Something has to give when Navy, Notre Dame football meet up in the red zone
SOUTH BEND — On its way to the nation’s fourth-best scoring average at 44.8 points per game, the Navy football offense has been nearly unstoppable inside the red zone.
The 24th-ranked Midshipmen (6-0) converted their first 20 red zone trips into touchdowns this year before finally settling for a short field goal early in last week’s 51-17 win over Charlotte. Heading into Saturday’s annual meeting with 11th-ranked Notre Dame, Navy leads all FBS programs with a 95.7% touchdown rate on trips inside the opponents’ 20-yard-line.
“They don’t beat themselves, they protect the football, their efficiency with the ball is excellent,” Notre Dame defensive coordinator Al Golden said after Tuesday’s practice. “They make it challenging now because they’re in the gun, they’re out of the gun, they’re under center. They’re doing all kinds of things that make you work together and test your unity.”
Golden praised the work of first-year Navy offensive coordinator Drew Cronic, the former Georgia wideout who led Mercer to its first FCS playoff appearance in the program’s 50-year history.
“It’s not their willingness to pass; it’s their effectiveness with the pass game,” Golden said. “Their yards per completion and some of the near misses that they had that were open, that all grabs your attention. You can’t just allocate everybody up into the box or you’re going to give up easy scores.”
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In fact, both teams rank in the top 13 nationally when it comes to red zone efficiency, both offensively and defensively.
Notre Dame’s defense, ranked fifth overall at 11.9 points allowed per game, is tied for 13th in red zone touchdown percentage allowed (46.7%). Two of those seven touchdowns (in 15 trips) came after turnovers gave Louisville possession at the plus-24 and the plus-9; while Purdue (trailing 49-0) and Georgia Tech (down 31-7) tacked on scores against little-used Irish reserves.
Navy’s defense is tied for ninth (42.1%) in that category, holding opponents out of the end zone 11 times in 19 trips.
Then again, Notre Dame’s offense has scored touchdowns on 18-of-22 red zone trips, leaving the Irish sixth nationally at 81.8%. A holding penalty on Anthonie Knapp wiped out Jeremiyah Love’s 18-yard scoring run in the fourth quarter at Georgia Tech, forcing the Irish to settle for a 42-yard field goal.
What’s the key against Navy’s red zone defense?
“Finishing,” Notre Dame offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock said. “Finishing with seven. And continuing where we’ve done a nice job, I think, from an execution standpoint and really attacking and getting seven points. We have to make sure we do that again on Saturday.”
Mike Berardino covers Notre Dame football for the South Bend Tribune and NDInsider.com. Follow him on social media @MikeBerardino.
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Notre Dame football matches its red zone mastery against Navy's
