Navy WR Eli Heidenreich Celebrates With Dad in Stands After School-Record Day

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Navy wide receiver Eli Heidenreich had himself a day on Saturday.
Heidenreich went off for 243 receiving yards and three touchdowns on eight receptions, including one 80-yard score and another for 60 yards. He made some program history, becoming the first Navy player to record 200 or more receiving yards in a game, according to ESPN Insights. He also broke Navy's all-time record with the 14th receiving touchdown of his career, grabbing his 15th before the day was over.
Even with all of the records, the coolest moment of Heidenreich's day came after one of his touchdowns where he saw his dad, David, in the front row and leaped right up into his seat to celebrate. Check out the heartwarming moment below:
How cool is this: after scoring for Navy, Eli Heidenreich leaped into the stands to his dad. pic.twitter.com/CnhH87Ky4v
— CBS Sports College Football 🏈 (@CBSSportsCFB) October 4, 2025
Heidenreich, a senior for the Midshipmen, had 170 receiving yards on the year heading into Saturday's game against Air Force. He got that and then some in just one day, well on his way to outpace the 671 receiving yards and six touchdowns he had last season.
HISTORY FOR HEIDENREICH 🔥
— ESPN Insights (@ESPNInsights) October 4, 2025
Eli Heidenreich is the first player in Navy program history with 200+ Rec. Yds in a game! He also breaks the record for most career Rec. TD in Navy histoy with 14 👏 pic.twitter.com/h7jevU9sO5
Navy quarterback Blake Horvath had a great day, too, throwing for 339 yards and three touchdowns—all of which went to Heidenreich. Horvath rushed for 130 yards and another score in Navy's 34-31 win over Air Force.
The Midshipmen advance to 5-0 on the year. They play Temple on the road next week.
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Blake Silverman is a contributor to the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Before joining SI in November 2024, he covered the WNBA, NBA, G League and college basketball for numerous sites, including Winsidr, SB Nation's Detroit Bad Boys and A10Talk. He graduated from Michigan State University before receiving a master's in sports journalism from St. Bonaventure University. Outside of work, he's probably binging the latest Netflix documentary, at a yoga studio or enjoying everything Detroit sports. A lifelong Michigander, he lives in suburban Detroit with his wife, young son and their personal petting zoo of two cats and a dog.
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