The 2014 season was largely a success for the Navy Midshipmen, who won their second consecutive bowl game, defeated Army for the 13th straight time and finished the year with an 8-5 record, the 11th time in the last 12 seasons that they won at least 8 games. Now, the Midshipmen are preparing to end their time as an FBS Independent to join the American Athletic Conference in 2015.
The move to the AAC will obviously be a huge transition for the program, and here’s a few things that Navy needs to focus on to set itself up for a successful inaugural campaign.
1. Taking care of the ball
Given how much the Midshipmen run the ball, it would seem to make sense that they tend to fumble more than the average team. However, ball security was a major issue for Navy in 2014 and it needs to be an area of focus for head coach Ken Niumatalolo and his staff during the offseason.
The Midshipmen lost 17 fumbles this past season, the third-highest total in the FBS. They lost the turnover battle in six games and won it just once during the 2014 season. While they were able to win despite being on the losing end of the turnover battle on several occasions, you’re always playing with fire when you allow this to happen on a consistent basis.
Led by quarterback Keenan Reynolds, Navy’s triple-option attack can be lethal when properly executed. However, poor ball security is obviously very detrimental to its success and can be the difference between a win and a loss.
With the Midshipmen moving to a highly competitive conference, a transition that will be tough enough as is, they can’t afford to let turnovers be a major problem for them in 2015.
2. Improving the run defense
Defense wasn’t exactly Navy’s strong suit in 2014, especially when it came to stopping the run.
The Midshipmen ranked 96th in the country in rushing defense, surrendering 198.6 yards per game. While improving in this particular area was going to be a challenge no matter what, it’ll be even more difficult given the fact that Navy will be losing three of its top four linebackers (Jordan Drake, Chris Johnson and Obi Uzoma) to graduation.
The loss of Drake is an especially big loss, as he was the team’s leading tackler on the season, recording a total of 109 total tackles in the Midshipmen’s 13 games.
With several key cogs in the linebacker corps departing, other players such as Daniel Gonzales (the team’s second-leading tackler), William Tuider and Ryan Harris will need to step up to fill the void and try to help Navy’s run defense make at least some incremental progress.
3. Replacing Noah Copeland
Over the past three seasons, fullback Noah Copeland has been a fixture in the Navy backfield, finishing his collegiate career with 2,036 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns. He was particularly stellar in his senior season, recording 952 yards and five touchdowns on the ground. In fact, his 7.4 yards per carry is the second-highest single-season average in program history.
Though his on-field production was significant, Copeland was one of the Midshipmen’s co-captains during his senior year and was one of the team’s biggest leaders. Simply put, he was a major contributor both on and off the field.
Luckily for Navy, Chris Swain is returning, which will help the Midshipmen deal with the loss of Copeland. Swain had a solid season in his own right during his junior year, rushing for 693 yards and four touchdowns.
If another player like DeBrandon Sanders can step up as well, Navy’s triple-option attack shouldn’t miss a beat in its first season as a member of the AAC, especially with Reynolds and Swain returning to anchor the backfield.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
