Navy rallies past Army: Late TD pass lifts Midshipmen to back-to-back Commander-in-Chief's Trophy victories

Navy came back from a 16-7 second half deficit to beat Army, 17-16, for their second consecutive win over their rivals, giving them back-to-back wins in the series for the first time since 2014-15. The win also gives Navy their first back-to-back 10-win seasons in program history, as the Midshipmen finish the year 10-2. 

It was a classic Army-Navy Game, with both teams grinding it out on the ground, working clock and keeping possessions at a minimum. The first quarter took 25 minutes of real time and featured just two possessions. Both teams opened the game with 13-play, 75-yard touchdown drives that took over seven minutes off the clock, capped off by rushing TDs from their quarterbacks. 

However, from that point on it was a game dominated by the defenses. Army took a 13-7 lead into the half thanks to a pair of Dawson Jones field goals, the second of which came after the Black Knights forced the first turnover of the game on a Blake Horvath fumble. 

Army would add another field goal to start the third quarter after a second Horvath turnover, this time on an interception, and it looked like the Black Knights were headed for the upset victory. However, their offense stalled out in the second half, with just 27 yards total in the final 30 minutes of action, as the Midshipmen turned up the pressure on Cale Hellums and the Army rushing attack. 

Navy finally got the break they needed in the early fourth quarter when Hellums threw his first pick of the game when he was late to a corner route at midfield and underthrew his receiver. That gave the Midshipmen some life and Horvath led Navy down the field for the go-ahead -- and ultimately game-winning -- touchdown on a dramatic fourth-and-8 touchdown pass to Eli Heidenreich after Army failed to scoop up a goal line fumble two plays before. 

Navy ultimately ran out the clock after a late fourth down conversion near midfield with two minutes to play and Army out of timeouts. Horvath finished the game with 107 rushing yards, 82 passing yards and accounted for both of Navy's touchdowns -- one passing and one rushing -- along with the two turnovers. Heidenreich continued his record-setting season and career, as the all-time leading receiver at Navy accounted for 72 of the Midshipmen's 82 receiving yards and caught the crucial game-winning touchdown. 

Navy converted the interception of Army into the go-ahead touchdown, albeit with a bit more drama than the Midshipmen would've liked. 

After moving it down to the goal line, Blake Horvath fumbled trying to sneak it in and Army picked the ball up only to fumble it themselves, with Navy recovering at the 8. After nearly getting sacked on third down, Navy opted to go for it on fourth-and-goal from the 8 and converted, as Horvath found his favorite receiver, Eli Heidenreich on a slant in the end zone for six. 

Now it'll be on Army to answer in the final 6:32 of the game, as the Black Knights have been shut down offensively in the second half. Cale Hellums will have to shake off his interception on the last drive and lead Army on a march here if they're going to pull off the upset of Navy. 

After a rough first half where Army scored on every drive, the Navy defense has bowed up in the second half and kept the Midshipmen in the game. Navy forced their first turnover of the game on Army with an interception of Cale Hellums at midfield, as Hellums was late to the deep corner route and underthrew it on the run to gift the Midshipmen the ball down six. 

Now we'll see if the Navy offense can find anything to capitalize on that sudden change, as almost all of their offensive production has come on just two drives this game. 

The Black Knights and Midshipmen played the third quarter to a draw, with each team tacking on a field goal to their score line to send the game to the fourth quarter with Army in front 16-10. 

Army's offense stalled out in the third quarter with just 28 yards on 10 plays, but their defense forced the second Navy turnover of the game by picking off Blake Horvath in Navy territory to set up a 48-yard field goal. 

The Midshipmen finally got something going offensively on their second drive after the Horvath pick, as the veteran QB broke free for the longest play of the game with a 37-yard run. That drive stalled inside the red zone and Navy settled for a 21-yard field goal to pull back within six points. 

Navy will start the third quarter with the ball on their 27, needing a touchdown to take the lead as they seek back-to-back wins in this rivalry for the first time in a decade. 

On a third-and-4, Blake Horvath finally was able to break free of the stout Army defense for an explosive run, taking it 37 yards into Army territory on a drive Navy desperately needed. 

However, the Midshipmen were unable to convert a red zone trip into a touchdown, as Horvath got stopped just inside the 5 on third-and-goal. That left Navy with a decision on fourth down, trailing by nine, and they opted to kick the short field goal to cut the deficit to six and make it a one-score game. 

For that decision to pay off, the Navy defense will have to continue their strong play in the third quarter. They've limited the Black Knights to just 28 yards of offense in the second half, giving their offense time to figure some things out and make this a 16-10 game late in the third. 

For the second time in the game, Army turned over Navy quarterback Blake Horvath. This time it was on an interception by Justin Weaver at the Navy 32 after Horvath threw behind his intended receiver on third down. The ball bounced off the hands of the receiver and into Weaver's grasp, who went to his knee as he hauled in the interception, negating a nice return to the end zone for what looked initially to be a pick-six. 

Army's offense couldn't get anything going on the ensuing possession, going just two yards, but Dawson Jones hit his third FG of the game with a 48-yarder to give Army a two-possession lead. 

After hitting a pair of big passes, Navy had it inside the Army 30, but Blake Horvath tried to pull back a pass attempt and fumbled the ball (on what would've been the tuck rule long ago), with Army recovering. 

Cale Hellums then threw a dime down the sidelines for 24 yards to move Army into position to try a 45-yard field goal, which Dawson Jones drilled to push the Black Knights into a 13-7 lead. 

The story of the half is that Army has scored on all three of their drives in the first half, with a touchdown and then two field goals, while Navy has gone empty-handed on their second and third drives. The Midshipmen came into the game with the more high-powered offense, but a conservative decision to punt on fourth-and-1 on their second drive and then the Horvath fumble as they drove for a game-tying field goal or go-ahead touchdown has them down six at the half. 

Army's decision to defer to the second half looked questionable after Navy's opening TD march, but now they can open up a commanding lead when they come out and get the ball to start the third quarter. The Black Knights were able to score six points in the final four minutes of the first half and another scoring drive to open the second half would give them a two-score advantage after coming into the game as 6-point underdogs.

Horvath's touchdown run on the opening drive made him the first FBS QB since Lamar Jackson (2016-17) with 1,000+ rushing yards 15+ rush TD in two seasons -- having done so in back-to-back seasons for the Midshipmen. 

It's a day that could feature more history made by Horvath, as he's looking to guide Navy to the first back-to-back 10-win seasons in program history with a win today. Navy also hasn't beaten Army in back-to-back seasons since 2014 and 2015 -- which were their 13th and 14th consecutive wins in the rivalry to that point. 

The Black Knights have put together two long, sustained drives on their two offensive possessions, but the Navy defense finally was able to produce a stop once Army got to goal-to-go after a 63-yard, 14-play drive that melted another 8:52 off the clock. 

Army picked up a fourth down conversion earlier in the drive, but opted not to go for it from the 4-yard line and settled for the short field goal. Quarterback Cade Hellums has been the workhorse for Army, with 16 carries for 76 yards already in the game. Navy will now have 3:45 to try and answer on their third drive of the game, as Army was able to force a three-and-out on Navy's second drive of the game -- the only drive that hasn't produced points so far. 

A classic Army-Navy first quarter took 25 minutes of real time to complete, with both teams having the ball one time on a lengthy offensive drive. 

Navy holds a 7-0 lead thanks to a 13-play, 75-yard touchdown drive capped off by Blake Horvath's 15th touchdown run of the season. Army, meanwhile, finished the quarter on a long march of their own, going 73 yards in 12 plays over the final 7:16 of the first quarter. 

Cale Hellums tied the game on the first play of the second quarter with a two-yard touchdown run to match his Navy counterpart and even things up. It's the first time both teams have scored a touchdown on their opening drive since 2021. 

There have been two pass attempts in the game so far, one completion for each team, with 24 rushing attempts combined. 

Navy got the ball to open the game after Army deferred and the Midshipmen marched 75 yards in 13 plays in 7:44 to take more than half of the time off the clock in the first quarter and take a 7-0 lead. 

Blake Horvath punctuated the drive with a 5-yard rushing touchdown on 3rd and 2, as both teams put all 22 guys across the line of scrimmage and Horvath was able to find a crease on the right side and punch it in for six. 

The Midshipmen came into the game with the apparent advantage on offense, while Army's hopes hinged on their defense continuing to bow up. After the first drive, Navy has to feel great about its ability to move the ball, while Army is going to have to find some ability to create some negative plays to force the Midshipmen out of their game plan. 

The Navy offense is showing Army a bit of everything pre-snap on their first drive to try and open up some gaps and get the Black Knights out of their fits. In a game with two teams so familiar with the offense of the other, Navy's trying force Army into a lot of communication before the snap to pry open some holes for the rushing attack. So far it's been effective, as the Midshipmen have moved it into the red zone on their opening drive that's taken 6 minutes off the clock in the early going. 

It's a normal spring workout session for the Navy football program, but there is a distinctly abnormal athlete preparing to squat an eye-popping amount of weight. Meet Navy nose guard Landon Robinson, who is about to squat 650 points with a barbell that had to be specially ordered because there wasn't one long enough. 

He is Navy's freak, a moniker earned thanks to his repeated inclusion in The Athletic's annual freaks list. The story chronicles the strongest, fastest and most physical players in college football, and Robinson checked in at No. 13 before the 2025 season. Freaks come in all packages, and the 6-foot, 285-pound Robinson is on the list for the third time. He is a two-time all-conference player in The American and one of the league's leaders in sacks, but it's the freak designation in which he takes a particular amount of pride.  

Meet Landon Robinson: How Navy star NG emerged as one of college football's freakiest players for Midshipmen

Richard Johnson

The Army vs. Navy Game is a spectacle like no other. Every year, these two storied service academies get together to cap the college football regular season, and this year will be no different. The Commander-in-Chief's Trophy is on the line as the pageantry will again be a sight to behold. What also will be a sight to behold, as is usually the case, are the uniforms that will be worn by the Black Knights and Midshipmen. 

2025 Army vs. Navy Game uniforms: Black Knights, Midshipmen will honor 250 years of service in 126th meeting

Robby Kalland

So much points to Navy in this game, but when it comes to this rivalry, it's rarely that simple. The old "throw out the record books" adage is firmly in play here, and with the form Army's shown in the second half of the season on defense, I expect it to keep this tight all the way through the fourth quarter. We haven't seen Navy in a defensive, grind-it-out type game since the Rice game in late September, and if history tells us anything, that's what we are in store for on Saturday. 

Army is going to try and limit possessions and make this a rock fight, and I think the Black Knights can largely be successful. That said, even in a game that's played at that preferred pace, Navy's offense just has more firepower and Horvath can create a couple big plays that make the difference in a win for the Midshipmen. Pick: Navy -6

Explosive plays don't just have to happen on offense. Ball security is always of the utmost importance in the Army-Navy Game. Horvath and Hellums will have to be sharp with their ball-handling on the option, both on the give and the pitch, as putting the ball on the ground is the cardinal sin in this game. 

For as much as they run the ball and how many pitches and pulls are involved in each play, both of these offenses do a great job protecting the football. Army has lost just five fumbles all year, while Navy has given it away six times. That means it shouldn't be an expectation that either team will cough it up, but any opportunity a defense gets, either on a mishandled option give/pitch or by punching the ball out, could be a huge swing. 

Field position is always critical in this matchup, and there tend to be a number of punts as the two teams try to pin the others back deep. Execution from start to finish from the punt units will be paramount. The coverage unit that can execute and pin the other team inside their own 10 can set up their team for success, while a punt block or a muffed return can flip the field and swing the outcome. 

Points are at a premium in the Army-Navy Game, and that puts added pressure on the field goal units when they do get trotted out -- although, both teams tend to be aggressive going for it on fourth-and-short situations. Army's Dawson Jones is 12 of 17 on field goal attempts this season and a perfect 29 of 29 on extra points. Navy's Nathan Kirkwood has likewise been perfect on XPs, hitting all 46 he's attempted, and hit 9 of 10 field goal attempts. 

It'll be cold and a bit breezy on Saturday afternoon in Baltimore, and the special teams units on both sides will need to be on point. 

Anyone who has ever watched the Army-Navy Game knows that it will be a grueling, physical battle in the trenches. These are two option teams that know exactly what the other wants to do and have more experience maintaining eye discipline and run fits than any other opponent. That tends to create a low-scoring, field position battle.

It's so hard to sustain drives for touchdowns in this game because the defenses are so disciplined against the option, which also means any explosive plays hold extra importance. In that department, Navy has been far better this season. The Midshipmen are fourth in the country in 20+ yard runs (30), while Army is all the way back in 84th (12). 

Navy's passing attack has been a far bigger weapon this year compared to Army's, as Horvath has thrown for 1,390 yards and nine touchdowns compared to just 504 yards and three touchdowns for Hellums. No one will confuse the Midshipmen with the Air Raid this season, but Horvath's arm does provide them with an additional threat they can spring on defenses that get too aggressive trying to stop the run. 

That doesn't mean Army can't dial up something at the right time to create a chunk play, but the Midshipmen provide a more constant threat for explosives both on the ground and through the air -- as we saw in this game a year ago. Limiting that big play potential will be the biggest challenge for this Black Knights defense that has been extremely solid of late, while the offense will need to find a way to scheme up an explosive or two themselves. 

Army and Navy are set to clash once again in one of the most anticipated matchups of each college football season, this year in Baltimore as the storied service academies enter the 126th chapter into their legendary rivalry. The Midshipmen lead the all-time series with a 63-55-7 record against the Black Knights as we enter this year's much-anticipated game. 

2025 Army vs. Navy Game prediction, pick, odds, spread: Storied rivalry takes center stage for 126th time

Robby Kalland