Navy edges Air Force

  • Published
  • By Senior Master Sgt. Rick Burnham
  • Air Force Print News
LANDOVER, Md. --  The U.S. Naval Academy’s 2003 football media guide lists fullback Kyle Eckel as having good size and speed, and being a player who should get better with experience.

Air Force head coach Fisher DeBerry calls him “possessed.”

Eckel ran for 176 yards and a touchdown to lead the Midshipmen to a 28-25 win over the 25th-ranked and previously unbeaten Falcons before a frenzied crowd at FedEx Field here Oct. 4.

Besides snapping a six-game winning streak over Navy, the loss effectively eliminated Air Force from contention for this year’s Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy, given annually to the best of the nation’s three military academy teams.

Navy, on the other hand, can win the trophy for the first time since 1981 with a win against Army on Dec. 6 at Lincoln Field in Philadelphia.

DeBerry said his team played a hard-fought game, but just could not find an answer for Eckel.

“The bottom line of the game was that their fullback was just devastating, and we could not stop him,” he said. “We tried everything in the world we knew, but he is a very strong player and a very good player and was the difference today.”

The Air Force offense put up strong numbers of its own in the game, with quarterback Chance Harridge picking up 129 yards on 21 carries and another 87 through the air. But a series of promising first-half drives produced only 3 points as the Navy defense used an effective “bend but don’t break” strategy.

Particularly distressing was an early second-quarter drive that ended when Navy cornerback Shalim Brazier stepped in front of an errant Harridge pass at the Air Force 32-yard line and returned it 28 yards to the 4-yard line. Two plays later, Michael Brimage plunged into the end zone to give his team a 14-3 lead with 8:31 left in the first half.

The Falcons never quite recovered from that point, getting to within 3 points twice -- at 21-18 when offensive tackle Brett Waller recovered a fumble in the end zone moments into the fourth quarter, and at 28-25 following Harridge’s quarterback keeper with 20 seconds left in the game.

An onside kick attempt on the next play failed, sealing Air Force’s fate and plunging the Naval Academy band into several choruses of “Anchors Aweigh.” As time ran out on this year’s game, a small team of midshipmen manning a cannon fired off a number of thunderous volleys, while some 3,000 of their white-clad counterparts reached a state of delirium in the stands.

Air Force wingback Darnell Stephens picked up 88 yards on 20 carries in the game, while teammate Anthony Butler added 23 yards on four attempts. Navy quarterback Craig Candeto ran for 65 yards on 20 carries, and connected on three of six passes for 32 yards.