Blake Watson rushes for 169 yards and a TD to help Memphis beat Navy for the 5th straight time

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Blake Watson breaks off 69-yard rush

Blake Watson breaks off a 69-yard rush in Memphis' 28-24 win over Navy.

Sep 15, 2023, 04:42 am

MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- — Blake Watson rushed for 169 yards and a touchdown, and Memphis overcame two turnovers in the final six minutes to beat Navy 28-24 on Thursday night in an American Athletic Conference opener for both teams.

Memphis (3-0, 1-0) beat Navy (1-2, 0-1) for the fifth straight time.

Watson had two 69-yard runs in the second half. The first led to Seth Henigan’s 3-yard sneak for a 28-21 lead with 14:22 left in the fourth quarter. The second long run gave Memphis a first-and-goal with 6:07 remaining, but Watson later fumbled it into the end zone and Navy’s Justin Reed recovered it.

Memphis got it back with 4:03 left after recovering a fumble near midfield. But the Tigers turned it over again to give Navy another chance with 2:04 left.

Navy marched down the field to the Memphis 15. On fourth-and-6, Tai Lavatai competed a pass to Jayden Umbarger. The call on the field was a first down, but it was overturned after a review.

Henigan was 23 of 35 for 218 yards with one touchdown and one interception for Memphis. Henigan also had two short touchdown runs.

Alex Tecza carried it 15 times for 163 yards and a touchdown for Navy. Lavatai was 10-of-19 passing for 133 yards and a touchdown.

Tecza tied it at 7-all on a 75-yard touchdown. It was the first offensive touchdown allowed by Memphis this season.

------ AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/college-football and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll