Longtime coach of annual Notre Dame rival not returning

A familiar face won’t be part of one rivalry game next season.

Ken Niumatalolo is the winningest coach in Navy history. However, his magic with the Midshipmen has worn off after four losing seasons in the past five years, a string interrupted only by an 11-2 campaign in 2019. A loss in the first overtime edition of the Army-Navy Game proved to be the last straw. The Naval Academy has opted to move on from Niumatalolo, who leaves the school with a 109-83 record.

As has been the case with pretty much every Midshipmen coach, Niumatalolo just couldn’t figure out Notre Dame. While he won two of his first three meetings with the Irish, the rivalry largely has lived up to its one-sided nature since then. Under Niumatalolo, the Midshipmen went 3-11 against the Irish, though they nearly made it 4-10 as they mounted a valiant comeback attempt during this past season.

We wish Niumatalolo well in his future endeavors, and we thank him for his contributions to the Notre Dame-Navy rivalry.

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