2007 Navy Midshipmen football team

2007 Navy Midshipmen football
Poinsettia Bowl, L 32–35 vs. Utah
Conference	Independent
2007 record	8–5
Head coach	Paul Johnson (6th, regular season) Ken Niumatalolo (bowl game)
Offensive coordinator	Ivin Jasper
Offensive scheme	Triple option
Defensive coordinator	Buddy Green
Base defense	Multiple
Home stadium	Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium

The 2007 Navy Midshipmen football team represented the United States Naval Academy (USNA) during the 2007 NCAA Division I FBS football season. Navy competed as an independent with no conference affiliation. The team was led by sixth-year head coach Paul Johnson until he accepted the head coaching position at Georgia Tech prior to the team's final game of the season. Offensive line coach Ken Niumatalolo was first promoted to interim head coach and then named as the team's permanent head coach.

After beginning the season with a 4–4 record through the first eight games, including a loss to Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) foe Delaware, the Midshipmen broke a 43-year losing streak in the Navy–Notre Dame football rivalry in the 2007 Navy vs. Notre Dame football game by winning in triple overtime. The next week, the team became bowl eligible by winning its sixth game of the season in the 2007 Navy vs. North Texas football game, which set a record for the most points scored in a regulation-length FBS college football game. The Midshipmen finished the regular season with an 8–4 record and secured a berth in the 2007 Poinsettia Bowl, which had a single-year tie-in with the USNA. The other tie-in was with the Mountain West Conference (MWC). In a close game that came down to the final seconds, Navy lost the game to the Utah Utes with a score of 35–32.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
August 31	7:00 p.m.	at Temple	Lincoln Financial Field • Philadelphia, PA	ESPNU	W 30–19	30,368
September 7	7:00 p.m.	at No. 15 Rutgers	Rutgers Stadium • Piscataway, NJ	ESPN	L 24–41	43,514
September 15	5:00 p.m.	Ball State	Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium • Annapolis, MD	CSTV	L 31–34 OT	32,087
September 22	1:00 p.m.	Duke	Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium • Annapolis, MD	CSTV	W 46–43	31,278
September 29	1:00 p.m.	Air Force	Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium • Annapolis, MD (Commander-in-Chief's Trophy)	CSTV	W 31–20	37,615
October 10	8:00 p.m.	at Pittsburgh	Heinz Field • Pittsburgh, PA	ESPN	W 48–45 2OT	30,103
October 20	1:00 p.m.	Wake Forest	Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium • Annapolis, MD	CSTV	L 24–44	36,992
October 27	1:00 p.m.	No. 9 (FCS) Delaware	Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium • Annapolis, MD	CSTV	L 52–59	35,213
November 3	2:30 p.m.	at Notre Dame	Notre Dame Stadium • Notre Dame, IN (Rivalry)	NBC	W 46–44 3OT	80,795
November 10	3:00 p.m.	at North Texas	Fouts Field • Denton, TX		W 74–62	26,012
November 17	3:30 p.m.	Northern Illinois	Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium • Annapolis, MD	CSTV	W 35–24	34,517
December 1	12:00 p.m.	vs. Army	M&T Bank Stadium • Baltimore, MD (Army–Navy Game/Commander-in-Chief's Trophy)	CBS	W 38–3	71,610
December 20	7:00 p.m.	vs. Utah	Qualcomm Stadium • San Diego, CA (Poinsettia Bowl)	ESPN	L 35–32	39,129
Homecoming. #Rankings from Coaches' Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

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Game summaries

Notre Dame

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References