Ram Vela News

Navy senior Ram Vela does not mind that he is often used to illustrate how the Midshipmen don't have the size of most college football teams. He refers to himself as 'the small outside linebacker,' and at 5 feet 9 and 193 pounds, he may be the smallest starting linebacker in division I-A.

'It's the truth, and you can't shy away from the truth,' said Vela, who will start the 27th game of his career Saturday, when the Midshipmen (7-3) host Delaware (6-3) in their home finale. 'At the same time, it's kind of like the story of my life -- people not expecting me to do things, kind of just defeating all odds. You definitely don't see too many Hispanics playing division I football, especially undersized ones.'

The following Midshipmen were named Most Valuable Players for the Notre Dame game.

This game is really going Navy's way. Notre Dame just drove 61 yards to the Navy 3-yard line and came up empty when quarterback Jimmy Clausen threw incomplete on fourth-and-goal. Cornerback Kevin Edwards sold out and made a great play to throw tailback Robert Hughes for a 2-yard loss on first down and Hughes then gained just 1 yard on second down.

When Navy quarterback Ricky Dobbs stepped onto the field with slightly more than two minutes to play and his team facing a three-point deficit against Temple, the fans inside Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium cheered.

You just knew that fourth-down stop was going to energize Temple. Sure enough, on second down of the ensuiing series, freshman tailback Bernard Pierce broke loose for a 68-yard touchdown on a zone blocking play.

Here are some postgame notes from the Navy sports information department. TEAM NOTES * The Midshipmen were presented the inaugural Gansz Trophy for winning tonight's contest ... Frank Gansz, a 1960 graduate of the Naval Academy, served coaching stints at both Navy and SMU.

SMU has answered Navy's touchdown with one of its own. The Mustangs put together an impressive 10-play, 79-yard drive with 238-pound tailback Zach Line bowling over linebacker Ram Vela to score from 3 yards out to tie the score.

HOUSTON, Oct. 10 -- For all of the euphoria felt by Navy's players following last week's heart-stopping overtime victory over Air Force, those on the offensive side of the ball also felt frustration. The Midshipmen struggled to move the ball against a rival that is intimately familiar with their triple-option offense, and it bothered them.

They won't have that feeling after overwhelming Rice in a 63-14 victory on Saturday afternoon.

Navy's offense held the ball for 40 minutes 36 seconds, scored touchdowns on nine of its 11 possessions (excluding the ones at the end of each half) and amassed 537 yards, its highest total since the 2008 season opener against division I-AA Towson. Junior quarterback Ricky Dobbs ran for 104 yards and scored four touchdowns; his backup -- sophomore Kriss Proctor, who was making his collegiate debut -- scored three touchdowns and rushed for 82 yards.

This is really getting ugly. Navy linebacker Ram Vela intercepted a pass by Rice quarterback Nick Fanuzzi and returned the pick to the home team's 9-yard line.

As one of Navy's emotional leaders, Ross Pospisil is often the source of rousing pregame speeches.

The Navy Football Luncheon Series is really a nice thing. Navy fans should truly appreciate the opportunity to hear directly from head coach Ken Niumatalolo several times over the course of the season.

Three of Navy's four injured players did not start. Andy Lark was replaced at right guard by Brady DeMell while Craig Schaefer and Wyatt Middleton are starting at the outside linebacker spots in place of Clint Sovie and Ram Vela .

ANNAPOLIS, Md. - Navy head coach Ken Niumatalolo has called Saturday's home meeting with Western Kentucky "the biggest game of the season." Navy is coming off a poor performance against Pittsburgh and desperately needs a victory in order to get untracked.

Wyatt Middleton is the latest Navy safety to double as an outside linebacker, following in the footsteps of Ram Vela and Jeff Deliz.

Navy missed a golden opportunity to jump ahead early and get momentum. Freshman Tra'ves Bush forced a fumble on the opening kickoff and Ram Vela had a wide open shot at the ball.

Saturday evening began with such promise for Navy, which was looking to build on what had been a strong start to the 2009 season.

Ross Pospisil remembers what it was like when he was a freshman, playing linebacker for Navy's junior varsity team. He was, he admits with a laugh, occasionally clueless and had to rely on fellow freshman linebacker Tony Haberer.

'He was coming from [the Naval Academy Preparatory School], so he was the guy that knew everything,' said Pospisil, now a senior and Navy's defensive captain. 'In JV games, on every play I was like, 'Tony, I don't know what to do!' He was like, 'Go B-gap!' '

Pospisil and Haberer are now the Midshipmen's starting inside linebackers and help anchor one of the team's most experienced and talented groups. Navy's four starting linebackers -- which includes outside linebackers Ram Vela and Clint Sovie -- are all seniors and have collectively played in 126 games, with 73 starts among them. All four players got their first starts as sophomores, and essentially had to learn on the job.

COLUMBUS, Ohio, Sept. 5 -- The afternoon began with a gesture of friendship and respect from Ohio State to Navy, the first service academy team to visit the Buckeyes' home in 78 years. Players from the two teams lined up and shook hands in the end zone, and then they ran onto the field together, as 105,092 scarlet-clad fans inside Ohio Stadium stood and cheered.

It was a warm welcome that the Midshipmen, who were three-touchdown underdogs to the sixth-ranked Buckeyes, appreciated.

But at the same time, 'we're not looking for a warm welcome,' said Chase Burge, Navy's junior nose guard who grew up about an hour outside of Columbus. 'We're looking to come in and win. That's our mentality. All that stuff from the fans is nice, but we're here for a football game.'

Following practice on Friday morning, I asked head coach Ken Niumatalolo what he is looking for in Saturday's initial preseason intra-squad scrimmage at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium.

Sophomore Marcus Curry, who emerged from spring camp as a starter at slot back, has yet to practice with the Navy football team this week after being hospitalized with an undisclosed illness.