BYU was left with only six scheduled games after Power-5 Football Conferences announced they would be playing a conference-only football schedule in 2020 due to the impact of Covid-19, but it appears as if Tom Holmoe and the Cougars may be able to play a full schedule after all as BYU announced they have added the Naval Acadamy as a seventh game for the upcoming season.
“We are very excited for the opportunity to play the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis,” BYU Atheltic Director Tom Holmoe said. “It’s always an honor and a privilege to play against a service academy, like we did annually for many years with Air Force. We first played the Midshipmen in the inaugural Holiday Bowl in 1978. The opportunity to visit Navy’s hallowed campus will be an amazing experience for our football team.”
The game will mark the third meeting all-time between BYU and Navy after the two teams met in the inaugural Holiday Bowl in 1978 with Navy coming away with a 23-16 victory, before BYU defeated the Midshipmen in 1989 by a score of 31-10.
The matchup will feature two LDS Head Coaches, both of who are of Polynesian decent.
BYU head coach Kalani Sitake spoke about the matchup, saying, “Navy plays great football and we have the utmost appreciation and respect for all of the sacrifices the members of the military academies make on all of our behalf. Ken (Nuimatalolo) is a great football coach and a personal friend who I have known since I was young and always admired both as a person and as a coach. We are looking forward to the matchup.”
The game will be the first true night game at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium since 2005, with kickoff scheduled for Labor Day, Monday, Sept. 7, at 8 p.m. EDT/6 p.m. MDT.
The game will take place at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis, Maryland and will be broadcast on ESPN.
