Campbell, Navy romp over Army
The Midshipmen became the first team in the longtime rivalry to win six in a row
This article was originally published on December 2, 2007.
BALTIMORE - How appropriate that Reggie Campbell ended his glorious afternoon by conducting the Navy band in the playing of the school's alma mater.
Given the versatility he displayed on the football field, why not let him try his hand at something else?
Campbell had a school-record 98-yard kickoff return, amassed 73 yards on punt returns, and scored a rushing touchdown to lead the Midshipmen past mistake-prone Army by 38-3 yesterday.
On a day in which Navy reached several milestones, the Midshipmen put a lopsided slant on college football's biggest rivalry by becoming the first team to win six straight.
"I'm really proud of our football team. Today they did something that had never been accomplished in the history of the Army-Navy series," coach Paul Johnson said.
"Thirty-eight to three is not much of a rivalry," Army coach Stan Brock conceded.
The Midshipmen improved to 52-49-7 against Army, their biggest lead in a series that began in 1890. No team had ever won six in a row, though the Black Knights once registered eight wins around a pair of ties.
Campbell, who accounted for 227 yards, was the difference. His kickoff return made it 14-3 in the second quarter, and the 5-foot-6 senior returned a punt 46 yards to set up a 51-yard field goal on the last play of the first half that put Navy up, 24-3.
Game over.
"I thought that was a huge play in the game from a momentum standpoint," Johnson said.
Navy (8-4), which earlier this year ended a 44-game losing streak to Notre Dame, capped a memorable regular season with another blowout against Army (3-9). The Midshipmen have outscored the Black Knights by 169 points during their six-game streak.
"It means a lot," Campbell said. "The seniors of the past couple of classes laid the foundation, and we're just kind of trying to keep it going."