The 2014 Naval Academy football team began its spring practice earlier this week. Judging from the short clip below, the Mids will be ready for all comers — including a zombie horde: [HTML1] If the music doesn’t cause a bit of a jump in your blood pressure, you’re probably not a devotee of the most-watched program on cable television: [HTML2] The regular season starts Aug. 30 against Ohio State in Baltimore. It’ll end there, too — Dec. 13 against Army, when the Mids will be going for a 13th-straight win over the Black Knights. Insert your own “Walking Dead” jokes…
Browsing: Sports
For most media outlets outside the Annapolis, Md., area, intense coverage of the Naval Academy athletic program begins sometime in early December and ends immediately after the ritual gridiron-based thumping of a rival service academy of note. But a promotion by the school’s athletics-marketing arm has earned national attention in recent days: Fans who beat the school mascot, Bill the Goat, at rock-paper-scissors before a Feb. 5 men’s basketball game against Boston University will earn free admission. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. Fans can throw hands with the mascot from 6:15 to 6:45 for the chance to win a…
The Naval Academy football team clinched its trip to the postseason in decisive fashion Saturday, rolling over South Alabama 42-14 in Annapolis to move to 6-4 on the year. The win guarantees Navy will finish its regular season at .500 or better, meaning it can accept a bid to the Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl, which kicks off at 11:45 a.m. Eastern on Dec. 30 in Fort Worth, Texas. Navy’s set to face a team from the Mountain West Conference, though the Mids might not know which team until early December. Can’t swing a trip to Texas over the holidays?…
A Naval Academy photo shoot went viral this week after the academy’s swim and diving team posted of a shot of their senior class re-enacting the Marine Corps’ raising of the flag at Iwo Jima. The Navy men’s swimming and diving team filmed the scene at the bottom of a pool on Sept. 23 with a GoPro video camera. The shot will grace the team poster for the 2013-14 season. “Every year our team does a team picture for the team poster,” said Midshipman 1st Class Luke Hoffer, who’s on the left holding the flagpole. “Over the past couple years,…
Former Naval Academy star running back Eric Kettani will continue his pursuit of an NFL roster spot tomorrow night, when the Washington Redskins visit the Tennessee Titans for one of the most exciting three-plus hours of sports a fan can ask for — a preseason football game. It’s been an uncommon career arc for Kettani, a lieutenant in the Navy Reserve: Averaging an impressive 5.4 yards per carry at Navy (sixth-best in school history); spending two years on active duty before signing with the New England Patriots, only to have his request for early release denied; securing that release only…
Lt. Brad Snyder is no stranger to our corner of the media universe, but his next competition is on a whole new level — publicity-wise, anyway. Snyder, blinded by an improvised explosive device blast in 2011 while serving in Afghanistan, has two Bronze Stars. He has two Paralympic swimming gold medals, both from the 2012 London games. But skill, perseverance, practice and the ability to overcome seemingly insurmountable obstacles won’t help him add to his award total this time around: He needs votes if he wants an ESPY. Snyder’s one of five candidates up for this year’s Best Male Athlete…
On Friday, Navy Secretary Ray Mabus took a break from his desk job to take part in the greatest American pastime: baseball. Mabus threw out the ceremonial first pitch at the April 12 game between the Nationals and the Braves in Washington, D.C. The game was the Nationals’ annual Navy appreciation game. All five services will have a game played in their honor during the 2013 season. The Coast Guard’s will happen Aug. 5. The Braves won the Friday night game 6-4 in 10 innings. Prior to taking the mound, Mabus administered the oath of enlistment to 11 sailors at the…
By now, many of you have joined an NCAA men’s basketball tournament pool. Some of you may have skipped a step by removing a few dollar bills from your purse or wallet and setting them on fire. But if one bracket contest isn’t enough to calm your March Madness, the Navy has you covered: Sixty-four ships and/or aircraft types. One winner. The rules appear simple: Navy folks will release photos of the combatants on their official Google Plus page, and the public can “plus-one” their favorite. The contestant with the most votes reaches the next round. The winner gets bragging…
This weekend’s big military sporting event comes Saturday in Philadelphia. But this weekend’s big military sports-entertainment event comes Sunday afternoon in Norfolk, Va., when World Wrestling Entertainment packs the Norfolk Scope Arena with thousands of active-duty service members and their families for its yearly “Tribute to the Troops” event. Planning to attend? Wondering what your kids have gotten you into? Here’s a quick primer: 1. Tickets still available. Early this week, sailors waited in line, sometimes up to 90 minutes, for free tickets to the event at various locations throughout the Hampton Roads area. Now, the only way to get…
NavyTimes.com readers already know the WWE is heading to Norfolk, Va., on Dec. 9 for its annual “Tribute to the Troops” mega-show. (Navy Times subscribers knew earlier. Just saying.) When the event was announced, Navy officials weren’t sure how or when the free tickets would be distributed. But a Navy Region Mid-Atlantic Facebook post has some answers: Tickets to the event are available only to active-duty service members and their families, and eligible wrestling fans can stop by their local Information, Tickets and Travel office beginning Monday to pick them up. For more information, call 757-462-5337. There’s also a list…