Oct. 27, 2006

Box Score

ANNAPOLIS, Md. - Navy running backs Richard Engel (Medford, N.J.) and Enrique Harris (Crawfordville, Fla.) each ran for more than 100 yards as the Midshipmen defeated Penn, 21-2, in sprint football action on Friday night at Rip Miller Field. The Mids improved to 4-1 on the year and 2-1 in the CSFL, while the Quakers fell to 1-4 overall and 0-3 in the league.

With heavy rain and strong wind guests throughout the game, both teams were forced to rely on their running games to account for much of the offense on Friday night.

Engel gained a career-best 169 yards on 26 carries with a pair of touchdowns, while Harris churned out 102 yards on 13 rushing attempts and a touchdown. The Midshipmen finished the night with a season-best 340 yards on the ground, their highest total since their 580-yard rushing performance against Princeton last season.

"The weather really made throwing the ball difficult tonight," stated Navy head coach Maj. Joseph R. Clearfield, USMC. "We had to turn the game over to our tailback, fullback and offensive line. Those guys really came through for us tonight."

Navy's defense also stepped up for the second-consecutive week, holding Penn's offense to 104 yards, only 33 of which came during the first-three quarters, and no first downs in the first half.

"Our defense has played great this entire season," stated Clearfield. "They have pitched shutouts in each of the past-two games. They just keep improving every week."

The Midshipmen wasted little time getting on the board, as Engel scampered 36 yards up the right sideline for a touchdown on Navy's first offensive play from scrimmage with 12:30 left in the opening quarter.

The score would remain at 7-0 until the 9:10 mark in the second quarter, when Harris crossed the goal line from three yards out to cap a five-play, 48-yard drive and put Navy up 14-0.

Penn scored its only points of the night on a safety with 3:13 left in the half. On fourth down deep in Navy's territory, the snap slipped through the hands of punter Nash Bagby (Waco, Texas) in the endzone, who then picked up the ball and tried to pass but could not get the ball near the line of scrimmage and was flagged for intentional grounding in the endzone for a safety.

Following a Penn punt on its opening drive of the second half, Navy engineered a 15-play, 55-yard drive that used nearly seven minutes and resulted in Engel's second rushing touchdown of the night to make the score 21-2.

In addition to Engel and Harris' 100-yard performances, senior Steve Scarver (Pataskala, Ohio) chipped in with 45 yards on seven carries.

Navy's defense was led by sophomore defensive end Justin Nabozna (New Fairfield, Conn.), who made six tackles, three for a loss of 12 yards and a sack. Senior defensive captain Ryan Engle (Reed City, Mich.) also chipped in with six tackles, while classmate Adam Birchenough (Homer, N.Y.) provided three tackles, two of which were sacks and forced a fumble.

Navy will wrap up the 2006 season when it plays host to Army in the annual Star Game next Friday, Nov. 3, at Rip Miller Field. The 7 p.m. kickoff will be televised on a tape-delayed basis by CSTV, airing on Tuesday, Nov. 7, at 9 p.m. The two teams have already met earlier this season in the Pride Bowl, as the Midshipmen came away with a 31-21 victory over the Black Knights.

Entering this evening, Navy needed an Army win over Cornell to maintain hopes of earning a share of this year's CSFL Championship. However, the Big Red handed the Black Knights a 26-7 setback in West Point to claim this year's championship outright and their first league title since 1986.

"Army is a great football team that really plays hard on every single play," said Clearfield. "We are looking forward to next week's game and hope to earn the N-Star again this year."