Then the Navy offense took to the air, and the annual rivalry game reverted to its recent script.

Navy's Keenan Reynolds threw for one touchdown and ran for another, and Army's offense couldn't capitalize on the early lead or a standout defensive effort, falling 17-10 in the 115th clash in front of nearly 71,000 people at M&T Bank Stadium.

"You don't win too many games when you get a blocked punt for a touchdown; it just shows how resilient our kids are," said Navy head coach Ken Niumatalolo, who became the winningest coach in Navy history with his 56th victory — his seventh straight over the Black Knights (4-8).

It didn't come easy, at least not at the start: After the first of what would be three straight three-plays-and-out possessions by the Navy (7-5) offense, Army sophomore Josh Jenkins slid past Midshipmen blockers and stuffed Pablo Beltran's first punt of the game. Xavier Moss returned the loose ball seven yards for the game's first touchdown, and Army's 7-0 lead would appear larger and larger as both offenses struggled through the first half.

"I was put in a great position. I just did my job," said Jenkins, who followed up his special-teams statement with a touchdown-saving tackle on the next play, dropping Navy kick-return man Ryan Williams-Jenkins after a 28-yard scamper that threatened to cover much more ground.

After the Mids stopped Army on a fourth-down dive at the Navy 30-yard-line with about two minutes to play in the half, Reynolds got the normally ground-based Navy attack airborne, hitting Jamir Tillman with a 39-yard first-down strike. It was the first of three pass plays on a six-play drive; the last went to Tillman in the end zone, tying the game with 18 seconds to go in the second quarter.

"That was something that we had to have," Reynolds said. "We had to get some points at the end of the half. ... They did what we expected them to do [early on], but we just shot ourselves in the foot."

Navy took the lead with a 45-yard field goal from Austin Grebe after an eight-play drive to start the second quarter. Army got close enough for a 49-yard try by Daniel Grochowski on its next possession, but the kick went wide left.

The Mids answered with a 7-minute, 49-second march that straddled the third and fourth quarters, racking up 15 plays in what was their longest drive, time-wise, of the season. Reynolds, Noah Copeland and Chris Swain split the rushing duties for Navy, with the quarterback scoring on a 1-yard plunge to make it 17-7.

Grochowski made up for his earlier miss by hitting a career-best 52-yard field goal with 1:51 to play, but Navy's Thomas Wilson leaped to grab the ensuing onside kick and extend what was already the longest win streak in rivalry history.

"It's going to hurt for a long time, and it will pain us until we have an opportunity to win again," said first-year Army head coach Jeff Monken, who served with Niumatalolo as Navy assistant coaches earlier in his career.

The win gives Navy a 59-49-7 edge in the series. The Midshipmen will wrap up their season against San Diego State on Dec. 23 in the Poinsettia Bowl at Qualcomm Stadium, home of the NFL's San Diego Chargers. Army's last bowl trip came in 2010.

Staff writer Tony Lombardo contributed to this report.

About Kevin Lilley

Kevin Lilley is the features editor of Military Times.

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