And that could be the case again Saturday, Nov. 7, when the Midshipmen battle the Fighting Irish for the 83rd time.
Notre Dame enters the game with a 6-2 record, a No. 22 ranking in the Bowl Championship Series standings, and a prolific offense led by Heisman Trophy candidate Jimmy Clausen.
Navy is 6-3 and on course for its seventh consecutive winning season. The Midshipmen feature one of the nation's top rushing attacks, and it's guided by QB Ricky Dobbs — the nation's leader in touchdowns.
Navy and Notre Dame have played every year since 1927, with Notre Dame holding a 71-10-1 lead. The Fighting Irish set an NCAA record by defeating the Midshipmen for 43 consecutive seasons — a streak that began after Roger Staubach led Navy to a 35-14 victory over Notre Dame in 1963.
But the teams have been evenly matched the past two years. The Midshipmen ended their series skid in 2007, pulling off a 46-44 triple-overtime victory at Notre Dame. Navy nearly made it two in a row, but had a dramatic rally come up short in a 27-21 loss at Baltimore last year.
On Saturday, coach Ken Niumataololo's Midshipmen will be looking to bounce back from a 27-24 loss to Temple — a defeat that ended a five-game winning streak. Notre Dame, coming off a 40-14 rout of Washington State, is seeking its third consecutive victory.
The game is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. EST, and will be telecast by NBC.
Midshipmen Effective at Controlling Ball
The best way to contain Clausen and the Notre Dame offense is to keep if off the field, and Navy's triple-option offense seems well-equipped to at least make a good attempt.
The Midshipmen rank third in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision in rushing at 279.8 yards per game, and are second in time of possession at 34 minutes, 18 seconds per contest. They average 29.4 points and 351.4 yards of total offense per game.
Dobbs, though, has been bothered by a knee injury that kept him out of his team's 13-10 win over Wake Forest on Oct. 24, and all but seven plays of the Temple game. Despite that, the junior leads the FBS with 16 rushing touchdowns. He's rushed for 595 yards, averaging 3.5 yards per carry.
Kriss Proctor has run for 223 yards and five touchdowns while filling in at QB, but neither he nor Dobbs puts the ball in the air much. Navy averages just 71.7 passing yards per game.
Fullback Vince Murray (638 yards, 4 TDs, 4.7 yards per carry) is the leading rusher, and slot back Marcus Curry (393 yards, 4 TDs, 8.7 yards per carry) has been the most effective big play threat. But Curry, who's made two of team's three touchdown receptions, has missed the last two games because of a quadriceps injury.
Linebacker Pospisil Anchors Navy Defense
Navy's defense has been solid, yielding 21.4 points and 315.6 yards per game. Leading the team in tackles for the second consecutive year has been Ross Popspisil. The senior linebacker finished with 106 tackles last season, and has 65 thus far in 2009. He's made 5.5 tackles for loss, including 2.5 sacks.
Linebackers Tyler Simmons and Tony Haberer are second and third in tackles. Simmons has made 53 stops, and Haberer has 50, including six for losses and two sacks.
Safety Wyatt Madison has contributed 45 tackles and a team-high three interceptions. DB Emmett Merchant has two interceptions, and linebacker Craig Schaefer leads the Midshipmen with three sacks.
One thing Navy won't do much is beat itself. The Midshipmen are the least penalized team in the FBS.
Notre Dame 5th in Total Offense
The Fighting Irish are putting up 31.2 points per game, and their average of 457.6 yards ranks fifth in the FBS. And Notre Dame is eighth in passing offense at 309.8 yards.
Clausen continues to click at QB, completing 66.9 percent of his passes for 2,318 yards and 18 TDs. He's second in the FBS in passing efficiency (164.25). Wide receiver Golden Tate (56 catches, 927 yards, 9 TDs) is fourth in the FBS in receiving yards with 115.88 per game, he's also run for 155 yards and two touchdowns.
Notre Dame's imposing arsenal also includes running back Armando Allen (514 yards, 3 TDs), running back Robert Hughes (311 yardsk 4 TDs) and tight end Kyle Rudolph (31 catches, 346 yards, 2 TDs).
And ESPN reported Tuesday that explosive wide receiver Michael Floyd (13 catches, 358 yards, 5 TDs) has been cleared to play after missing five games because of a broken collarbone.
Kicker Nick Tauschh has connected on 14 consecutive field goal attempts after missing his first of the season. But he's missed three extra points.
Notre Dame Defense Shows Signs of Improvement
Notre Dame's numbers — 22.9 points and 384 yards per game — are pretty ordinary. The Fighting Irish gave up a season-low 206 yards to Washington State last week, but just about everybody else has shut down the woeful Cougars this year, too.
In the previous game, the Irish defense played stubbornly in a 20-16 victory over Boston College, but the Eagles aren't exactly an offensive juggernaut, either. So the jury's still out on the Notre Dame defense.
But things could be a lot worse — especially if the Irish didn't have Kyle McCarthy. The safety leads the team with 63 tackles and fiive interceptions.
Linebacker Brian Smith (41 tackles, 5 tackles for loss) and safety Harrison Smith (40 tackles) are No. 2 and No. 3 on Notre Dame's tackle list, and freshman linebacker Manti Te'o is fourth with 35.
Other leaders include linebacker Darius Feling (11.5 tackles for loss, 3 sacks), defensive end Kapron Lewis-Moore (6 tackles for loss) and tackle Ethan Johnson (5 tackles for loss, 3 sacks).
