UAB Football to Face Navy on Veterans Day in Annapolis

BIRMINGHAM – It will be a special scene for the UAB football team on Saturday when the Blazers play at Navy on Veterans Day. Kickoff is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. ET/2:30 p.m. CT on CBS Sports Network.

Coming off a 45-42 victory over Florida Atlantic, the Blazers look to win back-to-back conference games for the first time this season and aim for their first road win of the year. The FAU victory was the first of four wins in a row needed to make a bowl game and the Blazers must defeat Navy this weekend, followed by wins vs. Temple and North Texas to achieve bowl eligibility for an eighth straight season.

Who: UAB (3-6, 2-3 AAC) at Navy (3-5, 2-3 AAC)
Where: Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium – Annapolis, Md.
When: Saturday, Nov. 11 – 3:30 p.m. ET/2:30 p.m. CT
Watch: CBS Sports Network
On The Call: John Sadak (play-by-play), Randy Cross (analyst), Sheehan Burch (sideline)
Listen: 94.5 WJOX
On the Call: David Crane (play-by-play), Bryant Turner (analyst), Landrum Roberts (sideline)
Series: First Meeting

WHAT TO WATCH FOR:

Quarterback Jacob Zeno and running back Jermaine Brown Jr. lead UAB into Saturday's contest after spearheading an offensive attack last week that had a season-high 614 yards. Zeno is the reigning AAC Offensive Player of the Week while Brown Jr. was named to the Paul Hornung Award Honor Roll.
Zeno is coming off a career performance in which he threw for an FBS school record 484 yards and five touchdowns against Florida Atlantic. Along with earning AAC Offensive Player of the Week, he was named to the Davey O'Brien Great 8 list and earned a Manning Star of the Week. He finished the game completing 29-of-35 passes and also engineered the first game-winning drive of his collegiate career.
Zeno continues to be one of the top quarterbacks in the nation, ranking third nationally in completions per game (27.3), fourth in completion percentage (75.4) and 10^th in passing yards per game (298.6). He is just one of two quarterbacks in the nation along with Bo Nix of Oregon to rank top 10 in all three of those categories. He enters the Navy contest 25 completions shy of setting the single season completions record.
Brown Jr. needs 59 yards against Navy to become UAB's career leader in all-purpose yards. The fifth-year senior is one of the most dynamic all-purpose players in the country and ranks 15th nationally in all-purpose yards (126.2). Over his last six games, Brown Jr. is averaging 155.5 all-purpose yards per game and is coming off a career-best 210-yard performance against Florida Atlantic.
A third school record could potentially fall on Saturday as Amare Thomas is six catches away from setting the UAB freshman record for single season receptions. Thomas has 44 catches and needs four more to crack the overall UAB top 10, and six more for ninth place and the freshman record which was set by Frantrell Forrest who had 49 receptions in 2007.
Fellow wide receiver Tejhaun Palmer is coming off a career performance against Florida Atlantic in which he had career bests in catches (nine) and receiving yards (179) to go along with the game-tying touchdown in the fourth quarter. Palmer is having an outstanding season with 36 catches for 609 yards and five touchdowns, which are all career highs.
Defensively, The Blazers had a pick-six from Kendall Johnson in the win against FAU, along with a critical pass breakup from BJ Mayes on third down with two minutes left which gave the ball back to the Blazers for the game-winning drive. Mayes continues to be one of the top cornerbacks in the league, ranking fourth in pass defended at 1.11 per game (eight PBU, 2 INT).
The Blazers will have to contend with Navy's rushing offense that averages an AAC-best 197.5 yards per game. However, Navy is only scoring 18.3 points per game which is 12^th in the league. UAB is allowing 200 rushing yards and 38.1 points per game.

Following the game at Navy, UAB returns to Protective Stadium for the final time this season to host Temple on Senior Day. Kickoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. on ESPN+.

The game against Temple is UAB's annual Salute to Service game. Fans can help support local military members by participating the UAB's Tickets for Troops initiative. Click here to donate a $10 game ticket which will then be donated to local branches and military organizations, retired Veterans and their families.

UAB Football to Face Navy on Veterans Day in Annapolis

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Players Mentioned

Jermaine Brown Jr.

Kendall Johnson

BJ Mayes

Tejhaun Palmer

Amare Thomas

Jacob Zeno

The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics