Published: November 07, 2009 11:57 pm      

Navy upsets Irish again, 23-21

SOUTH BEND, Ind. —Navy did it to Notre Dame again — and this loss to the Midshipmen is even more costly.

Craig Schaefer sacked Jimmy Clausen in the end zone with 60 seconds left Saturday and Navy held on for a 23-21 victory, its second straight at Notre Dame Stadium.

“I love playing in South Bend,” safety Wyatt Middleton said. “I love playing here.”

No. 19 Notre Dame (6-3) scored with 24 seconds left on a 31-yard pass from Jimmy Clausen to Golden Tate to cut the lead to two, but the ensuing onside kick went out of bounds.

Navy’s victory celebration was a bit more subdued than two years ago, when the Midshipmen ended an NCAA-record 43-game losing streak to the Irish by winning 46-44 in three overtimes.

The last time an unranked Navy team beat a ranked Notre Dame team was 1936, the first year of the poll, when the Midshipmen won 3-0.