AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. — Liaz Szarka rushed for two touchdowns and Air Force defeated Navy 14-9 on Saturday.
This was the opening game of the round-robin Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy competition between Air Force , Navy and Army. Air Force plays at Army Nov. 7 with the Midshipmen taking on Army on Dec. 12 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. Air Force has won the trophy 21 times — the last time in 2022 — Navy 18 and Army 10. Air Force leads its series with Navy 35-24.
Defense secretary Pete Hegseth spoke to the Air Force cadets prior to attending the game. The Falcons never trailed with Szarka scoring on a 1-yard run to complete a 14-play, 65-yard drive that lasted nearly eight minutes. He added an 8-yard score in the final minute of the first half, set up by his fourth-down, 23-yard pass to Simon Kibbee on the previous play, for a 14-3 lead. Navy’s points came on a Nolan Barley field goal and a 68-yard pass when Jackson Gutierrez found Truman Brasfield alone deep down the middle with seven minutes remaining in the third quarter. A failed 2-point conversion left Navy trailing by five. The Midshipmen’s final four possessions ended with a fumble then three drives for a combined 19 yards. They converted just 1 of 11 third downs for the game.
