Undefeated Navy and Air Force to Meet for the 49th Time in Series History

Setting the Stage
• Service Academy rivals Navy and Air Force will meet for the 49th time on the gridiron when the two battle one another on Saturday at Falcon Stadium (46,692) in Colorado Springs, Colo. Kickoff is set for 3:30 PM (ET), 1:30 PM in Colorado Springs.  
• Air Force leads the all-time series, 28-20, however the Mids have won 10 of the last 13 games including a 33-11 victory last year in Annapolis.
• The winner of the Navy-Air Force game has won the Commander-In-Chief's Trophy in each of the last 19 years (1996 was the last time that did not happen).
• This year marks the first time both Navy and Air Force enter their match-up undefeated.
•    Air Force has won two of the last three games played in Colorado Springs, including a 30-21 victory in 2014.  In 2012, Navy defeated Air Force at Falcon Stadium in overtime, 28-21. Overall, Air Force is 16-7 all-time against Navy in Colorado Springs.
• Navy is looking to start 4-0 in back-to-back seasons for the first time since 1978 and `79. Last year, the Mids started 4-0 before losing at Notre Dame.  Navy started 6-0 in 1979 and 7-0 in 1978.
• Navy has won 19 consecutive games against unranked opponents, which is the fourth-longest streak in the country.  Only Alabama (62), Clemson (43) and Ohio State (21) own longer winning streaks.
• The Navy-Air Force game is being spotlighted by the Joe Moore Award, which highlights outstanding offensive line play, as one of the "Big Ugly" Spotlight Games of the Week.
• Niumatalolo is in his ninth year at the Naval Academy, which ties him with George Welsh and Eddie Erdelatz as the longest tenured football coach in Navy history.
• Navy received 14 voting points in this week's Amway / USA Today Coaches Poll, but were shut out of the Associated Press Poll for the third straight week. Air Force received four votes in the coaches poll.  
• Saturday's game will be televised nationally by CBS Sports Network with Carter Blackburn, Aaron Taylor and Jenny Dell on the call.  
• Keith Mills will host a two-hour Navy Insider special on WBAL Radio (1090 AM) starting at 12:30 PM.
• The Navy Football Tailgate Show on WNAV 1430 AM / 99.9 FM will air at 1:30 PM.
• The Navy Football Pregame Show with Pete Medhurst, Omar Nelson, Joe Miller and Tim Murray will get underway at 2:30 PM, followed by game action beginning at 3:00 PM on the Navy Radio Network.  • Following the contest, Medhurst, Nelson, Miller and Murray will recap the day's events in a 30-minute postgame show.
    
Scouting Air Force
• The Falcons enter Saturday's contest against the Mids with a 3-0 mark, earning victories over Abilene Christian (37-21), Georgia State (48-14) and Utah State (27-20).
• Air Force is a veteran team with seven senior starters on offense and 10 senior starters on defense.
• The Falcons are led by senior quarterback Nate Romine, who has rushed for 153 yards on 41 carries and has thrown for 364 yards and three touchdowns on 13-of-32 passing. He has yet to throw an interception.
• Senior tailback Jacobi Owens has rushed for 203 yards and two touchdowns on 23 carries to lead the Falcons' rushing attack, while senior fullback D.J. Johnson has rushed for 198 yards on 52 carries.
• Air Force's leading receiver is senior Jalen Robinette, who has four catches for 94 yards and a touchdown.
• The Falcons are ranked second nationally in rushing offense (359.3 yds/gm), 123rd in passing offense (127.0 yds/gm), 29th in total offense (486.3 yds/gm) and 42nd in scoring offense (37.3 pts/gm).
• Grant Ross leads the defense with 17 tackles, 3.0 tackles for a loss and an interception, while Ryan Watson has 15 tackles and an impressive five sacks on the year.
• The Falcons rank second nationally against the run (51.7 yds/gm), 95th against the pass (257.7 yds/gm), 21st in total defense (309.3 yds/gm) and 27th in scoring defense (18.3 pts/gm).

The Commander-In-Chief's Trophy
• The Commander-In-Chief's Trophy is presented annually to the winner of the football competition among the three major service academies -- Army West Point, Navy and Air Force -- and is named in honor of the President of the United States.
• Navy has dominated of late, winning the trophy 10 of the last 13 years and winning 24 of the last 27 Service Academy games against Air Force and Army West Point in the process.
• Navy has won the trophy a total of 14 times: 1973, 1975, 1978, 1979, 1981, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2012, 2013 and 2015.
• When there is no clear-cut winner,  the trophy remains with the winner of the previous year's competition.  
• The three-sided trophy stands two-and-a-half-feet tall and is engraved with the academy seals.  Reproductions of the three mascots -- the Army West Point Mule, the Navy Goat and the Air Force Falcon -- are ensconced on the respective sides of this bauble.  The trophy is sponsored by the West Point Association of Graduates, the Naval Academy Alumni Association and the Air Force Association of Graduates.
• The year in which the trophy is won is engraved on a plate gracing the respective academy's side of the trophy.

Mids Tough Against Unranked Opponents
• Navy has won 19 straight games against unranked opponents, which is the fourth-longest streak in the country.
• Navy's last loss to an unranked opponent came on Oct. 4, 2014, when the Mids lost at Air Force, 30-21.
• Since that loss, Navy has produced a 19-3 (.864) record with its three losses coming against ranked opponents Houston and Notre Dame (twice). The Mids defeated a ranked Memphis squad in that streak, as well.

Time To Get Ready
• Under Ken Niumatalolo, Navy is 22-14 (.611) with more than one week to prepare for an opponent.

Tough Schedule Ahead
• Navy's remaining nine opponents have a combined record of 24-10 (.706) on the year with eight of the nine teams sporting at least a .500 record.
• Meanwhile, three of the nine remaining opponents are undefeated: Air Force (3-0), #6/#7 Houston (4-0) and Memphis (3-0).
• The overall combined record of Navy's opponents this year is 30-15 (.667), with 11 of the 12 at .500 or better.
                    
Where There's A Will, There's A Way
• In his first two career starts, senior quarterback Will Worth has led Navy on fourth-quarter drives to give the Mids a come-from-behind win.
• Against UConn, Navy trailed 24-21 with 4:57 left and Worth, set up by a 26-yard punt return by Calvin Cass Jr., drove the Mids 17 yards in four plays and scored the game-winning touchdown from one-yard out to give Navy a 28-24 lead with 3:08 left.  Navy held on to win after the Mids' defense made a goal-line stand in the final seconds.
• Against Tulane, Navy trailed 14-13 with 7:39 remaining and Worth led the Mids on a 10-play, 72-yard drive over 4:48 and capped it himself with a one-yard TD run with 2:57 left to give Navy a 19-14 lead. Worth then hit a wide open Toneo Gulley in the flat for the key two-point conversion and the Mids held on for the 21-14 win.
• Worth is the first Navy QB to lead the Mids to comeback victories in the fourth quarter in back-to-back games since Kaipo-Noa Kaheaku-Enhada did it against  Air Force and Pitt in 2007.
• Worth was named to the American Athletic Conference Honor Roll in each of the last two weeks.