After both teams scored 52 points last week to open the 2025 season, the Navy Midshipmen, buffered by a strong second half defensive effort, managed to rebuff the University of Alabama – Birmingham Blazers 38-24 in front of 28,325 at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium on Saturday in the season’s first conference matchup for both teams.
Navy won the toss and elected to receive. Starting at their 25-yard line, running back Alex Tecza got things started with a six-yard run up the middle. On second down, quarterback Blake Horvath tossed a pass to Cody Howard, to took it 65 yards to the UAB four-yard line. Tecza took the next handoff up the middle and was stopped by Blazers defensive end Ezra Odinjor for a loss of one yard. Horvath rushed up the middle on a quarterback keeper to gain four yards but was stopped short of the end zone. He took the next play up the middle for a one-yard touchdown. After kicker Nathan Kirkwood converted the extra point, Navy led 7-0 with 12:36 left in the opening quarter.
The Blazers wasted no time in answering the Midshipmen attack. Beginning their first drive at the UAB 25-yard line after a touchback, quarterback Jalen Kitna passed to running back Solomon Beebe for a four yard gain. Running back Jevon Jackson took the next hand off up the middle for four yards. Then running back Isaiah Jacobs took the next three handoffs up the middle for a combined 16 yards. This opened up the passing game enabling Kitna to make a 51-yard touchdown strike to wide receiver Iverson Hooks. Kicker Jonah Delange’s extra point tied the game 7-7 with 9:41 left in the first quarter.
After another touchback on the kickoff, the Midshipmen kept it on the ground. Tecza rushed up the middle for five yards. Running back Eli Heidenreich rushed on the right side for two more yards. Slowly and methodically, Horvath led the Navy offense down the field. Horvath rushed twice for 10 yards. Tecza rushed twice for 12 yards. Running back Charles Robinson took his first carry six yards up the middle. Heidenreich took a sweep around the left end for six more yards.
On 1st-and-10 at the UAB 29-yard line, Horvath passed deep right to running back Brandon Chatman for 20 yards. That pass play set up a nine-yard touchdown carry by Heidenreich. Kirkwood’s extra point gave Navy the 14-7 lead with 3:06 left in the opening quarter.
Lance Gossett’s kickoff went out of bounds at the UAB five-yard line. The Blazers elected to spot the ball at the 35-yard line where they began their second drive. Immediately, Kitna found wide receiver Corri Milliner open for a 21-yard completion, and then followed it up with two passes to Beebe, for six-yards and three-yards respectively. Jackson took the next three handoffs for 10 yards total when the quarter expired. Jackson rushed for no gain on the first play of the second quarter, bringing up a 4th-and-3 situation. The Blazers elected to try for the fourth down conversion and Kitna hit Milliner open for a 25-yard touchdown. Delange’s extra point tied the score 14-14 with 14:14 left until halftime.
Both teams realized they were in a shootout. Navy began their third drive at the Navy 26-yard line after running back Isaiah Bryant fielded the kickoff at the Navy 11-yard line and returned it for a 15-yard gain. Tecza rushed up the middle for a four yard gain. Horvath took a quarterback keeper off the right side only to have Odinjor strip the ball out of his hands causing a fumble. Heidenreich recovered the fumble but it was a six-yard loss setting up a 3rd-and-12 situation. Horvath scrambled off the left side for 13 yards to pick up the first down. On the next play, Horvath threw deep over the middle to a wide open wide receiver Luke Hutchison who caught the ball at the UAB 28-yard line and scampered into the end zone for the touchdown. Kirkwood’s extra point made it 21-14 in favor of the Midshipmen with 12:42 left until halftime.
Another drive started as a touchback with the ball placed on the 25-yard line. Kitna threw a pass deep left to Beebe for a 36-yard gain. After the play, Navy safety Matthew Seliga was called for an unnecessary roughness penalty, which tacked another 15 yards to the end of the play.
With a fresh set of downs, UAB called a timeout with 11:39 left in the second quarter. The officials came onto the field to announce that the game was being delayed because of lightning in the area. It would be delayed for the next 61 minutes before play could resume.
Once play resumed, it was 1st-and-10 at the Navy 24-yard line. Kitna threw a pass intended for Milliner, but it was incomplete. However, Navy cornerback Phillip Hamilton was called for pass interference. UAB now had 1st-and-10 at the Navy 12-yard line. Kitna threw a pass intended for Milliner but it was deflected by defensive end Julien Moutome and fell incomplete. Jackson then rushed to the right for a 12-yard touchdown run. Delange’s extra point tied the game 21-21 with 11:19 left in the second quarter.
The Midshipmen elected to continue to pound the ground on their next possession. Tecza rushed up the middle twice for five yards. Heidenreich ran for a 19-yard gain. Horvath passed to Heidenreich for eight yards on the flea flicker. Chatman took an option pass around the left side for a 17-yard pick up. It worked so well that the Midshipmen ran the same play again, this time for 14-yards. Horvath rushed up the middle for two yards. Facing 2nd-and-8 at the UAB 10-yard line, Tecza took a handoff up the middle for six yards. Tecza wasn’t even on the ground when a loud clap of thunder was heard throughout the stadium. Fans and game officials alike saw a lightning bolt precede the sound of thunder, and the game was delayed again. With 6:50 left until halftime, the game was delayed for another 66 minutes.
After a combined 2 hours and 7 minutes of downtime, the game resumed again. Facing 3rd-and-2 at the UAB four-yard line, tight end Kendall Evans was called for the false start. This backed the Midshipmen up to 3rd-and-7 at the nine-yard line. Hovath passed to Tecza who got hit behind the line for a one-yard loss. Kirkwood came on for a 27-yard field goal to give Navy the 24-21 lead with 4:54 left until halftime. UAB linebacker Eli Ennis was called for a penalty for running into the kicker, but Navy elected to decline the penalty and take the points.
Beebe returned the kickoff from the one-yard line to the UAB 15-yard line but was hit with an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on the play. That pushed the Blazers back to the eight-yard line for their next possession.
Kitna passed up the middle to Beebe for an 11-yard gain. Jackson rushed twice for 18 yards. Kitna passed up the middle to tight end Elijah Lagg for a gain of 17-yards to bring the ball into Navy territory. Beebe rushed up the middle for four yards and then it was time for the two-minute timeout.
Kitna hit Milliner over the middle for 22 yards. Jackson rushed up the middle for two more yards. The Blazers called timeout with 32 seconds left in the quarter. Kitna threw a pass out-of-bounds intended for tight end J.C. Sivley and then took a delay of game penalty. On 3rd-and-13 at the Navy 21-yard line, Kitna passed to Milliner for a nine-yard gain. The Blazers called their final timeout of the half to set up a 30-yard field goal attempt by Delange. The kick was good but right guard JonDarius Morgan was called for holding. Delange booted a 40-yard field goal as time expired. The game was tied 24-24 at halftime.
Because of the two hour-long delays for lightning, halftime was cut in half to only ten minutes.
Gossett’s kickoff went into the end zone for a touchback, which should have put the ball on the UAB 25-yard line to begin the third quarter. However, linebacker Kenneth McShan picked up an unnecessary roughness penalty for an illegal block in the back. This gave the Blazers a fresh set of downs at the 40-yard line to begin their first drive of the second half.
Kitna passed to Milliner for a 12-yard gain. Jackson rushed up the middle for 12 yards of his own. Kitna then dumped off a pass to Beebe for a gain of 17-yards. The Navy defensive line held tough, stopping the Blazers on three consecutive running plays. Delange came on to attempt a 36-yard field goal but missed wide to the left, giving the Midshipmen the ball at the Navy 20-yard line.
Heidenreich rushed for a 16-yard gain to begin the Navy drive. Then Horvath was forced to scramble up the middle after receiving a low snap. It led to a five-yard loss. Horvath then made up those yards with a five-yard quarterback keeper, but that made it 3rd-and-10 at the Navy 36-yard line. Horvath scrambled to the right for no gain before being brought down by linebacker Devin Hightower as the Navy quarterback left the pocket. Jacob Carlson came on to punt the ball to the Blazers, who took over on their 12-yard line after Hooks took the punt for a four-yard loss.
Kitna threw incomplete deep left intended for Milliner to begin the drive. Beebe then rushed for three yards. Kitna hit Hooks for a 14-yard pass, but Phillip Hamilton forced Hooks to fumble, which Navy safety Giuseppe Sessi recovered at the UAB 29-yard line.
Navy almost gave the ball back to the Blazers. Horvath threw a forward pitch to Heidenreich but it was out of reach and sailed out of bounds. Instead of being ruled a fumble, the officials ruled it an incomplete pass. Horvath then threw to Heidenreich for a 13-yard reception on the next play, who was taken down at the UAB 16-yard line. Four plays later, Horvath took a quarterback keeper up the middle for a four-yard touchdown. After Kirkwood’s extra point, Navy now led 31-24 with 4:12 left in the third quarter.
Beebe returned the kickoff to the UAB 25-yard line when the penalty flag flew again. This time it was Navy safety Trent Gillis who was assessed a 15-yard penalty for unnecessary roughness. Kitna started the drive at the UAB 40-yard line and immediately threw to Milliner at the Navy 24-yard line. The pass was incomplete but Navy’s Hamilton was hit with a pass interference penalty giving the Blazer’s 15 more free yards.
Kitna threw an incomplete pass but right tackle Logan Moore was called for holding, forcing the Blazers to give up 10 of the free yards they had just gained. Beebe took a direct snap up the middle for a loss of two yards on a trick play. The Navy defensive secondary forced the Blazers into two incomplete passes, including a drop from Milliner, and punter Patrick Foley came out for the first time this season to punt it away.
Navy continued to keep the ball on the ground. Starting from the Navy 18-yard line, Horvath rushed up the middle for 24-yards. Then he ran again to pick up three more. Tecza rushed up the middle for a gain of 37 yards and would have scored a touchdown had it not been for getting tripped up by cornerback Roy Williams, who was shaken up on the play. Tecza rushed again for a 17-yard gain as the third quarter came to a close with the ball on the UAB one-yard line. Tecza took the first play of the fourth quarter, a handoff up the middle, into the endzone for the touchdown. Kirkwood’s extra point made it 38-24 in favor of the Midshipmen with 14:57 left in regulation.
After the touchback brought the ball to the Blazer’s 25-yard line, Kitna threw a 10-yard pass intended for Sivley, the tight end. It was picked off by linebacker MarcAnthony Parker, who came into the game at halftime, having finished serving the last of his penalty following a targeting penalty in last week’s game. There was a penalty on the play as Hamilton was called for an illegal block in the back on the return after the interception.
Navy now had the ball at the Blazer’s 46-yard line. Third string quarterback Jackson Gutierrez came in to run a quarterback keeper, which he took for eight yards. Horvath came in and took a handoff into traffic and took a four-yard loss. Horvath then rushed up the middle for three yards, but slipped on the wet playing surface. Carlson came on to punt the ball away to the UAB 5-yard line where it went out-of-bounds.
The Blazers stayed composed and ran a long drive on their next possession. Jackson rushed up the middle three times for seven yards. Beebe rushed up the middle for six yards. The rest of the plays were pass plays from Kitna. He hit Jackson for eight-yards, who hurdled his way out-of-bounds. Kitna passed to wide receiver Brandon Hawkins Jr. for 11-yards and then again for three more yards. Kitna handed off to Hooks and then took off downfield. Hooks threw a 17-yard reception to Kitna on the gadget play. Linebacker Luke Pirris and cornerback Justin Ross converged on Kitna in the backfield for a three-yard sack. Then after a six-yard completion to Hawkins, Kitna threw to Hawkins in the end zone. This one was intercepted by Hamilton, who was trying to redeem himself for the earlier penalties.
For the Midshipmen, 5:16 on the clock was all that stood between them an assured victory. The goal now was to run out the clock. Each play would go deeper into the play clock, and each carry had to push the defensive line back to extend the drive. Tecza rushed up the middle twice for five yards each. Horvath rushed up the middle for six yards, which forced the Blazers to call their first timeout.
Heidenreich rushed right for 10-yards to pick up the first down and chew some more clock. Then he rushed up the middle for six more yards, but tackle Jaylin Acevedo was called for holding. Heidenreich rushed again for five more yards and the Blazers burned their second timeout with 2:25 left on the clock.
Robinson carried for no gain and the Blazers called their final timeout. Gutierrez came in to rush up the middle, picking up six yards, and bringing the drive to the two-minute timeout. Carlson punted the ball on fourth down as a heavy downpour settled in over the field.
Kitna tried to get a drive going, but other than Hooks six-yard reception, the deteriorating conditions made it difficult to hold onto the ball. The Blazers turned the ball over on downs after three incomplete passes. Horvath then kneeled down twice to seal the 38-24 victory for Navy.
Navy combined for 463 all-purpose yards in the game. They picked up 295 yards rushing and 168 yards passing. The Midshipmen fumbled twice but recovered both. They intercepted the Blazers twice and recovered one UAB fumble, and had one sack on the day. It was sloppy at times but good football teams find a way to win. We struggled defensively tonight, especially in the first half. Offensively we kept up with them.”
“Really disappointed in the penalties tonight. We pride ourselves in being a disciplined football team around here. Eight penalties for 97 yards is completely unacceptable and that’s one me. We’ll get that fixed,” he added.
UAB combined for 413 all-purpose yards with 321 coming in the passing game and 92 yards rushing. They fumbled once and failed to recover it.
“I thought we were efficient, we finished drives, the energy on the sideline was good even though defense had not met their expectation. So, there’s a lot of positives there,” said Blazers head coach Trent Dilfer. “We obviously imploded in the second half and gave the game away, which is the opposite of what we’ve been trying to do. We’ve been trying to raise the floor, that’s been the focus and the floor got pretty low there in the second half.”
Blake Horvath went 6-for-8 passing for 168 yards and one touchdown. Eli Heidenreich led the Midshipmen in receiving with two receptions for 21 yards. Cody Howard hauled in one reception for 65 yards. Luke Hutchison caught one pass for 63 yards and a touchdown. Brandon Chatman had one reception for 20 yards.
“As a team we were locked in. The offensive line played really well. We were just firing on all cylinders in the first half. And even with the delays, the false start threw us off a little bit, but I thought we were really locked in,” said Horvath.
Horvath led the Midshipmen in rushing with 18 attempts for 72 yards and two touchdowns. Alex Tecza carried the ball 15 times for 111 yards and one touchdown. Heidenreich had seven attempts for 67 yards and one touchdown. Chatman carried three times for 32 yards.
“I’m going to do whatever helps the team win, and if it means rushing for a hundred yards, so be it. If not, if that’s blocking 53 times, then that’s what I have to do,” said Tecza. “We have a lot of ball carriers and have to spread it around. I realize that.”
Regarding the two hour weather delay, Newberry said, “We’ve got a smorgasbord of snacks in there, and it was hot today. [We had to] make sure those guys were hydrated. We got together and talked as a unit, both sides, and the position coaches took them to talk through their stuff. We’ve got iPads now so you can watch the games and talk through everything, which is nice. Then we want them to relax and then get ready to go.”
The Blazers were led by Jalen Kitna who went 22-for-32 in passing, 304 yards and two touchdowns and two interceptions. Iverson Hooks passed once for 17 yards.
“We felt like we could have scored every time we got the ball. We just turned it over there in the second half. We convert third down, we turn it over. We threw a couple interceptions, which has been totally uncharacteristic of us,” said Dilfer. “We made two poor decisions. So I don’t think it was as much them. We just once again kind of fell apart, and we got to find a solution for that.”
Corri Milliner hauled in six passes for 100 yards and one touchdown. Solomon Beebe grabbed six passes for 77 yards. Hooks made four receptions for 72 yards and one touchdown. Brandon Hawkins Jr. pulled in three catches for 20 yards. Jevon Jackson caught two passes for 18 yards. Elijah Lagg caught one pass for 17 yards. Kitna caught one 17-yard pass reception. Jackson led the team in rushing with 15 attempts for 66 yards and one touchdown. Isaiah Jacobs rushed five times for 16 yards. Beebe carried six times for 13 yards total.
“We got to continue to get better, we got to understand this is a journey. We’re a work in progress and we got to learn from this. You can’t go backwards because of this disappointment. I think all the mistakes that happened in the second half are correctable,” said Dilfer. “We have to take that approach and we’ve got to stay close together. This team is very committed to staying together regardless of circumstance. Now that will be tested this week.”
The Navy Midshipmen (2-0) travel to Tulsa to take on the Golden Hurricanes (1-1) at 7 p.m. CT on Saturday. The UAB Blazers (1-1) host the Akron Zips (0-2) Saturday at 7:30 p.m. CT.
