… There’s already a prediction that they’ll be a preseason Top 25 team next year.
ESPN college football writer Mark Schlabach released his “Way too early 2010 Top 25” yesterday, and the Midshipmen are penciled in as his #25 team.
The Midshipmen didn’t miss a beat in 2009 under second-year coach Ken Niumatalolo, who led them to a 10-win season for only the third time in school history. Navy pulled off a trifecta of impressive feats, sweeping service academy rivals Air Force and Army, winning at Notre Dame for the second time in a row and blasting Missouri 35-13 in the Texas Bowl. With seven starters expected to come back on offense and eight on defense, Navy could be even better in 2010. Quarterback Ricky Dobbs is one of the country’s most unheralded players, running for 1,192 yards and 27 touchdowns (an NCAA single-season record for a QB) last season.
As for this season, Navy came up just short in the USA TODAY Top 25 Coaches Poll and the AP Top 25 poll.
