VMI Football Falls at Navy In Season Opener

The VMI Keydets football team kicked off the 2025 season at the U.S. Naval Academy Aug. 30, 2025, trailing just 7-0 after one quarter of play, but ultimately falling to the Midshipmen (receiving votes) by a score of 52-7.

“I thought Navy played an extraordinarily error-free game,” said Danny Rocco, VMI head coach. “Every time early in the game, when it felt like we might be able to exchange blows or might be able to match scores, they’d make a play. They just refused to misfire or make mistakes.”

Key Stats

• Owen Sweeney ’28 sets career highs in receptions (5) and yards (126), recording his first career touchdown with a 75-yard grab.
• Sweeney is the first VMI receiver to eclipse 100 yards in a game since Aidan Twombly ’24 in 2023 (133 vs. Western Carolina).
• Kouri Crump ’26 leads all tacklers with 14.0 (one shy of career record); 13.0 came in the first half.
• Amaje Parker ’28 has career-high 10.0 tackles; Isaiah Grevious ’27 totals 7.0 tackles (career best) as 24 Keydets record a stop.
• Collin Shannon ’26 throws for 197 yards and gets a touchdown (16-25) with no turnovers.
• Noah Grevious ’28 has a career-high four catches for 39 yards; seven other Keydets record a reception.
• Ben Shrewsbury ’27 punts eight times for an average of 42.8 per kick, with a long kick of 61 yards.
• Eli Heidenreich and Braxton Woodson each score twice for Navy.

Rocco’s Remarks

On how the game played out

“As the game proceeded, it got harder and harder, and it got further and further away from us. I was disappointed that we didn’t finish better in the fourth quarter. I was encouraged by how many young people we had playing today. We had 14 or 15 true freshmen out here today that played in this game. Something tells me that’ll pay dividends for us.”

On playing at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium:

“It was really cool. I came here when I was a kid in high school—never coached here, I’ve coached a lot of places—everything about it is impressive. The facility itself, the people, the pageantry. It’s all really impressive. It was an honor to be here, and I’m disappointed that we couldn’t have represented VMI better than we did today.”

On what to take away from the game:

“It’s an odd postgame. I was hard and I was demanding, but I also was able to say something tells me something good is going to come from this game. I really got a feeling that something good is going to come out of this game. It could just be the amount of guys that find themselves ready to compete and contribute to winning. Today, a lot of guys got on tape for the first time, and this is a tough offense and defense to get to go against. I think there’s some hope despite the result, and I think it’s our job to try to move that forward.”

How it Happened

First Half

• VMI moved the ball a little to start, as Shannon found Grevious and then Sweeney for a first down before the drive stalled.
• After Navy went ahead 7-0, the Keydet defense forced a punt that would check up on the four-yard line to end the quarter.
• Crump and the VMI defense backed up the Midshipmen to 3rd and 18, but Blake Horvath found Eli Heidenreich for the score (14-0, 11:07 2nd).
• Navy would cap off the half with two more drives resulting in scores, taking a 28-0 lead into the break.

Second Half

• Navy received to open the half, marching down the field, but the Keydet defense held for a field goal (31-0).
• On the ensuing possession, Sweeney got behind the Navy secondary, and Shannon connected with him for a 75-yard touchdown reception.
• Navy responded with a 74-yard rush (Braxton Woodson) of its own to jump in front 38-7 after three.
• The Midshipmen tacked on two more scores and took the contest 52-7.

Editor’s Note: This article was first published on vmikeydets.com.