Notre Dame lost to Navy on Saturday 46 – 44 in triple overtime. Navy hasn’t beaten Notre Dame in 43 games but managed to break the streak yesterday on the strength of their triple-option running attack and Notre Dame’s sheer inability to win.

That’s right – Notre Dame hasn’t yet learned how to win. The worst part is that the Irish probably played better than they have all season. Special Teams stepped up both on kickoff returns, punt returns, and coverage. The running game finally showed up with the Irish rushing for 235 yards – including 125 by James Aldridge. While Evan Sharpley was not a superstar, he was somewhat efficient and didn’t look completely confused.

Navy did manage 4 sacks on Sharpley, and anyone who has watched the Notre Dame quarterbacks this year wasn’t surprised by that at all. Did I mention Notre Dame’s offensive line outweighs Navy by an average of 40 pounds?

Late in the game, Notre Dame had a chance to attempt a 42 yard field goal for the win. Charlie Weiss apparently had zero confidence in his kicker from that distance and opted to go for it on fourth down and 8. Sharpley was sacked and regulation expired soon thereafter.

It was quite the seesaw game with neither team really able to stop the other one. In the end, Navy was able to gut it out and win the ball game. It’s that simple.

I don’t really think the end of the 43 game win streak is that significant to anyone who watches Notre Dame play today. More importantly, the Irish have now lost more home games than any other season (5). They have a 1-8 record and are now being called the worst team in Notre Dame football history.  And they lost to NAVY! What’s next? A loss to Air Force? It just might happen folks.