Navy wins rare shootout with Air Force as Midshipmen claim first leg in 2025 Commander-in-Chief's Trophy race

Late 4Q: Navy 34, Air Force 31

Fans of defense have not had much to cheer about today, but Navy finally gave them a highlight when it recovered a Liam Szarka fumble to potentially put the game on ice. Air Force was on the move attempting to respond to Navy's go-ahead field goal one drive prior. Szarka released an ill-advised pitch, which landed in the hands of a Midshipmen defender for the Falcons' first turnover.

A game that has been nothing but thrilling on the offensive side of the ball may ironically be decided by a clutch defensive play.

Early 4Q: Air Force 31, Navy 31

Stop me if you've heard this before, but we have a big play to announce. The Air Force passing attack now has more yards than the ground game after a 53-yard bomb from Liam Szarka to Jonah Dawson. The latter's first catch of the day went to the house to level things up once again, this time at 31 points apiece.

Early 4Q: Navy 31, Air Force 24

Eli Heidenreich is now the all-time receiving touchdown leader at Navy. A 60-yard scoring strike is the history-maker and puts Heidenreich at six grabs for 209 yards and three touchdowns on the day. Blake Horvath is also now in the midst of a career performance with 281 passing yards, a personal best.

All of that came after Air Force evened things back up with an 11-play touchdown drive capped off by Bruin Fleischmann's fifth catch of the day. He is also putting together a breakout performance, as his 152 yards are more than the 138 he had for his entire career entering the day.

End 3Q: Navy 24, Air Force 17

Big plays have been the story all day, and Navy is the latest to rattle one off. The Midshipmen leaped back in front on a 59-yard touchdown sprint from Blake Horvath, bringing both quarterbacks above the 100-yard mark on the ground for the game.

Both defenses have been susceptible to breakdowns, which is not always the case when service academies square off against each other. They are typically more stout against fellow option teams given their familiarity with the system and thus their ability to remain assignment-sound. The explosive plays are some combination of poor defense and terrific execution from proven offensive standouts on both sides like Horvath and Liam Szarka and their top receivers, Eli Heidenreich and Bruin Fleischmann.

Early 3Q: Air Force 17, Navy 17

This game has not lacked creativity. Air Force broke out its bag of tricks on fourth-and-2 from its own side of midfield and brought fullback Kemper Hodges in under center to serve as a gadget quarterback. Instead of taking the ball himself, Hodger delivered a pass to Bruin Fleischman for a 37-yard gain for a first down and much more.

Four plays later, Liam Szarka -- back in a quarterback -- snuck in for a 1-yard touchdown to even things back up at 17.

HALF: Navy 17, Air Force 10

Eli Heidenreich is having himself a day. The Navy receiver tied the academy's career receiving touchdown record with 13 on his second scoring grab of the day, and this one was even more electrifying than the first. Heidenreich broke loose for a massive 80-yard sprint to the end zone to give the Midshipmen their first lead, bringing him to 143 yards in the first half alone.

The passing game is on fire. Heidenreich has been the go-to target for Blake Horvath, who is already up to 206 passing yards and way ahead of pace toward a potential career day through the air. Only once has Horvath cracked the 200-yard mark, and that came last season when he tallied 225 yards in a blowout win over UAB. He could beat that career best early in the third quarter if he keeps this up.

This is more of the same from the Air Force defense, which surrendered 457 passing yards last week to Hawaii, 310 yards before that to Boise State and 287 yards in its FBS opener against Utah State.

Mid 2Q: Navy 10, Air Force 10

Air Force had to settle for three points after it broke off another big play. Navy, however, did not. The Midshipmen returned the kickoff to near midfield, posted its second 36-yard passing play of the game and found pay dirt when Blake Horvath hit Eli Heidenreich from the 19 for their first touchdown of the afternoon.

With another strong drive through the air, Horvath is up to 126 passing yards and a score. Navy has uncharacteristically been far more effective with the pass than with the run.

End 1Q: Air Force 7, Navy 3

Both teams scored on their first possessions and logged a big play apiece, to boot. Everything since Air Force took a 7-3 lead, though, has been more of what one might expect from a typical Falcons vs. Midshipmen matchup. Methodical offensive play took over after the explosive debut drives, and Air Force made a big defensive play, too, forcing Blake Horvath to fumble on his own side of the field.

The Falcons could not capitalize on their plus field position, though. Even with some help from a defensive holding call, they fizzled out before they could open up a quick two-score lead and instead settled for a field goal attempt. Jacob Medina pushed the 35-yarder wide right to keep things set at 7-3 in the visiting team's favor.

Mid 1Q: Air Force 7, Navy 3

Both teams dialed up their best stuff on their respective first offensive plays. One drive after Navy opened with a highlight-reel catch, Air Force responded with a 61-yard sprint from explosive quarterback Liam Szarka. Three plays later, Szarka took it into the end zone himself from the 7 to complete a quick touchdown drive.

Early 1Q: Navy 3, Air Force 0

Who says they have to run the ball? Blake Horvath and Eli Heidenreich connected on the first play from scrimmage for an early 36-yard strike that could very well be the biggest passing gain of the day when it's all said and done. Horvath evaded pressure to get a perfect ball off to Heidenreich, who reached out for a one-handed grab in tight coverage.

The highlight snag set up a 39-yard field goal for the game's opening score.

Only three college football teams boast a longer winning streak than Navy, which was triumphant in its last seven games dating back to last year. This program is as real of a contender for the Group of Six's automatic College Football Playoff berth as any in the American Conference. It does not boast any resume-building wins yet, but a 3-0 mark in league play will make for massive showdowns at the end of the season against fellow CFP hopefuls like North Texas, South Florida and Memphis.

Clinching a spot in the postseason bracket requires Navy to take care of business in games like Saturday's and then, most likely, to defeat multiple other conference title contenders. That is a big ask in a league that already boasts more non-conference wins over Power Four opponents (six) than the ACC (five), but the Midshipmen may very well be up to the challenge.

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It is a good thing the Falcons can move the ball well, because their defense puts a massive burden on their offense. Air Force ranks 131st out of 136 FBS teams at 38.8 points allowed per game, and it surrendered at least 40 points against each of its three conference opponents en route to consecutive losses. If the season ended today, this would be, statistically, the worst defense in program history.

Service academy quarterback play has been tremendous of late, and this season is no different. Blake Horvath is on pace for another remarkable year at Navy, trending toward his second consecutive year with at least 1,200 rushing yards and 1,300 passing yards, and has taken a sizable step forward as a passer. Liam Szarka, meanwhile, is off to a terrific start to his Air Force career as a sophomore. He provides the Falcons with a legitimate passing ability of their own while keeping pace with Horvath as a runner. His 417 total yards last week against Hawaii were an Air Force single-game record.

Neither this game nor Army's Week 6 outing will be directly impacted by the ongoing government shutdown because the service academies use nonprofit funding for their athletic departments, protecting them from the interruption in federal spending. This has not always been the case, though. Air Force during the Jan. 2018 shutdown briefly canceled some of its athletic events, and the Falcons nearly canceled their trip in Oct. 2013 to play the Midshipmen before last-minute assistance made the game possible.

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The first leg in the race for the Commander-In-Chief's Trophy pits Navy against Air Force in Week 6 of the college football season. Navy won the trophy last year for the first time in five seasons and seeks not only to take its first step toward defending the title but also to keep its unbeaten streak alive. The 4-0 Midshipmen host the 1-3 Falcons Saturday on CBS.

Historically, the clash between Navy and Air Force is highly indicative of who will hoist the Commander-In-Chief's Trophy. Over the last 53 years, 40 times the winner of this matchup went on to win the series, which also includes Army. That was the case last season when the Midshipmen snapped their four-game losing streak to the Falcons and later won the 125th Army-Navy game for series supremacy.

Blake Horvath, Alex Tecza, Eli Heidenreich and the Navy offense could be in for a stellar day against one of the nation's most porous defenses. Air Force ranks 131st out of 136 FBS teams in keeping opponents off the board having surrendered 38.8 points per game. The Falcons are prolific at moving the ball themselves, though, with quarterback Liam Szarka leading a dynamic offense of his own.