Brandon Walker for Urban Media Today
Annapolis, MD—On a picture-perfect day for service academy football, Jackson Gutierrez ran for 232 yards on 41 carries. He scored the go-ahead touchdown for Navy, overcoming three turnovers as the Midshipmen snapped their three-game losing streak with a Saturday afternoon win over Tulsa in front of 30,933 fans at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium.
Gutierrez scored four touchdowns as the Midshipmen (2-3 overall, 1-2 in the American Athletic Conference) rallied from an 11-point second-half deficit to Tulsa (3-3, 0-2 AAC), who dropped its third straight.
Navy took the ball on its opening possession and went five plays for 75 yards as Gutierrez scored on a 56-yard keeper to draw first blood on the scoreboard.
Tulsa drove down the field and answered with a one-yard run by Savion Morrison on 4th and goal to tie the game. The drive’s key play was a 39-yard pass from Baylor Hays to Javon Ross.
After forcing a turnover on downs, Tulsa started on the plus side of the field, and Oran Singleton Jr. threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to David Wells Jr. on a double pass to put Tulsa up 14-7, and that was the score at the end of the first quarter.
Tulsa got the ball back after an unforced Gutierrez fumble on Navy’s ensuing possession and capitalized with Owen Carey kicking a 30-yard field goal. Gutierrez fumbled again; Ryan Leathers forced a fumble in the first half, and Dedauntae Scott recovered it.
Michael Barrow fumbled for Navy a third time in the Tulsa red zone, and Dax Collins recovered the ball. Later in the quarter, Tulsa drove downfield and got back on the board with a 24-yard field goal by Carey. The drive’s key play was a 53-yard pass from Hayes to Ross.
Navy answered with a 58-yard pass from Gutierrez to Truman Brasfield, cutting the deficit to 20-14 in the most critical sequence of the game and making it a game-score going into halftime, as Navy head coach pointed out postgame.
“Jackson made a nice throw and another great play by Brasfield to get us in the end zone and give us some momentum going into the half,” Newberry said in his news conference. “That was huge, especially knowing that they had the ball coming out in the second half.”
Newberry was right when Tulsa took the ball to start the second half and got back on the board on a three-yard touchdown catch by Singleton, capping a nine-point, 75-yard drive that featured a 28-yard run by Javon Ross. The two-point conversion failed.
Navy responded with a seven-yard touchdown run by Charles Robinson; however, the field goal was no good, and Tulsa led 26-20.
Oran Singleton got another big play on the next drive with a 40-yard reception; however, Carey’s 47-yard field goal bounced off the right upright.
Tulsa’s Tyson Williams forced Tulsa’s fourth takeaway of the game with a diving interception, boxing out a Navy receiver. However, Navy held serve and forced a punt as the teams headed into the fourth quarter.
Navy started driving downfield with the run game, worked its way into a goal-to-go situation, and punched it in on a 4-yard run by Gutierrez to take a 27-26 lead.
After forcing a punt, Navy tried to salt the game away and get first downs with the lead, and Gutierrez scored the game-sealing touchdown with 1:10 remaining.
“Just really, really proud of our team,” Newberry said postgame about Navy’s second-half comeback. “It’s great to get a win, but I think the thing I’m more proud of is just the way that they responded.”
Game Notables
Barrow rushed for 107 yards on 14 carries and had critical runs on Navy’s final two drives.
Coleman Cauley led Navy with 10 tackles, while Giuseppi Sesse and Cam Robinson recorded 8 tackles apiece.
Hayes went 20 for 33, throwing for 268 yards and the touchdown, while Ross ran for 90 yards on seven carries for Tulsa.
Collins had 13 tackles, plus a forced fumble and a fumble recovery; Ashton Williams recorded 11 tackles, and Ryan Leathers had 10.
Navy will play at UT-San Antonio, 5-1 and with only one AAC conference loss at home, next Saturday, while Tulsa will also be on the road, playing at Rice next Saturday.
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