MEMPHIS -- Navy's time in the national rankings will be short-lived.

Memphis used five Navy turnovers to propel it to a 30-27 victory over the No. 25 Midshipmen before 40,177 at Liberty Bowl Stadium on Saturday.

"I think we had the best week of preparation we've ever had for a game," Memphis head coach Mike Norvell said.

Actually, it took about six months of preparation for the Tigers. Defensive coordinator Chris Ball took several days of spring practice to utilize different looks to try and defend Navy's potent triple-option offense.

Earlier in the week, Ball said he'd lost a lot of sleep in preparing for the Midshipmen.

And even though the Tiger defense gave up 314 yards rushing, it was still a far cry from the 447 yards it gave up last year in a loss to Navy and an improvement on the 374 yielded two years ago in defeat.

"I never was so happy about giving up 314 rushing yards," Norvell said, amid laughter at his postgame press conference.

Navy quarterback Zach Abey, who rushed 37 times for 146 yards and three touchdowns, got his final score on a 1-yard run that got the Mids within 30-27 after a Darryl Bonner two-point conversion with 3:25 to play in the game.

Austin Hall's second interception with 1:42 left clinched the game for the Tigers.

Abey was 1 of 7 passing for 20 yards, with two interceptions. He fumbled three times.

"You aren't going to beat anyone with five turnovers," Navy coach Ken Niumatalolo said.

"I can't remember the last time we had five turnovers. The defense played really well, they gave us a chance to stay in the game. ... How the heck were we still in the game with five turnovers?"

Hall, normally employed as a hybrid linebacker, was moved strictly to safety against Navy. Besides the two interceptions, Hall also had one pass break-up near the end zone to save a touchdown to go along with seven tackles, including 1.5 for loss.

"We gave (Navy) some looks on defense they hadn't seen before from us," Hall said. "Playing safety gave me some room to roam and do some things with a full blast of speed."

Linebacker Curtis Akins was another Memphis standout on defense, with a team-high 11 tackles and a fumble recovery.

"We knew we had to try something different against (Navy)," Akins said. "We moved a whole lot of people around last spring just for this game."

Still, it wasn't an easy road for Memphis.

The Tigers fell victim early to a snafu on the opening kickoff. Return man Darrell Henderson elected to let the kick hit the ground in hopes that it would bounce out of bounds. It backed up and allowed Navy's Mason Plante to recover.

The Tigers averted the worst, however, and held the Midshipmen to a 23-yard field goal by Bennett Moehring.

Although both teams' first touchdowns went true to form, the first half was far from the offensive show that was expected. Navy suffered two lost fumbles and the Memphis offense, averaging 509 yards per game coming in, sputtered.

Memphis' quick-strike offense took only 2:21 to score its first-half touchdown, going 72 yards in seven plays while Navy's touchdown took 8:20 with Abey's score capping a 70-yard drive.

Ferguson, who threw for a school-record-tying seven touchdowns a week earlier against Connecticut, was wild high on several first-half throws. He finished 24 of 40 passing for 279 yards and three touchdowns.

Wide receiver Anthony Miller caught 10 passes for 90 yards and two touchdowns. It was his eighth career game with double-digit receptions.

The teams fought to a 10-10 deadlock at halftime.

Memphis' fortunes turned on the second play of the second half when Hall picked off an Abey pass at the Navy 38 and returned it to the 13. Ferguson then connected with Henderson for a 12-yard touchdown pass to give the Tigers a 17-10 lead.

Navy broke through in the third quarter thanks to a safety from its defense. Ferguson threw out of bounds from the end zone and was penalized for grounding, which resulted in a safety. On the play, Ferguson banged his knee on the turf and had to be helped off the field, although was back in on Memphis' next possession.

"I hurt it when I hit the ground," Ferguson said. "It kind of went back on me like a mini-hyperextension. I just wanted to make sure nothing bad happened there."

The Midshipmen wasted no time cashing in. Abey took his offense 70 yards, capping the drive with an 8-yard touchdown to give Navy a 19-17 lead with 7:30 to play in the third quarter.

Memphis got some breathing room with 13:17 to play in the fourth quarter when Ferguson connected with Miller from 8 yards for a touchdown and a 27-19 Tiger lead.

"Don't take anything away from Memphis," Niumatalolo said. "They had a good plan."

NOTES: Memphis senior DE Ernest Suttles was dismissed from the team Saturday morning after he was charged with rape by the Memphis Police Department. Suttles had eight tackles, including four for a loss and two sacks, in five games. ... Navy QB Zach Abey's 146 yards on the ground pushed him over the 1,000-yard mark for the season at 1,016. He is the first player in school history to rush for 100 or more yards in each of the season's first six games. .... It was Memphis' second victory over a Top 25 team this season. The Tigers also topped No. 25 UCLA 48-45 at home.