Using an updated form of the triple option offense, Johnson led the team to five straight bowl appearances between 20. After sporadic bowl game appearances in the 1980s and 90s, Navy hired coach Paul Johnson in 2002. Īfter coach Wayne Hardin's departure in 1964, the Midshipmen did not play in a bowl game until the inaugural edition of the Holiday Bowl in 1978. At its second appearance at the Cotton Bowl Classic, Heisman Trophy winner Roger Staubach led the Midshipmen against the undefeated Texas Longhorns in a 28–6 loss. The Midshipmen ranked in the top five teams in the Associated Press poll after the 1954, 1957, 1960, and 1963 college football seasons, and played in the 1955 Sugar Bowl, the 1958 Cotton Bowl Classic, the 1961 Orange Bowl, and the 1964 Cotton Bowl Classic, respectively. With the exception of the 1942 season, Navy finished each season between 19 ranked in the top ten teams in the Associated Press College Poll, but did not play in a bowl game. During the Great Depression in 19, the Midshipmen played the Army Cadets before large crowds at Yankee Stadium (1923) in postseason charity games, with Army winning both contests. Navy's first post-season bowl game was at the conclusion of the 1923 college football season, when they played the Washington Huskies in the 1924 Rose Bowl. Prior to the school's first true bowl game, a team of Navy players from Naval Station Great Lakes played in the 1919 Rose Bowl however, that game during World War I was not a true college football game, since it drew teams from the armed services personnel. The Midshipmen have played in 24 post-season bowl games and have a record of twelve wins, eleven losses, and one tie.
Since the start of the 2015 season Navy has been a member of the American Athletic Conference. Until 2015 the Navy Midshipmen football team, who represent the United States Naval Academy were an independent school in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS). A player celebrates after the Midshipmen win the 2004 Emerald Bowl.