And in that corner… The Navy Midshipmen

For the 90th straight season, Notre Dame and Navy unite on the football field, the longest-running intersectional rivalry in the country. And for what feels like almost as long, a white-knuckle football weekend is upon Irish fans.

Because with Ken Niumatalolo in charge of the Midshipmen, the Naval Academy has taken their football program to uncharted waters. And as a part of the American Athletic Conference, Navy has only enhanced their reputation—division co-champions last season, splitting their division with Houston and this year sitting atop the West Division even with an entirely rebuilt offense.

Gone is the service academy that the college football world viewed as a cupcake. This is a…