Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM OCT. 10, 2026 43 OPPONENT ON DECK: NAVY MIDSHIPMEN Date: Oct. 31, 2026 Site: Gillette Stadium (64,628) in Foxborough, Mass. Kickoff: 12 p.m. All-time series: Notre Dame leads 84-13-1 Last meeting: Notre Dame 49, Navy 10 (Nov. 8, 2025, Notre Dame Stadium) 2026 Record To Date: 1-3 (0-2 American) Navy head coach: Brian Newberry (27-15, 4th season) Season summary: Navy has several hurdles to clear if it wants to win 10 or more games for the third consecutive season. For the first time since 2023, when the Midship- men lost to Notre Dame in Ireland, Navy did not make it out of August and September unscathed. The Mids dropped their second, third and fourth games of the season to Florida Atlantic Sept. 12, UAB Sept. 25 and Air Force Oct. 3. Entering the season, the Midshipmen had one of the most inexperienced rosters in college football, ranking 134th among 138 FBS teams in career snaps played. The outlook at quarterback is also in question after starter Braxton Woodson sprained his left ankle against Florida Atlantic, played only 1 snap against UAB and was limited versus Air Force. Navy's success the rest of the season will be tied to its run-heavy offense. Through Week 4, the Mids were tied for second in the country with 333.7 rushing yards per game. Their run defense was exceptional, too, ranking eighth nationally with just 65.7 yards allowed per game. The concerns start to emerge in the passing game on both sides of the ball. Navy has thrown the ball just 42 times through three games and has been largely inefficient when it has. Its pass- ing efficiency rating is 103.45, which is 136th of 138 teams nationally. It's even worse on defense, where the Mids rank last nationally at 198.37 yards given up through the air per game. Navy's identity is clear: run the football, stop the run and force opponents to win through the air. Still, it will need all the luck it can get against the Irish. ✦ Navy starting quarterback Braxton Woodson injured his left ankle in the team's 38-30 loss to Florida Atlantic. He had accounted for 4 touchdowns on the season before going down in Game 2. PHOTO COURTESY NAVY ATHLETICS OFFENSE Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Yr. X-WR 89 Luke Hutchison 6-0 190 Sr. 86 Joshua Guerin 6-1 187 Sr. LT 73 Sean Crowley 6-4 293 Jr. 65 Connor Heater 6-3 275 Jr. LG 69 Cam Nichols 6-1 305 Sr. 66 Will Hampton 6-5 298 So. C 63 Toran Smith 6-2 277 Jr. 67 Matt Tomaszewski 6-3 296 So. RG 68 Hoke Smith II 6-3 317 Sr. 70 Jake Polito 6-3 295 Jr. RT 77 Malcolm Johnson 6-6 292 So. 65 Connor Heater 6-3 275 Jr. TE 84 Jordan Collins 6-3 236 So. 87 Theo Elwell 6-5 255 Jr. or 85 Jake Norris 6-3 230 Sr. or 88 Merrick Barlow 6-6 239 So. Snipe-Z 23 Charles Robinson 6-0 191 Jr. 15 Evan Blouir 6-0 205 Fr. QB 5 Braxton Woodson 6-3 215 Sr. or 8 Jackson Gutierrez 6-0 207 Jr. Snipe-A 26 Michael Barrow 5-7 190 Jr. 25 Isaiah Bryant 5-9 165 Sr. RB 40 Vic Listorti 5-11 205 Sr. 8 Jackson Gutierrez 6-0 207 Jr. DEFENSE Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Yr. DE 93 Aiden Lyczek 6-4 268 Jr. 90 Ikenna Ozurumba 6-5 256 Sr. NG 94 Xavyer Arrington 6-0 279 Jr. 99 Chris Herock 6-1 266 Jr. or 96 Connor Young 6-3 278 So. DT 95 Griffen Willis 6-1 280 Sr. 97 Matthew Reyes 6-3 284 Sr. OLB 45 Christian Johnson 6-2 225 So. 52 Nolan McCamy 6-2 212 Sr. OLB 18 Will Miller 6-3 217 So. or 14 Trent Gillis 6-1 200 So. LB 58 Coleman Cauley 6-1 227 Sr. 53 Marcus Bleazard 6-0 224 Sr. LB 56 MarcAnthony Parker 6-0 218 Jr. 53 Marcus Bleazard 6-0 224 Sr. CB 4 Sean Martin 5-10 195 Fr. 10 Nick Bell 5-10 182 Jr. S 8 Aaron Rose 6-2 194 Jr. 6 Phillip Hamilton 5-10 175 Jr. S 16 Giuseppe Sessi 5-11 204 Sr. 7 Kush'i Abraham 5-9 186 Sr. or 22 Maxwell Williams 6-0 205 Jr. CB 3 Ira Oniha 6-1 183 Sr. 13 Cam Robinson 6-0 187 So. SPECIAL TEAMS Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Yr. PK 44 Nolan Bartley 6-0 172 Fr. 95 Justin Welch 6-2 181 So. KO 99 Lance Gossett 6-1 200 Sr. 95 Justin Welch 6-2 181 So. P 11 Jacob Carlson 5-10 201 Jr. 99 Lance Gossett 6-1 200 Sr. LS 92 Rayne Fry 6-2 209 Sr. 98 Landon Purcell 5-11 192 So. H 11 Jacob Carlson 5-10 201 Jr. 99 Lance Gossett 6-1 200 Sr. PR 23 Charles Robinson 6-0 191 Jr. 25 Isaiah Bryant 5-9 165 Sr. KR 25 Isaiah Bryant 5-9 165 Sr. 26 Michael Barrow 5-7 190 Jr. NAVY MIDSHIPMEN TWO-DEEP DEPTH CHART 2026 NAVY SCHEDULE Date Opponent (TV) Result/Time (ET) Sept. 5 Towson W, 42-15 Sept. 12 at Florida Atlantic L, 38-30 Sept. 25 at UAB L, 24-20 Oct. 3 at Air Force L, 14-9 Oct. 10 Tulsa (CBSSN) 3:30 p.m. Oct. 17 at UTSA TBA Oct. 24 North Texas (CBSSN) 3:30 p.m. Oct. 31 vs. Notre Dame^ (ABC/ESPN) 12 p.m. Nov. 7 Temple (CBSSN) 3:30 p.m. Nov. 21 Memphis 12 p.m. Nov. 28 at Charlotte TBA Dec. 12 vs. Army* (CBS) 3 p.m. ^ at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass. * at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J.