The Navy Midshipmen are making serious waves in their first season as members of a football conference, sitting at the top of the AAC standings with a perfect 6-0 conference record (and 8-1 overall). Their incredible success this season can be attributed to their record-setting quarterback Keenan Reynolds and his invaluable leadership. With Reynolds acting as the trigger-man to the triple-option, Navy has to be considered the favorites to win the AAC this season.

Against the SMU Mustangs, Reynolds was able to set the FBS record for rushing touchdowns in a career when he scampered into the endzone for the 78th time in his career and get Navy off to a 7-0 lead en route to a 55-14 blowout win. Reynolds broke the record previously held by former Wisconsin Badgers running back Montee Ball and then added three more rushing touchdowns for good measure, bringing his season total up to 17. He now sits just three rushing scores shy of the NCAA record held by Adrian Peterson, who played for the Georgia Southern Eagles from 1998-2001.

More importantly, he has helped the Navy offense be consistent and efficient all season long with the No. 3 rushing offense in the nation entering Week 11 averaging 326.5 yards per game. Against SMU, the Midshipmen rumbled to 403 yards rushing as a team, led by Reynolds’ 137 yards on 14 carries with his four touchdowns. This was a huge performance coming off Navy’s major win against the Memphis Tigers last week, avoiding any kind of letdown to keep the Midshipmen right in the thick of the AAC title race.

Their case to be the top team in the conference got a boost when two other top teams, Memphis and the Temple Owls, suffered losses on Saturday, leaving just Navy and the Houston Cougars left standing with undefeated conference records. Those two teams will face off in two weeks in Houston in a de facto play-in game for the AAC championship. With the Cougars needing a wild rally, however, to beat Memphis this week and Navy’s dominant offensive performances in recent weeks, the advantage has to go to Navy.

With Keenan Reynolds playing at his current historically efficient level, Navy is setting records left and right, both individually and as a group. Will their run end up in a major New Year’s Day Bowl game as the AAC champion?

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