Mids Overcome 14–0 Hole, Roll to Road Win at Tulsa

Navy overcame a rocky start to remain unbeaten, storming back from three early turnovers to beat Tulsa, 42–23, on Saturday night at H.A. Chapman Stadium. The Mids trailed 14–0 midway through the first quarter, but reeled off 42 of the next 52 points behind a balanced rushing attack and a defense that delivered another “Get 6.”

Blake Horvath led the rally, rushing for 159 yards and a touchdown while also throwing a short scoring pass to Luke Hutchison just before halftime to give Navy its first lead. Alex Tecza and Eli Heidenreich each found the end zone, while Brandon Chatman’s fourth-quarter score put the game out of reach.

The defense, which struggled early, responded with three sacks, an interception, and two fourth-down stops. Julien Moutome’s strip sack in the second quarter set up Horvath’s game-tying touchdown, and linebacker Luke Pirris came up with a critical fourth-down tackle in the third to preserve momentum.

The win moves Navy to 3–0 for the second straight year and 2–0 in the American Conference heading into a bye week.

Key Performers

• Blake Horvath, QB — 159 rushing yards and a touchdown on 21 carries; added 94 passing yards and a score.
• Alex Tecza, FB — 72 rushing yards and two touchdowns, including a 39-yard burst that sparked Navy’s first scoring drive.
• Eli Heidenreich, SB — 112 all-purpose yards (72 rushing, 40 receiving) and a 10-yard touchdown run.
• MarcAnthony Parker, LB — Career-high 11 tackles, 2.0 tackles for loss, and a half-sack.
• Ira Oniha, CB — Two tackles and three PBUs.
• Luke Pirris, LB — Eight tackles and a key fourth-down stop in the third quarter.

Quotable

Blake Horvath

“It was on me in the first half… just some small things. Guys were playing their butts off. I just had to pick it up myself, honestly. All the guys just believed in me — it’s just the team, the camaraderie, the brotherhood.”

“It was our entire backfield scoring this week. We got four guys that can run the ball and really hurt you. If you take one of us away, you’re leaving one of us open. There’s not much that teams can do right now.”

Julien Moutome

“It was a little bit rough the first couple drives, but one big play can make anything happen. I’m just glad I was able to do that for the team, able to get something going to help us win this game.”

“It’s a team, man. It’s one big team. Offense plays well, it forces defense to play well too. We just want to be one cohesive unit where we’re both playing well.”

Brian Newberry

“We can’t spot somebody 14 points. You can’t turn the ball over like we did… but I was proud of the fact that we didn’t flinch. We stayed together and battled back and did a lot of good things today.”

“It’s great to get a win. I’m proud of them. It’s a road win against, I think, a pretty good Tulsa team that’s going to win some games. But it’s not just about winning or losing, it’s how we win. Are we playing to our standard?”

“Our captain, right, he does not flinch ever. The guys around him respond to that. You’re never going to see him with his head down. He knows he made a mistake, but it’s on to the next play. That’s something we talk about a lot.”