Navy will likely start Tai Lavatai at quarterback for its season opener against Notre Dame in Ireland on Aug. 26, according to head coach Brian Newberry, who also said Blake Horvath will see time at the position as well after a making a strong impression in spring ball and through the summer.
Lavatai, a senior, started eight games for Navy in 2022 before suffering a torn ACL against Temple in October. The 6-foot-2, 221-pound quarterback threw for 787 yards and five touchdowns last year, completing 46 percent of his throws. Lavatai also ran for 309 yards and five touchdowns, averaging 2.7 yards per carry.
Horvath, a sophomore, did not see any game action in 2022 but took advantage of his opportunities in spring ball. Lavatai was limited due to his knee injury, while senior Xavier Arline was playing lacrosse and banged up as well. That left Horvath with a lot of reps. Newberry was pleased with how he responded in spring ball and throughout summer workouts.
Still, the coach will likely opt to start the more experienced player against the Irish.
“My hesitation with starting Blake would be this would be his first college football game,” Newberry said on Glenn Clark Radio Aug. 17. “Playing your first game in that kind of environment, I don’t know if it’s fair to put that kind of pressure on him right out of the gate. Tai’s played in those kinds of games. He’s played in the Army-Navy game. He’s played in the biggest venues and the biggest games of the year. He’s calm, cool and collected. So I anticipate that both of them will play.”
Newberry hired Grant Chestnut from FCS Kennesaw State as offensive coordinator in January. Chestnut is tasked with breathing life into an offense that ranked among the AAC’s worst in each of the past three years. Both Newberry and offensive players believe the Mids will be less predictable than in years past, even within the structure of the triple-option offense.
For that to happen, a clear No. 1 quarterback will have to emerge, but Newberry stressed it’s important to have depth at the position.
“Because of the nature of our offense, the quarterback carries the football a lot. The chances of those guys staying entirely healthy all year is not great, so you want to feel good about two,” Newberry said. “… I’m not a big two-quarterback guy, but you’d love to have two that can roll. Whoever gets the hot hand, we may end up rolling with one or the other and kind of see how it plays out.”
That doesn’t mean Newberry is giving up on Arline, a senior who has played in 21 games and started nine at quarterback throughout his career. He started the final four games of the 2022 season after Lavatai went down, running for 376 yards and throwing for 85 yards and two scores.
The Mids are trying Arline at slotback as a way to get him on the field, according to Newberry, who said Arline is still part of the quarterback picture regardless.
“He’s a very dynamic athlete and there’s good ball skills, and so to have two quarterbacks on the field at one time is I think a challenge from a personnel standpoint for our opponents,” Newberry said. “He can run and catch. To be able to get the ball to him in space on the perimeter and do some unique things with him gives us a unique opportunity on offense.”
Navy will travel to Ireland overnight starting on Aug. 23 and into Aug. 24. That’ll lead into a walkthrough on Aug. 24, a sped-up practice on Aug. 25 and the Notre Dame game on Aug. 26. It’ll be a big-time challenge for the Mids considering that the Irish are ranked No. 13 in both the AP and Coaches Polls entering the season.
Notre Dame is led by quarterback Sam Hartman, who spent five years at Wake Forest before transferring to South Bend for his final season of eligibility. Hartman has thrown for 7,929 yards and 77 touchdowns dating back to the 2021 season.
Hartman will face a Navy defense that returns nine starters from a defense that finished fourth in the AAC in scoring (24.3) and second in yards (339.1). However, Hartman poses a formidable test.
“He’s a special player, great leader, he’s a winner,” Newberry said. “It sounds like he’s really galvanized that unit over there. I’ve watched him a ton and I’ve got a ton of respect for him and how he plays and how he handles his business. It’s going to be a great challenge for us.”
For more from Newberry, listen to the full interview here:
Photo Credits: Courtesy of Navy Athletics