First meeting October 15, 1927 Next meeting 2017 Meetings total 90 | Latest meeting November 5, 2016 Trophy Rip Miller Trophy | |
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All-time series Notre Dame leads, 76–13–1 | ||
The Navy–Notre Dame football rivalry is an American college football rivalry between the Navy Midshipmen football team of the United States Naval Academy and Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team of the University of Notre Dame. It has been played annually since 1927, making it the longest uninterrupted intersectional rivalry in college football. Notre Dame leads the series 76–13–1. Before Navy won a 46–44 triple-overtime contest in 2007, Notre Dame had a 43-game winning streak that was the longest series win streak between two annual opponents in the history of Division I FBS football. Navy's previous win came in 1963, 35–14 with future Heisman Trophy winner and NFL QB Roger Staubach at the helm. Navy had come close to winning on numerous occasions before 2007. The Midshipmen subsequently won again in 2009, 2010 and 2016.
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Though the game is often played at Notre Dame Stadium in South Bend, it has never been played at Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium, due to its relatively small size. Instead, Navy usually hosts the game at larger facilities such as Baltimore's old Memorial Stadium or current M&T Bank Stadium, FedEx Field in Landover, Maryland, or at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. From 1960 to 1970, the Midshipmen hosted the game at John F. Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, and they hosted the 1972, 1974 and 1993 games at Philadelphia's Veterans Stadium. The game has been played twice in Dublin, Ireland—in 1996 at Croke Park and 2012 at Aviva Stadium. The game was also occasionally played at old Cleveland Stadium. The 2016 game was held at EverBank Field in Jacksonville, Florida. Navy's 2018 home game will be played at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, California (the first time the teams will have played each other west of the Eastern Time Zone), and the 2020 game will be at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey (where it also was played in 2010).
History
Despite the one-sided result the last few decades, most Notre Dame and Navy fans consider the series a sacred tradition for historical reasons. Both schools have strong football traditions going back to the beginnings of the sport. Notre Dame, like many colleges, faced severe financial difficulties during World War II, which were exacerbated by the fact that it was then still an all-male institution. The US Navy made Notre Dame a training center for V-12 candidates and paid enough for usage of the facilities to keep the University afloat. Notre Dame has since extended an open invitation for Navy to play the Fighting Irish in football and considers the game annual repayment on a debt of honor. The series is marked by mutual respect, as evidenced by each team standing at attention during the playing of the other's alma mater after the game, a tradition that started in 2005. Navy's athletic director, on renewing the series through 2016, remarked "...it is of great interest to our collective national audience of Fighting Irish fans, Naval Academy alumni, and the Navy family at large." The series is scheduled to continue indefinitely; renewals are a mere formality.
The Streak
Notre Dame's NCAA-record 43-game win streak against Navy began in 1964:
Television
In years when Navy hosts (even-numbered), it is one of few non-Southeastern Conference games aired on CBS. In years when Notre Dame hosts (odd-numbered), it is carried on NBC as are other Notre Dame home games.