22 Comments

• SinkNavy says:

  October 1, 2011 at 3:48 pm

  See you in a year clowns
• The Bird says:

  October 1, 2011 at 4:58 pm

  Young Midshipman Proctor is quoted in the AP story on this game as saying in OT “we scored and I was heading to the sideline and one of their guys got in front of me and I said “move”.” Go watch the video young man. That never happened! He said a “little bit more than just “move”. Watch the video on National TV CBS. Proctor clearly goes out of his way to taunt an Air Force player as he “makes his way to the sideline”. The ref was fully justified in flagging Navy fro unsportsmanlike conduct. Classy or maybe “cowardly”. You decide.

  Coach Ken needs to watch the video as well as he defended his Senior QB by saying, ” I hope those officials can sleep tonight”

  I’m sure the officials will sleep just fine Coach Ken. Maybe your Ensign QB to be will not.

  All that Navy trash-talking for decades finally comes back to haunt them in their own house. AF has talked their fair share of trash too, but for Proctor to hang his coach out when he knows full well what he said is shameful. How delicious!
• afafan says:

  October 1, 2011 at 5:04 pm

  I don’t think the penalty on Proctor was questionable at all. That sort of trash talking needs to be eliminated from College Football. Its not ok…”Even if you can back it up” – its bad sportsmanship and coarsening of our culture.

  Also, NCAA wide, kickers make 77% of all field goals between 30-40 yards – probably higher for 32 yards dead center…not much of a penalty.

  Navy executed well, but did Wallerstadt get too passive?! One bad quarter against Navy…unfortunate…but the passivity seems part of trend. Is it because of key injuries, or part of his philosophy.
• Falconman says:

  October 1, 2011 at 5:25 pm

  Before navy fans and Air Force detractors go off the deep end like the Navy coach, consider this:
  (1) as noted before, Proctor clearly stoppd and got in the face of an AF player before leaving the field…the replays prove that…I don’t like the rule either, but Proctor has to be smarter than that, since the NCAA has made this a point of emphasis…and he knows it;
  (2) even with the penalty, the extra point amounted to a straight-on, 35 yard field goal…a makeable kick by any major college team;
  (3) AF made a great defensive play and blocked the kick, so whether or not the kick was accurate is a moot point;
  (4) after all this, all Navy had to do was play defense and keep AF out of the end zone…instead, Tim Jefferson marched them into the end zone with little resistance from the midshipmen,.

  So the mesage to Navy: stop whining..sure, the penalty had an impact on the game, but so did a ton of other plays, a list of which would go on and on…grow up, you lost, see you next year at Falcon Stadium.
• Scott says:

  October 1, 2011 at 5:58 pm

  Very disturbing that Proctor had to manufacture his version of events (one of his teammates even had to hold him back while he was taunting). He was rightly called out by the CBS Studio crew during the game recap. Proctor played a great game, and there was a bunch of emotion out there; a shame he can’t own up to his error.
• ChicagoZoomie says:

  October 1, 2011 at 6:36 pm

  Hard to argue that that particular call resulted in a blocked kick. And there was still plenty of football left after that play. I think what happened is that AF got itself righted after the Navy touchdown, got a great effort from its special teams, and then put things away. And is it just my impression, or did Navy get awfully close to blocking AF’s OT PAT?
  This was a wonderfully entertaining game to watch. My hat is off to both teams for effort and heart.
  But I’m glad the Zoomies won this one.
• The Bird says:

  October 1, 2011 at 7:15 pm

  From ESPN: “Navy coach Ken Niumatalolo and Proctor were furious about the flag.

  “That’s a tough call to make. I would hope the referees would have said something like “Settle down, in that situation.” Niumatalolo said. It’s too critical a call to make. I hope those guys can sleep well tonight”.

  Proctor said, “I got up and started to head to our sideline. Some guy got in my way and I said, “Move”. Then referee made the call.”

  ESPN and CBS have shown the post touchdown taunt about 50 times this afternoon. I saw it differently……much differently than Midshipman Proctor.
• Frederic N. Halstrom says:

  October 1, 2011 at 7:44 pm

  Earlier in the game a Navy wr was called for unsportsmanlike Navy got 15 yards. Thus Navy was on notice.
  Does not Navy have an honor code? If so, the Navy Q B should be in a world of trouble
  As the replays show he is lying with his story to the press and his HC.
  Hello!!
• gss303 says:

  October 2, 2011 at 8:24 am

  The Navy QB just flat out told a lie about what he did.
  That still should have been an easy extra point.
  AF defensive player made a great play….made a play!
  The unnecessary roughness call on our cb was wrong
  but you didn’t hear Coach Calhoun crying about it.
  The inadvertent whistle cost AF a fumble and probably another touchdown….but no crying from the boys from the springs.
  Great game….tough for either academy to lose.
  AF defense played well until the 4th quarter, especially with 5? guys out on defense.
  Great Win.
• Joseph says:

  October 2, 2011 at 10:28 am

  I didn’t like the call in OVERTIME……but I will say this Calhoun is a great coach and a great role model/leader, Air Force is a higher caliber than Navy and it showed overall.
• J3 says:

  October 2, 2011 at 1:21 pm

  As practically everyone has noted, there is a disconnect between the story that Proctor is peddling and Reality. The replays clearly show that Proctor’s breach of discipline…at the worst possible time…was more than enough to get the ref’s attention. If it is a call that would be made in regulation, then it is a call that should be made in OT, as well.

  Navy’s coach is sending the wrong message by questioning the ref’s decision and, more so, by allowing his players to feel justified in doing the same. He should analyze his O-line’s blocking assignments on the PAT and how AF scored and converted their PAT in OT.
• ChicagoZoomie says:

  October 3, 2011 at 7:53 am

  Even Navy homer John Feinstein has it correct in the Washington Post: “It’s clear that officials have been ordered to throw a flag at anything that even looks like a late hit or unsportsmanlike conduct. Navy got burned by that approach when quarterback Kriss Proctor scored to put the Mids up 34-28 in overtime and took a step toward an Air Force player, clearly jawing with him. That was a mistake but it was also an emotional moment in a tense game. No matter. The flag flew and Navy’s extra point from 35 yards was partially blocked. Air Force scored, kicked the extra point and won, 35-34. That said, Navy lost the game by falling behind 21-3 and 28-10, not because of an overzealous official.”
• MKL says:

  October 3, 2011 at 7:56 am

  Trust me, the Navy fans read these AF blogs. Ramsey makes one little comment on his blog about their scheduling, and you wind up with pages and pages of complaints from squid fans.

  The fact that no USNA types are jumping in here to defend their guy tells you everything you need to know. Anyone from Navy actually see the replay of the taunt and care to comment?
• Armchairsailor79 says:

  October 3, 2011 at 10:26 am

  To MKL from a lifelong Navy fan

  1. I’ve seen the replay. Ref should not have made the call. Would say the same if it had been an AF, Army, ND or Alabama player. This is football, not croquet.
  2. Call did not decide the game. The way AF played, particularly the first 3 1/2 quarters decided the game.
  3. Hats off and Bravo Zulu. This series has the intensity and closeness that Army Navy had in the 90′s.
  4. We will kick your bus driving Zoomie butts next year!!!
• Frederic N.Halstrom says:

  October 3, 2011 at 11:20 am

  Twice in the game USAFA thought Navy would fake a place kick and did not move off the line on the attempts by Navy, both good.
  Thus the USAFA rushing the place kicker on OT was the first time in three Navy place kicks that USAFA rushed the kick and BLOCKED it.

  The Navy QB #2,a First Classman, lost his discipline after he scored. Then he lied about it. Shame because his FB # 39 knew what happened as he was holding #2 back.

  The HC has no such excuse for his post game comments. It was classless and crying!

  It is one thing to lose a very well played and hard fought contest but quite another to dishonor oneself and the USNA.
• AJ says:

  October 3, 2011 at 1:36 pm

  Navy’s QB didn’t actually lie, what he failed to do was tell the complete story. In the replay he stands up, pushes one of our D-lineman back (the point where he would have ‘explicity told him to move’). The part Midshipman Proctor failed to mention was he then runs to the other side of the pile, grabs one of our DB’s arms to get his attention and says something to him. It’s at that confrontation where Navy’s fullback pulls him away from the rest of the pile. Obviously there is some confusion from the Navy side on which interaction was called a penalty. The the mouthing off between the Navy QB And the Air Force DB was clearly taunting.
• MKL says:

  October 3, 2011 at 2:26 pm

  http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=MBgNFqLrlTM#t=492s

  Here it is. Neither AF player Proctor yaps at engages him in any way. When he circles the second player to talk a little trash, one of his own teammates grabs him as if to say “chill out dude, you’re going to get a flag”.

  I can’t see how this is in any way controversial. That’s going to be a flag in any conference, under any circumstance.

  And it all becomes irrelevant if the Navy kicker simply hits a 35 yard, dead center extra point.

  Lost in all this is what an incredible series this has become for the past 9 years. I don’t know what the 2 teams could possibly do to top this next year, but I’m sure it’ll be something.
• John Hamann says:

  October 3, 2011 at 6:03 pm

  What is wrong with Air Force and Navy in the past 10 years on this game!!! According to the Navy sports reporter for the Annapolis newspaper,there was a lot of trash talking on both sides of the ball. I am embarrassed for BOTH academies. As an exchange student to USAFA in ’83, I witnessed no where near the vitriol that I see now.

  Should Proctor have kept his cool more? Of course, but if you read the commentary below, you’ll find that Jefferson did something similar (worse?) when Air Force scored in OT.

  BUT THERE IS NOTHING WORSE than USAFA fans accusing Proctor of an honor violation. Today’s internet discussions have lowered the definition of “lying” by labeling political speech they don’t agree with as “lies”. But service academies and their alumni and fans shouldn’t lower that bar.

  Link to commentary by Bill Wagner, Navy Sports reporter:

  http://www.hometownannapolis.com/news/nas/2011/10/03-25/Sports-Comment-Refs-call-in-Navy-game-was-wrong-one.html
• The Bird says:

  October 4, 2011 at 3:36 am

  John Hamann,

  I also agree with you that the trash talking and outright hatred between the players of both teams has escalated exponentially in the last 10 years and I think I know why.

  I will preface what I am about to say by saying that AFA’s players between the lines are no “altar boys” when it comes to talking trash. That said, what changed in this service academy rivalry changed when Paul Johnson came to Navy as their head coach about 10 years ago. Prior to Johnson’s arrival, AFA dominated the CIC round robin for over a decade. Johnson’s mandate was to get the CIC trophy back at all costs. He coached to that end and he recruited to that end. It’s no secret that under Johnson, Navy looked the other way and admitted several football players of questionable character whom they would have routinely passed on in years prior to Johnson’s arrival. Better athletes, but of questionable character as evidenced by the multiple disciplinary issues with the Navy football program under his tenure. Johnson had a hatred for AFA’s program and worked at instilling that same competitive hatred in his own players as well. Niamatalolo is a Johnson protege and is a “hothead” as well. His denegration of the Air Force victory in placing blame on the officials was classless and just plain poor judgment for a SA head coach. He put the onus of the game’s outcome on one call, defended his indefensible QB, and marginalized what was a great college football game for the entire country to see on national TV. He could have taken the high road and disagreed with the call while at the same time given AFA credit for blocking the kick and winning the game. He chose not to.

  Despite being “brothers in arms”, these two teams absolutely hate each other and in my opinion that hatred extends off the field as well from what I’ve heard. America’s societal deterioration of athletic sportsmanship has I’m afraid extended to even this classic “unfriendly field of strife”.
• ChicagoZoomie says:

  October 4, 2011 at 8:09 am

  From Wagner’s article: “It happens every year in this series because, frankly, the Falcons and Midshipmen don’t like each other very much. It has always been an intense, testy rivalry with not quite as much mutual respect as exists in Army-Navy.”

  i wonder if there would be quite so much “respect” shown by both sides if Army was competitive, and had beaten Navy and Air Force consistently over the last two decades. Navy targets USAFA, and vice versa, because they have been the only real players in the CINC trophy race in the last ten years.

  It does seem that this game is close to getting out of hand. Last year there was a blatant and dangerous face mask by an AF player at the end of the game that should have resulted in an ejection. Several years before that a Navy player deliberately clipped an AF player behind the play with no advantage other than to cause an injury. I hope the coaches are looking at this and thinking about how they ratchet down the vitriol, while keeping the intensity. Otherwise we could have a really ugly episode on a national stage that will serve both schools poorly.
• John Hamann says:

  October 4, 2011 at 7:23 pm

  Bird,

  With all due respect this hatred precedes Paul Johnson, based on my research… It is Fisher DeBerry that started this hatred once Navy started winning the CIC trophy… You MUST realize that the CIC trophy is ALWAYS secondary to beating Army from a Navy perspective. Yet despite our dominance of Army in the last decade and Army’s in the previous decade, there is no animosity or hatred toward Army (ChiZoomie – Army was PLENTY competitive with Navy in the 90s, even though AF beat us both most of the time).

  You mention Johnson’s ability to recruit players of “questionable character”, yet you don’t mention the graduation rates of football players at USAFA.

  IMHO, if the AF team had started to lose to Army in the last years of the DeBerry era, we would see similar angst between Air Force and Army.
• Wesley Chee says:

  October 6, 2011 at 8:16 pm

  In war, there is no second place.

  Life at the service academies breeds competition and winning. You against your roommate. Your room against the next room. Your group of rooms against the next group of rooms. Your dorm against the next dorm. Your academy against the next academy.

  YOUR Air Force Academy cadets do not hate the Navy midshipmen or Army cadets. The press misses (the deeper story of) USAFA cadets respectfully standing at attention while our brethren play their alma maters (after we beat them). In the immortal words of Gen. Patton, [AF cadets] love a winner, and will not tolerate a loser.

  Beside that, the USAFA Cadet Field House is the home of the Commander-In-Chief’s Trophy. Beat Army!