It took only one play late in the first quarter of Navy's game at Southern Methodist on Saturday night to send the Midshipmen's offense into a funk that lasted for the rest of the half. On a fourth-and-1 from the Mustangs' 27-yard line, junior quarterback Ricky Dobbs was stuffed for no gain. Navy's offense gained only 34 more yards the rest of the half, committed uncharacteristic penalties and lost a fumble that was returned for a touchdown. The Midshipmen trailed 21-7 at halftime.
It took only one play early in the second half for the Midshipmen to snap out of their slump. On the first play of Navy's second possession of the third quarter, junior wide receiver Greg Jones caught a 39-yard pass from Dobbs. That play moved the Midshipmen into SMU territory, and four plays later, junior fullback Vince Murray scored on a 3-yard run to cut the Mustangs' lead in half.
"That emotion kicked back in for us," said senior guard Osei Asante, Navy's offensive team captain. "We were just pretty lifeless after the penalties, the fumble, the fourth-down [stop]. But the juices started flowing after that big play."
Navy went on to beat SMU, 38-35, in overtime, a result that once again illustrated the Midshipmen's toughness. In coach Ken Niumatalolo's two seasons at the helm, the Midshipmen are 6-2 in games decided by seven points or fewer, including 3-0 in games that went to overtime. In three of those narrow victories - including at SMU - Navy trailed in the fourth quarter.
"Our kids are really resilient kids," Niumatalolo said. "A lot of that is the academy. [But] after winning so much, hopefully it's a habit. Our kids believe that they can win."
That starts with Dobbs, who led the Midshipmen to an improbable come-from-behind, 33-27 overtime win over Temple last season and nearly pulled off comebacks in losses to Notre Dame in 2008 and Ohio State in September.
Dobbs did not play well in the first half against SMU; he missed reads, was part of a fumbled exchange that resulted in a Mustangs touchdown and had another fumble that was recovered by Midshipmen slotback Marcus Curry on the Navy 3. He gathered himself at halftime, turning to Isaiah 41:9-11 in his Bible for inspiration, and efficiently led Navy's offense on four touchdown drives in the second half.
