dame which were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The game against Notre Dame was originally scheduled to be played at Aviva Stadium in Dublin as the Emerald Isle Classic, but was rescheduled and moved back to the United States due to concerns regarding the COVID-19 pandemic. It was later canceled entirely when the Fighting Irish, playing as part of the ACC for the first time, chose Western Michigan as their one non-conference opponent for the season (which was itself canceled when the MAC canceled fall sports). The South Florida game, originally scheduled for November 21, was declared a no-contest following Covid issues with the Bulls' team.
| Date | Time | Opponent | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| September 7 | 8:00 p.m. | BYU* | Navy–Marine Corps Memorial StadiumAnnapolis, MD | ESPN | L 3–55 | 0 |
| September 19 | 12:00 p.m. | at Tulane | Yulman StadiumNew Orleans, LA | ABC | W 27–24 | 0 |
| October 3 | 6:00 p.m. | at Air Force* | Falcon StadiumColorado Springs, CO (Commander-in-Chief's Trophy) | CBSSN | L 7–40 | 5,000 |
| October 10 | 6:00 p.m. | Temple | Navy–Marine Corps Memorial StadiumAnnapolis, MD | CBSSN | W 31–29 | 4,400 |
| October 17 | 12:00 p.m. | at East Carolina | Dowdy–Ficklen StadiumGreenville, NC | ESPN2 | W 27–23 | 3,500 |
| October 24 | 3:30 p.m. | Houston | Navy–Marine Corps Memorial StadiumAnnapolis, MD | CBSSN | L 21–37 | 3,600 |
| October 31 | 7:30 p.m. | at No. 22 SMU | Gerald J. Ford StadiumUniversity Park, TX (Gansz Trophy) | ESPN2 | L 37–51 | 7,898 |
| November 28 | 7:00 p.m. | Memphis | Navy–Marine Corps Memorial StadiumAnnapolis, MD | CBSSN | L 7–10 | 0 |
| December 5 | 3:30 p.m. | No. 24 Tulsa | Navy–Marine Corps Memorial StadiumAnnapolis, MD | ESPN2 | L 6–19 | 0 |
| December 12 | 3:00 p.m. | at Army* | Michie StadiumWest Point, NY (Army-Navy Game, College GameDay) | CBS | L 0–15 | 12,722 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from AP Poll and CFP Rankings (after November 24) released prior to gameAll times are in Eastern time |||||||

## Personnel
### Coaching staff

| Name | Position | Seasons at Navy | Alma mater |
| Ken Niumatalolo | Head coach | 23 (13 as HC) | Hawaii (1989) |
| Offensive staff ||||
| Ivin Jasper | Offensive coordinator / quarterbacks coach | 21 | Hawaii (1994) |
| Joe DuPaix | Slotbacks coach | 6 | Southern Utah (1998) |
| Ashley Ingram | Running game coordinator / offensive centers and guards coach | 13 | North Alabama (1996) |
| Jason MacDonald | Fullbacks coach | 2 | Springfield College (MA) (2004) |
| Danny O'Rourke | Special teams coordinator / offensive tackles coach | 19 | West Georgia (1999) |
| Mick Yokitis | Wide receivers coach | 10 | Navy (2006) |
| Billy Ray Stutzmann | Offensive assistant coach | 2 | Hawaii (2013) |
| Defensive staff ||||
| Brian Newberry | Defensive coordinator / safeties coach | 2 | Baylor (1998) |
| James Adams | Cornerbacks coach | 1 | Wake Forest (2006) |
| Kevin Downing | Defensive ends / raiders coach | 2 | North Carolina Central (2004) |
| Robert Green | Defensive assistant coach | 8 | Navy (1998) |
| Steve Johns | Strikers coach | 13 | Occidental (1991) |
| Jerrick Hall | Nose guards / defensive tackles coach | 2 | NC State (2004) |
| P.J. Volker | Linebackers coach | 2 | Mount St. Joseph (2005) |
| Support staff ||||
| Brian Blick | Director of football operations | 4 | Navy (2012) |
| Va'a Niumatalolo | Assistant to the director of football operations | 1 | BYU (2018) |
| Bryan Fitzpatrick | Head football strength and conditioning / associate A.D. – sports performance | 9 | Towson (2005) |
| David Mahoney | Recruiting coordinator | 4 | Navy (2007) |
| Bryan Miller | Associate Football Strength and Conditioning / sports science coordinator | 6 | North Park |
| Omar Nelson | Director of player personnel | 4 | Navy (1997) |
| Capt. Ross Pospisil, USMC | Director of player development | 2 | Navy (2010) |
| Capt. Donald Bowers, USMC | Director of player development | 1 | Navy (2011) |
| Kevin Slattery | Director of football creative design | 2 | York College (PA) (2016) |
| Capt. Mike Walsh, USMC | Volunteer defensive analyst | | Navy (2009) |
| Laura Webb | Administrative assistant to the head football coach | | |
    Source:

### Roster

The Navy football roster for the Week 1 game versus BYU (as of September 7, 2020):

## Game summaries
### BYU

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Cougars | 14 | 17 | 17 | 7 | 55 |
| Midshipmen | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium, Annapolis, MD
* Date: September 7, 2020
* Game time: 8:00 p.m. EDT
* Game weather: Temperature: 75 °F (24 °C) • Wind: S 5 mph • Weather: Clear
* Game attendance: 0
* Referee: Kevin Mar
* TV announcers (ESPN): Rece Davis (play-by-play), Kirk Herbstreit (analyst), & Allison Williams (sideline)
* ESPN – BYU rolls past Navy 55–3 in season-opener with no fans /// Box Score, BYU at Navy /// Pregame Notes /// Postgame Notes
| Statistics | BYU | NAVY |
| First downs | 28 | 7 |
| Plays–yards | 71–580 | 47–149 |
| Rushes–yards | 49–301 | 39–119 |
| Passing yards | 279 | 30 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 16–22–1 | 4–8–0 |
| Time of possession | 37:20 | 22:40 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| BYU | Passing | Zach Wilson | 13/18, 232 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT |
| BYU | Rushing | Tyler Allgeier | 14 carries, 132 yards, 2 TD |
| BYU | Receiving | Gunner Romney | 4 receptions, 134 yards, 1 TD |
| NAVY | Passing | Dalen Morris | 2/4, 16 yards |
| NAVY | Rushing | Myles Fells | 3 carries, 55 yards |
| NAVY | Receiving | Mark Walker | 2 receptions, 20 yards |

### At Tulane

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Midshipmen | 0 | 0 | 16 | 11 | 27 |
| Green Wave | 10 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 24 |
at Yulman Stadium, New Orleans, LA
* Date: September 19, 2020
* Game time: 11:00 a.m. CDT
* Game weather: Temperature: 72 °F (22 °C) • Wind: NE 16 mph • Weather: Rain
* Game attendance: 0
* Referee: Hank Johns
* TV announcers (ABC): Mark Jones (play-by-play), Dusty Dvoracek (analyst), & Quint Kessenich (sideline)
* ESPN – Navy erases 24-point deficit, stuns Tulane 27–24 /// Box Score, Navy at Tulane /// Pregame Notes /// Postgame Notes
| Statistics | NAVY | TLN |
| First downs | 17 | 18 |
| Plays–yards | 68–350 | 69–373 |
| Rushes–yards | 56–204 | 44–265 |
| Passing yards | 146 | 108 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 7–12–0 | 10–25–1 |
| Time of possession | 32:35 | 27:25 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| NAVY | Passing | Dalen Morris | 6/11, 139 yards, 1 TD |
| NAVY | Rushing | Jamale Carothers | 25 carries, 127 yards |
| NAVY | Receiving | Mychal Cooper | 3 receptions, 71 yards, 1 TD |
| TLN | Passing | Keon Howard | 10/25, 108 yards, 1 INT |
| TLN | Rushing | Tyjae Spears | 18 carries, 119 yards |
| TLN | Receiving | Tyrick James | 2 receptions, 38 yards |

### At Air Force

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Midshipmen | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| Falcons | 3 | 13 | 3 | 21 | 40 |
at Falcon Stadium, Colorado Springs, CO
* Date: October 3, 2020
* Game time: 4:00 p.m. MDT
* Game weather: Temperature: 64 °F (18 °C) • Wind: SSE 8 mph • Weather: Sunny
* Game attendance: 5,000
* Referee: Luke Richmond
* TV announcers (CBSSN): Carter Blackburn (play-by-play), Aaron Taylor (analyst), & Jenny Dell (sideline)
* ESPN – Air Force kicker, defense pave way to 40–7 win over Navy /// Box Score, Navy at Air Force /// Pregame Notes /// Postgame Notes
| Statistics | NAVY | AF |
| First downs | 10 | 25 |
| Plays–yards | 54–241 | 62–410 |
| Rushes–yards | 36–90 | 53–369 |
| Passing yards | 151 | 41 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 8–18–1 | 4–9–0 |
| Time of possession | 25:52 | 34:08 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| NAVY | Passing | Tyger Goslin | 6/15, 137 yards, 1 TD |
| NAVY | Rushing | Nelson Smith | 7 carries, 25 yards |
| NAVY | Receiving | Myles Fells | 1 reception, 73 yards, 1 TD |
| AF | Passing | Haaziq Daniels | 4/9, 41 yards |
| AF | Rushing | Timothy Jackson | 19 carries, 118 yards |
| AF | Receiving | Daniel Morris | 3 receptions, 29 yards |

### Temple

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Owls | 0 | 10 | 7 | 12 | 29 |
| Midshipmen | 7 | 14 | 7 | 3 | 31 |
at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium, Annapolis, MD
* Date: October 10, 2020
* Game time: 6:00 p.m. EDT
* Game weather: Temperature: 71 °F (22 °C) • Wind: S 5–10 mph • Weather: Overcast, Slight Wind
* Game attendance: 4,400
* Referee: Tim Rich
* TV announcers (CBSSN): John Sadak (play-by-play), Randy Cross (analyst), & Sheehan Stanwick-Burch (sideline)
* ESPN – Temple Owls at Navy Midshipmen /// Box Score, Temple at Navy /// Pregame Notes /// Postgame Notes
| Statistics | TEM | NAVY |
| First downs | 25 | 18 |
| Plays–yards | 64–407 | 62–299 |
| Rushes–yards | 33–166 | 60–251 |
| Passing yards | 241 | 48 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 22–31–1 | 2–2–0 |
| Time of possession | 24:39 | 35:21 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| TEM | Passing | Anthony Russo | 21/30, 206 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT |
| TEM | Rushing | Re'Mahn Davis | 23 carries, 97 yards, 1 TD |
| TEM | Receiving | Branden Mack | 7 receptions, 80 yards, 1 TD |
| NAVY | Passing | Dalen Morris | 2/2, 48 yards |
| NAVY | Rushing | Nelson Smith | 20 carries, 120 yards, 2 TD |
| NAVY | Receiving | CJ Williams | 1 reception, 36 yards |
With this victory, Navy Coach Ken Niumatalolo achieved his 100th win, becoming the 6th active head coach at the FBS level to win 100 games at one school.

### At East Carolina

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Midshipmen | 7 | 6 | 14 | 0 | 27 |
| Pirates | 6 | 7 | 0 | 10 | 23 |
at Dowdy–Ficklen Stadium, Greenville, NC
* Date: October 17, 2020
* Game time: 12:00 p.m. EDT
* Game weather: Temperature: 61 °F (16 °C) • Wind: NNE 10 mph • Weather: Mostly Sunny
* Game attendance: 3,500
* Referee: Edwin Lee
* TV announcers (ESPN2): Lincoln Rose (play-by-play) & Keith Moreland (analyst)
* ESPN – Navy Midshipmen at East Carolina Pirates /// Box Score, Navy at Air Force /// Pregame Notes /// Postgame Notes
| Statistics | NAVY | ECU |
| First downs | 17 | 19 |
| Plays–yards | 62–318 | 65–372 |
| Rushes–yards | 57–288 | 45–268 |
| Passing yards | 30 | 104 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 3–5–1 | 10–20–0 |
| Time of possession | 31:29 | 28:31 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| NAVY | Passing | Dalen Morris | 3/4, 30 yards, 1 INT |
| NAVY | Rushing | Nelson Smith | 17 carries, 157 yards, 2 TD |
| NAVY | Receiving | Jamale Carothers | 1 reception, 14 yards |
| ECU | Passing | Mason Garcia | 10/20, 104 yards |
| ECU | Rushing | Rahjai Harris | 22 carries, 172 yards, 1 TD |
| ECU | Receiving | Tyler Snead | 4 receptions, 39 yards |

### Houston

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Cougars | 3 | 13 | 7 | 14 | 37 |
| Midshipmen | 7 | 6 | 0 | 8 | 21 |
at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium, Annapolis, MD
* Date: October 24, 2020
* Game time: 3:30 p.m. EDT
* Game weather: Temperature: 74 °F (23 °C) • Wind: NW 5–10 mph • Weather: Sunny, Few Clouds
* Game attendance: 3,600
* Referee: Hank Johns
* TV announcers (CBSSN): John Sadak (play-by-play), Randy Cross (analyst), & Sheehan Stanwick-Burch (sideline)
* ESPN – Houston Cougars at Navy Midshipmen /// Box Score, Houston at Navy /// Pregame Notes /// Postgame Notes
| Statistics | HOU | NAVY |
| First downs | 23 | 16 |
| Plays–yards | 68–420 | 68–372 |
| Rushes–yards | 31–86 | 50–166 |
| Passing yards | 334 | 206 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 26–37–0 | 10–18–1 |
| Time of possession | 29:11 | 30:49 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| HOU | Passing | Clayton Tune | 24/34, 316 yards, 3 TD |
| HOU | Rushing | Kyle Porter | 21 carries, 52 yards, 1 TD |
| HOU | Receiving | Marquez Stevenson | 9 receptions, 129 yards, 2 TD |
| NAVY | Passing | Dalen Morris | 10/18, 206 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT |
| NAVY | Rushing | Nelson Smith | 11 carries, 51 yards |
| NAVY | Receiving | Ryan Mitchell | 2 receptions, 94 yards, 1 TD |

### At SMU

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Midshipmen | 7 | 10 | 0 | 20 | 37 |
| No. 22 Mustangs | 0 | 31 | 14 | 6 | 51 |
at Gerald J. Ford Stadium, Dallas, TX
* Date: October 31, 2020
* Game time: 6:30 p.m. CDT
* Game weather: Temperature: 66 °F (19 °C) • Wind: SSE 7 mph • Weather: Partly Cloudy
* Game attendance: 7,898
* Referee: Edwin Lee
* TV announcers (ESPN2): Anish Shroff (play-by-play), Tom Luginbill (analyst), & Ian Fitzsimmons (sideline)
* ESPN – Navy Midshipmen at No. 22 SMU Mustangs /// Box Score, Navy at No. 22 SMU /// Pregame Notes /// Postgame Notes
| Statistics | NAVY | SMU |
| First downs | 27 | 25 |
| Plays–yards | 75–430 | 65–555 |
| Rushes–yards | 45–191 | 37–255 |
| Passing yards | 239 | 300 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 14–30–0 | 23–28–0 |
| Time of possession | 34:27 | 25:33 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| NAVY | Passing | Tyler Goslin | 6/10, 123 yards, 2 TD |
| NAVY | Rushing | CJ Williams | 5 carries, 63 yards |
| NAVY | Receiving | Jamale Carothers | 2 receptions, 91 yards, 1 TD |
| SMU | Passing | Shane Buechele | 23/28, 300 yards, 3 TD |
| SMU | Rushing | Ulysses Bentley IV | 25 carries, 149 yards, 2 TD |
| SMU | Receiving | Ulysses Bentley IV | 4 receptions, 68 yards |

### Memphis

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Tigers | 7 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 10 |
| Midshipmen | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium, Annapolis, MD
* Date: November 28, 2020
* Game time: 7:00 p.m. EST
* Game weather: Temperature: 53 °F (12 °C) • Wind: Min. N • Weather: Clear Fall Night
* Game attendance: 0
* Referee: Luke Richmond
* TV announcers (CBSSN): John Sadak (play-by-play), Randy Cross (analyst), & Tina Cervasio (sideline)
* ESPN – Memphis Tigers at Navy Midshipmen Preview /// Box Score, Memphis at Navy /// Pregame Notes /// Postgame Notes
| Statistics | MEM | NAVY |
| First downs | 12 | 14 |
| Plays–yards | 58–280 | 65–321 |
| Rushes–yards | 26–75 | 52–233 |
| Passing yards | 205 | 88 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 18–32–0 | 4–13–1 |
| Time of possession | 26:02 | 33:58 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| MEM | Passing | Brady White | 18/32, 205 yards, 1 TD |
| MEM | Rushing | Marquavius Weaver | 15 carries, 49 yards |
| MEM | Receiving | Tahj Washington | 4 receptions, 68 yards |
| NAVY | Passing | Tyger Goslin | 3/9, 73 yards, 1 INT |
| NAVY | Rushing | Nelson Smith | 29 carries, 142 yards, 1 TD |
| NAVY | Receiving | Chance Warren | 1 reception, 41 yards |

### Tulsa

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 24 Golden Hurricane | 0 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 19 |
| Midshipmen | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 6 |
at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium, Annapolis, MD
* Date: December 5, 2020
* Game time: 3:30 p.m. EST
* Game weather: Temperature: 48 °F (9 °C) • Wind: NW 15–20 mph • Weather: Overcast, Breezy
* Game attendance: 0
* Referee: Henry Johns
* TV announcers (ESPN2): Anish Shroff (play-by-play), Tom Luginbill (analyst), & Alex Chappell (sideline)
* ESPN – No. 24 Tulsa Golden Hurricane at Navy Midshipmen /// Box Score, No. 24 Tulsa at Navy /// Pregame Notes /// Postgame Notes
| Statistics | TLS | NAVY |
| First downs | 15 | 13 |
| Plays–yards | 68–296 | 64–153 |
| Rushes–yards | 43–128 | 53–126 |
| Passing yards | 168 | 27 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 10–25–0 | 4–11–0 |
| Time of possession | 27:40 | 32:20 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| TLS | Passing | Zach Smith | 10/25, 168 yards, 1 TD |
| TLS | Rushing | Corey Taylor II | 19 carries, 69 yards |
| TLS | Receiving | Josh Johnson | 3 receptions, 76 yards, 1 TD |
| NAVY | Passing | Xavier Arline | 4/8, 27 yards |
| NAVY | Rushing | Xavier Arline | 27 carries, 60 yards |
| NAVY | Receiving | Mark Walker | 3 receptions, 29 yards |

### At Army

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Midshipmen | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Black Knights | 0 | 3 | 0 | 12 | 15 |
at Michie Stadium, West Point, NY
* Date: December 12, 2020
* Game time: 3:00 EST
* Game weather: Temperature: 43 °F (6 °C) • Wind: Calm • Weather: Dense Fog
* Game attendance: 12,722
* Referee: Duane Heydt
* TV announcers (CBS): Brad Nessler (play-by-play), Gary Danielson (analyst), & Jamie Erdahl (sideline)
* ESPN – Army beats Navy 15–0 at Michie Stadium /// Box Score, Navy at Army (121st Army–Navy Game) /// Navy Pregame Notes /// Army Pregame Notes /// Postgame Notes
| Statistics | NAVY | ARMY |
| First downs | 4 | 8 |
| Plays–yards | 42–117 | 54–162 |
| Rushes–yards | 35–108 | 53–134 |
| Passing yards | 9 | 28 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 1–7–0 | 1–1–0 |
| Time of possession | 24:44 | 35:16 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| NAVY | Passing | Dalen Morris | 1/3, 9 yards |
| NAVY | Rushing | Xavier Arline | 17 carries, 109 yards |
| NAVY | Receiving | Mark Walker | 1 reception, 9 yards |
| ARMY | Passing | Tyhier Tyler | 1/1, 28 yards |
| ARMY | Rushing | Tyhier Tyler | 26 carries, 96 yards, 1 TD |
| ARMY | Receiving | Tyrell Robinson | 1 reception, 28 yards |