1973 Navy Midshipmen football team

1973 Navy Midshipmen football
Conference	Independent
Record	4–7
Head coach	George Welsh (1st season)
Captain	Charlie Miletich
Home stadium	Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium
Seasons ←  1972 1974  →

1973 NCAA Division I independents football records

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 1 Notre Dame			–					11	–	0	–	0
No. 5 Penn State			–					12	–	0	–	0
No. 9 Houston			–					11	–	1	–	0
Temple			–					9	–	1	–	0
No. 20 Tulane			–					9	–	3	–	0
Memphis State			–					8	–	3	–	0
Tampa			–					8	–	3	–	0
Boston College			–					7	–	4	–	0
South Carolina			–					7	–	4	–	0
Utah State			–					7	–	4	–	0
Air Force			–					6	–	4	–	0
Southern Miss			–					6	–	4	–	1
Northern Illinois			–					6	–	5	–	0
Rutgers			–					6	–	5	–	0
West Virginia			–					6	–	5	–	0
Pittsburgh			–					6	–	5	–	1
Colgate			–					5	–	5	–	0
Dayton			–					5	–	5	–	1
Xavier			–					5	–	5	–	1
Georgia Tech			–					5	–	6	–	0
Holy Cross			–					5	–	6	–	0
Miami (FL)			–					5	–	6	–	0
Cincinnati			–					4	–	7	–	0
Marshall			–					4	–	7	–	0
Navy			–					4	–	7	–	0
Southern Illinois			–					3	–	7	–	1
Villanova			–					3	–	8	–	0
Syracuse			–					2	–	9	–	0
Virginia Tech			–					2	–	9	–	0
Army			–					0	–	10	–	0
Florida State			–					0	–	11	–	0
Lamar			–					5	–	5	–	0
Southern Illinois			–					3	–	7	–	1
Texas-Arlington			–					4	–	6	–	0
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1973 Navy Midshipmen football team represented the United States Naval Academy (USNA) as an independent during the 1973 NCAA Division I football season. The team was led by first-year head coach George Welsh. ^[1]

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 15	1:30 p.m.	at VMI	Alumni Memorial Field Lexington, VA	W 37–6	10,000	[2]
September 22	2:00 p.m.	Penn State	Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium Annapolis, MD	L 0–39	28,383
September 29	1:30 p.m.	at Michigan	Michigan Stadium Ann Arbor, MI	L 0–14	88,042
October 6		at Boston College	Alumni Stadium Chestnut Hill, MA	L 7–44	30,187
October 13		Syracuse	Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium Annapolis, MD	W 23–14	20,591
October 20	2:02 p.m.	Air Force	Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium Annapolis, MD (Commander-in-Chief's Trophy)	W 42–6	30,076
October 27	1:33 p.m.	at Pittsburgh	Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA	L 17–22	33,136
November 3	1:30 p.m.	at Notre Dame	Notre Dame Stadium Notre Dame, IN (rivalry)	L 7–44	59,075
November 10	8:35 p.m.	at Tulane	Tulane Stadium New Orleans, LA	L 15–17	40,134–40,135	[3]
November 17	8:00 p.m.	vs. Georgia Tech	Gator Bowl Stadium Jacksonville, FL	L 22–26	26,235	[4]
December 1	1:30 p.m.	vs. Army	John F. Kennedy Stadium Philadelphia, PA (Army–Navy Game)	W 51–0	91,926
Homecoming All times are in Eastern time

^[5]

Game summaries

Army

Army Cadets vs. Navy Midshipmen

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Navy	6	31	14	0	51
Army	0	0	0	0	0

at JFK Stadium • Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

• Date: December 1

Game information
Navy Cleveland Cooper 102 Rush Yds Army

Roster

1973 Navy Midshipmen football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class RB Cleveland Cooper Jr QB Allen Glenny WR Larry Van Loan	Defense Pos. # Name Class	Special teams Pos. # Name Class K Steve Dykes	Head coach Rick Forzano Coordinators/assistant coaches Len Fontes – Defensive backs Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt

References

1. "Football History" (PDF). United States Naval Academy. p. 193. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 4, 2016. Retrieved July 12, 2015.
2. "Navy routs VMI, 37–8, as Cooper runs wild". The Baltimore Sun. September 16, 1973. Retrieved February 1, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
3. "Navy 'gifts' aid Tulane win, 17–15". The Baltimore Sun. November 11, 1973. Retrieved October 15, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
4. "Ga. Tech rallies to beat Navy". The Baltimore Sun. November 18, 1973. Retrieved July 24, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
5. "Schedule/Results (1973 Navy)". NCAA Statistics. National Collegiate Athletic Association . Retrieved May 14, 2025.