Navy’s Ken Niumatalolo Wary Of Irish, Even In Down Season

Navy rebounded well from its first loss this season. Ninth-year Midshipmen head coach Ken Niumatalolo is hoping his team can do it again.

After Navy lost 28-14 at Air Force Oct. 1, it came back the following week and upset then-No. 6 Houston 46-40. The Midshipmen play Notre Dame this week after losing 52-45 to South Florida last Friday.

“Hopefully our kids can rebound, but it’s the same thing every week, we tell them win or lose we have to move on,” Niumatalolo said on the American Athletic Association conference call.

Niumatalolo — one of 18 mentors named to the midseason watch list for the Dodd Trophy, which recognizes the top coach in college football — is well aware of the challenge that Notre Dame presents.

Even in a down year for the Irish, the 5-2 Midshipmen know how dangerous the Irish are.

“They’re still Notre Dame and they’re still really good,” Niumatalolo said. “[Junior quarterback DeShone] Kizer probably could be a first-round draft choice in the draft, he’s a really good player. We’ll see.

“It’s going to be a tough game for us. Hopefully we can rebound and we have to rebound after a tough loss.”

During a year in which Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly has received criticism for his team’s play, Niumatalolo was complimentary of his Irish counterpart.

“Brian Kelly’s one of the best coaches in college football, that hasn’t changed,” Niumatalolo said. “They’ve had some tough losses, but they’re still Notre Dame and they’ve got a great coach and great players and a great staff.

“We know who they are and this is going to be an uphill battle for us. Hopefully we’ll be ready to compete and find a way to get a W against a team that we’ve had a hard time beating over the years.”

Navy fell behind 28-0 in the first quarter against South Florida, but rallied in the fourth before losing by seven points.

Kelly commented on that fact during his Tuesday press conference. Niumatalolo said that’s just how his team operates.

“I’m just proud of our guys and we continued to battle,” Niumatalolo said. “Just tough guys, just resilient, hard-nosed kids and just proud of them.”

----

• Talk about it inside Rockne’s Roundtable

• Subscribe to our podcast on iTunes

• Learn more about our print and digital publication, Blue & Gold Illustrated.

• Follow us on Twitter: @BGINews, @BGI_LouSomogyi, @BGI_CoachD,

@BGI_MattJones, @BGI_DMcKinney and @BGI_CoreyBodden.

• Like us on Facebook