2008 Navy Midshipmen football team
The 2008 Navy Midshipmen football team represented the United States Naval Academy (USNA) as an independent during the 2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team was led by first-year head coach Ken Niumatalolo. He was promoted from the offensive line coach before the season, after his predecessor, Paul Johnson, accepted the head coaching position at Georgia Tech.
| 2008 Navy Midshipmen football | |
|---|---|
 | |
EagleBank Bowl, L 19–29 vs. Wake Forest | |
| Conference | Independent |
| Record | 8–5 |
| Head coach |
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| Offensive coordinator | Ivin Jasper (1st season) |
| Offensive scheme | Triple option |
| Defensive coordinator | Buddy Green (7th season) |
| Base defense | Multiple |
| MVP | Shun White |
| Captains |
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| Home stadium | Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium |
| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | W | L | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Navy | – | 8 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Notre Dame | – | 7 | – | 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Army | – | 3 | – | 9 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| WKU | – | 2 | – | 10 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rankings from AP Poll | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Midshipmen finished the regular season with an 8–4 record to attain bowl eligibility. Navy secured a berth in the inaugural EagleBank Bowl, which had a tie-in with the two independent military academies, the other being Army. The other tie-in was with the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). Due to a chaotic and closely contested season in the ACC, in the EagleBank Bowl, Navy ended up playing Wake Forest in a re-match of a regular season game, despite a statement in their contracting disallowing it.[1] Unlike the earlier game, Navy lost the rematch against Wake Forest, 29–19.
Schedule
| Date | Time | Opponent | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| August 30 | 3:30 p.m. | Towson | CBSCS | W 41–13 | 31,613 | |
| September 5 | 7:00 p.m. | at Ball State | ESPN | L 23–35 | 22,517 | |
| September 13 | 12:00 p.m. | at Duke | ESPNU | L 31–41 | 25,082 | |
| September 20 | 3:30 p.m. | Rutgers |
| CBSCS | W 23–21 | 37,821 |
| September 27 | 3:30 p.m. | at No. 16 Wake Forest | ESPNU | W 24–17 | 33,173 | |
| October 4 | 4:00 p.m. | at Air Force | Versus | W 33–27 | 46,339 | |
| October 18 | 3:30 p.m. | No. 23 Pittsburgh |
| CBSCS | L 21–42 | 37,970 |
| October 25 | 3:30 p.m. | SMU |
| CBSCS | W 34–7 | 31,698 |
| November 1 | 3:30 p.m. | Temple |
| CBSCS | W 33–27 OT | 34,775 |
| November 15 | 12:00 p.m. | vs. Notre Dame | CBS | L 21–27 | 70,932 | |
| November 25 | 7:00 p.m. | at Northern Illinois | ESPNC | W 16–0 | 17,932 | |
| December 6 | 12:00 p.m. | vs. Army | CBS | W 34–0 | 69,144 | |
| December 20 | 11:00 a.m. | vs. Wake Forest | ESPN | L 19–29 | 28,777 | |
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References
- Navy Did Not Waive EagleBank Bowl Clause, Annapolis Capital, December 4, 2008. Accessed 2009-03-12. Archived 2009-05-28.
- "Navy Midshipmen Schedule 2008". ESPN.com. ESPN Internet Ventures. Retrieved November 19, 2009.