Posts by Adam Nettina at FanHouse - AOL Sports Blog

Don't get me wrong, it's not like I'm saying I wouldn't like to have an athlete like Mitch Mustain around the Academy, but you can't be serious, can you? I mean this is a team which rarely ever picks up a three-star recruit, much less the Nation's premier blue chip quarterback after what has become a very convoluted situation Fayetteville.

It sure is weird, and it smells of complete fallacy, but what exactly in this whole situation hasn't been a little off-the-wall? For the past two days a conversation has been going on at the popular Navy football message board GoMids.com, where several posters claiming to be from Arkansas insist that Mustain is considering the Naval Academy. Now I realize 99% of what you hear on the Internet is cannon law, and that armchair fans would never have any reason to lie, but is anyone really taking this seriously? Case in point, a poster named deafnwsport05 is claiming to have spoken to Mitch in the library the other day, and that Mustain told him he was not only panning to apply to the Naval Academy, but is willing to change positions to accommodate Kaipo-Noa Kaheaku Enhada (!?!)

Alright, is it just me, or does that sound like complete bogus? I'm not exactly up-to-date on the whole Nutt/Mustain/Mustain's Mom situation, but I thought it was a given he'd follow Malzahn to Tulsa? I've got nothing against Mitch, but this rumor has about as little substance as Adam Ballard's Heisman campaign (although, God knows, I'd vote for the guy.) More proof that the Internet is a weird place I guess...

What are the odds? On the same day Jeromy Miles' transfer is confirmed, Navy fans must also learn that Phillip Davis, arguably the most highly touted of the current recruiting class, has backed out of his commitment with the Naval Academy.

Longtime readers should recognize the name, since for the past few months I've been declaring Davis as a huge steal for Navy recruiting. Davis was the heart and soul of the Peachtree Ridge secondary and helped lead his team to a state championship back in December, but received surprisingly little interest from big name schools. Interestingly enough, it doesn't look like some big school came and turned Davis' attention away from Navy, although he has received interest from the likes of Southern Miss, Chattanooga, Georgia Southern, and Woffard. But a few I-AA schools and a underperforming Conference-USA team couldn't really cause Davis to rescind his verbal his commitment to Navy, could they?

I just don't know, and until more information is made available I can't even say whether Davis has just decided to reconsider his offers or to rule out Navy altogether. Fortunately Coach Johnson has been putting together a good enough class (especially on defense) that even the loss of a great young talent like Davis can't spoil what will likely be one of the best Navy recruiting classes in the modern era.

The rumor has been going around for some time now, but we can make it official today as Head Coach Paul Johnson confirmed the rumor to the Annapolis Capital. Jeromy Miles started eleven games for the Midshipmen in 2007 after coming in for the injured DuJuan Price in week three, and in doing so established himself as one of the best freshmen defensive backs in the entire country.

The 6'2, 189-lb safety was granted a release from the team and the Academy by Johnson last week, and is looking to enroll at another Division I school in time for the spring semester. Miles reportedly told Coach Johnson that the reason for his leaving was the five year military commitment he'd have to serve after his graduation. The Capital reported that Miles is eying Temple, Bowling Green, and I-AA UMass. Our friend Frank from the UMass football blog has already begun a campaign for Miles, who was named an Honorable Mention Freshmen All-American as well as the All-East Freshmen on the Year.

Navy has several veterans who could take Miles' place, including hard-hitting rover Ketric Buffin and current junior Dell Robinson. Miles recorded 61 tackles in 2006, while intercepting two passes and forcing two fumbles.

Navy picked up two-star receiver Jordan Delk today, after the 6'1, 160-lb wideout from Lyons, Georgia gave a verbal commitment to play for the Naval Academy. Delk caught 32 passes for 570 yards last season, in addition to rushing for 700 yards on 92 carries.

A simple google search digs up some information on Jordan, including a post at a Georgia message board which states that he picked off "eight or nine" passes as a cornberback. That same forum reports that a representative from the Air Force academy came to visit him today (offering him a scholarship?), and that things are "still up in the air." Take that with a grain of salt if you want, but either way it sounds like he's a great young man who has the versatility to make an impact on either offense or defense. In my biased opinion, I hope Jordan decides to stay with Navy.

Continuing on the recruiting front, it looks as though the Midshipmen are making a late run for St. Pius X running back Aaron Springer, who verbally committed to the Air Force Academy last month. If St. Pius X sounds familiar, it's because Navy brought in DL/LB Bayard Roberts from the New Mexico powerhouse last year (BTW- I've noticed that New Mexico has been producing some fine players the past few years). Springer is a phenomenal athlete who at 5'11, 175 runs a sub 4.5/40. He's been broadcast as one of the top players to choose Air Force this year, and if Navy could sway his interest it may be a huge recruiting coup pulled off against Navy's biggest rival. Only time will tell on this one...

As usual, any firsthand accounts or information regarding recruits is welcomed and encouraged.

A photographic journey through Navy's 2006 season. All photos taken by Dan Nettina.

The 2006 season started with East Carolina coming into Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium, as Skip Holtz's veteran ballclub looked to play spoiler for a Navy team with high expectations. In a dogfight against the Pirates, the Mids ultimately came out on top, as Brian Hampton's hard-nosed running style propelled his team to a 28-23 victory against an ECU team which would finish the regular season at 7-5. It wasn't a perfect performance by Navy, but already there was reason to be optimistic for the 2006 season.

Last year's stats in parenthesis and next year's class noted.

Projected Starting Outside Linebacker: Jr Clint Sovie (61 tkls, 1.5 for loss, 2 ints)

Projected Starting Inside Linebacker: Sr Irv Spencer (27 tkls, 1 fumble recovery, 2 forced fumbles)

Projected Starting Inside Linebacker: Sr Jon Alvarado (3 tkls, 1 sack)

Projected Starting Outside Linebacker: Sr Matt Wimsatt (6 tkls)

Should Compete for Time: Jr Matt Humistan (10 tkls), So Ian Meredith (6'3, 225), Jr Mike Walsh (6'2, 234), So Zach Weatherington (6'4, 235), So Ross Pospisil (6'0, 205)

Need to Assert Themselves: Jr Will Scarle (6'4, 224), Sr Jordon Young (6'0, 210), Alex Horne (6'0, 217), So Jordan Eddington (6'0, 213), So Brian Smith (6'1, 210), Jr Scott Reider (6'0, 218), So Craig Schaefer (6'2, 202), So Matt Nechak (6'4, 221), So Stephen Tripp (5'11, 191), So Tony Haberer (6'1, 216)

2006 Review: Navy's linebacker corps was one of the most underrated in the entire country, leading a surprisingly good rush defense that helped the Mids win nine games. While Rob Caldwell (109 tkls) and Clint Sovie (61 tkls) anchored the inside, veterans David Mahoney (84 tkls, 7 sacks) and Tyler Tidwell (53 tkls, 5 sacks) excelled at outside linebacker. Tiwell, Caldwell, and Mahoney all depart this offseason.

They say you can't go wrong recruiting high school players from the state of Florida, and if that saying only rings halfway true, Navy should be in good shape for several years to come. That's because Mandarin defensive back Jarrell Smith becomes the third player to commit to the Naval Academy from Florida this year, joining defensive lineman John Cabbage and running back Caleb King.

The 5-11, 185-lb south Florida native recorded 65 tackles (9 for loss), five deflections, and two interceptions in 2006. But why take my word for it when you can watch his official highlight video from the Mandarin football website. As you can see from the video, Smith appears to be a very physical player who looks like he could be a solid player in run support at the college level. Another thing I noticed was that he sticks with the play and uses his great speed to run down players from behind.

There isn't a lot listed on Smith, although his Rivals page says he runs a 4.5/40 and boasts a 1090 SAT score (old grading scale I assume.) Smith chose Navy over Youngstown State and Furman, both of which are upper-tier I-AA teams. No word yet on whether he will attend NAPS or come directly to the Academy.

Well, it's been something of a forgone conclusion, but I guess we can say its finally official; Brian Blick has committed to Navy.

The 5-10, 185 state-champion quarterback out of J.H. Rose in North Carolina has been considering Navy for several weeks now, and finally gave a verbal commitment this week after deciding to forgo offers from VMI and Bucknell. Blick has an impressive resume, including the distinction of never losing a game as a starter. Blick went 98-153 (64%) for 1,549 yards with a 17-4 touchdown-interception ratio, while accounting for 751 yards and eleven touchdowns on the ground en route to being named The Offensive Player of the Year by the Greenville Daily Reflector. Perhaps the most impressive aspect about Blick is his dream to become a United States Marine, which played a key role in his decision to attend the Naval Academy.

While undersized, Blick looks like a great pickup for the program. Not only does he have the dedication and drive to want to be at the Academy, but he has the intangibles of a winner that just don't show up on Tom Lemmings report. He has even drawn parallels to Shaun Carney (the High School one which started ahead of Troy Smith, not the college one who implodes at Air Force) in the way in which he runs the option.

Blick will attend the Naval Academy Prep School in Rhode Island next year before making his way to the Academy (hopefully) in 2008. Thanks to reader Stephen Prather for catching this and bringing this to our attention.

Lots of new recruits to report on today, and with the season finally over hopefully a lot more to come. Here are the latest to give verbal commitments to Navy.

Fayettville, North Carolina offensive/defensive linemen Jared Marks committed to Navy this week, although he'll first attend a year at the Naval Academy Prep School. Marks is a 6-4, 250-lb linemen from Pine Forest High School who led his team with eight sacks and projects as a defensive linemen for the Midshipmen. He was named Defensive Player of the Year for the Two Rivers 4-A conference, and passes up offers from Appalachian State, William and Mary, and Elon among others.

The Mids also landed another star quarterback in Mike Stukel, a versatile athlete who could literally play any of the skill positions on offense or defense. You can check out videos of the 5-11, 180-lb Jacksonville product here and here.

The Dallas Morning News is reporting that Plano wide receiver Greg Harrell has chosen the Naval Academy over Air Force and given a verbal commitment to the Midshipmen. The 6'4, 200-lb Texas product saw time at both wide receiver and quarterback last season.

And cornerback Joe Davis out of St. Edwards and Cleveland gave a verbal to the Midshipmen back in December, passing up offers from Harvard, Georgetown, Bowling Green, and Air Force to come to Annapolis.

HT: GoMids.com

Projected Starting Left End: Casey Herbert (one sack in '06)

Projected Starting Nose Gaurd: Nate Frazier (6'3, 295)

Projected Starting Right End: Chris Kahur-Pitters (6'2, 252)

Will Compete For Time: NG Andy Lark, DE Ryan Griffith (6'2, 260), NG Derek Rothchild (6'3, 256)

Rest of the Pack (AKA need to assert themselves): Artie Pauls (6'1, 233), Tyler Wagner (6'3, 233), Jordan Stephens (6'4, 255), John Maddox (6'4, 244), Andrew Burger (6'3, 230), Kyle Bookhout (6'2, 237), Bayard Roberts (6'2, 210), Mike McClarin (6'3, 230), Penetekoso Peau (6'1, 276), Michael Walsh (6'2, 234)

2006 Review: Despite being one of the smallest defensive lines in all of major college football, Navy's defensive line played better the expected in 2006. Led by seniors John Chan (63 tkls, 7 sacks), Tye Adams (45 tkls, 4 sacks), and David Wright (34 tkls, 1 sack), the Midshipmen defensive line helped lead a defense that was ranked a respectable 41st against the run in the country. While the unit struggled establishing a pass rush against the better teams on the schedule, they did nevertheless cause havoc to the likes of Temple and Duke by establishing penetration and blowing up plays. All three starters depart after this season, as well as backups Andrew Tatersall (4 sacks in '05) and Rick Amos (2 sacks.)