SAN DIEGO – Nehemiah Brunson Sr. has a few questions about his team after three games.
One question the Army-Navy fanbase is probably wondering is pretty simple. When will the Warriors give up a point?
Army-Navy moved to a perfect 3-0 on the season with a convincing 50-0 win over the Rattlers, its third shutout of 2024.
The Warriors have outscored their opponents, 132-0.
“I believe so,” Brunson Sr. said when asked if the 50-0 first half was as complete an effort as he’s seen of his team. “Outside of the penalties, which is one thing we’ve got to work on. We try to preach discipline so that’s something we’re going to have to go back and watch on the film. We played well. We tackled well. We flew all over the field. That’s about all we can ask for.”
While the Army-Navy defense did its part with four turnovers, the special teams also came through with a Vincent Leatherman fumble recovery on a kickoff and a blocked punt by Landon Schrom in the decisive first half.
Both plays set up touchdowns by Nehemiah Brunson Jr.
“We started August 1 because half of our team is from out of state or out of country,” said Schrom, who had five catches for 127 yards and two touchdowns. “So the last five or six weeks have been going over film and honing in on the small things. I’m impressed with where we are after just six weeks of practice compared to other teams that have been together all summer long.”
Schrom streaked past the Canyon Hills (1-3) defense for a 62-yard TD strike from senior Carlos Ramirez for a 16-0 lead. The duo connected on a 13-yard touchdown in the second quarter. That second TD came with 2:56 left in the half.
The Warriors would strike twice more before intermission. Calob Munoz’s interception set up Zavier Leatherman’s second touchdown run of the night. Army-Navy’s defense held, and the backbreaker came when Ramirez found Army-bound Brunson Jr. for a 25-yard touchdown as time expired.
“It all goes back to the line,” said Brunson Jr., who hauled in a 27-yard touchdown from Ramirez and also ran in a score from 3 yards out. “Without the line we can’t do anything. All throughout practice we’ve been trying to implement more ing plays. The QB can get the ball there so whenever it’s up in the air, as receivers we go up there and make plays.”
Ramirez was a near-perfect 11-for-13 for 234 yards. He threw four touchdown es in a five- first-half sequence. The offense notched 438 total yards, 343 of them in the first half.
The Rattlers, on the other hand, couldn’t get anything going offensively. They finished with just 41 yards total. Quarterback Lavelle Teague Jr. was under pressure all night and the running game could only muster three total yards.
Despite those numbers, coach Marcus Cook found some positives, especially considering his entire offensive line is new to varsity.
“It’s not about where we need to be or where we’re at; we’re just young,” Cook said. “It’s getting better. All we can ask is to build upon what it is. You play teams who have seniors on the line. The brightness is we’ll have the same line for the next three years. There’s always brightness in the future.”
The future may be right now for the Warriors. However, a tough Coastal League schedule awaits with powerhouses Bishop’s, Santa Fe Christian and La Jolla Country Day still ahead on the schedule.
“We always say if we win the turnover battle, we can more than likely win the game,” Brunson Sr. said. “For us, that’s something we’re going to go back and work on on Monday. We’ve still got a lot of work to do.”
Army-Navy 50, Canyon Hills 0
Army-Navy 22 28 0 0 – 50
Canyon Hills 0 0 0 0 – 0
AN – Z. Leatherman 3 run (Schrom from Brunson)
AN – Schrom 62 from Ramirez (Hester from Brunson)
AN – Brunson 3 run (kick failed)
AN – Brunson 27 from Ramirez (Gajic kick)
AN – Schrom 13 from Ramirez (Gajic kick)
AN – Z. Leatherman 9 run (Gajic kick)
AN – Brunson 25 from Ramirez (Gajic kick)
