The Navy Midshipmen were 7-3-1 in 1981. They fell to the Ohio State Buckeyes, 31 to 28, in the Liberty Bowl.
| GP | PTS | YDS | PLY | AVG | RUSH YDS | RUSH ATT | RUSH AVG | PASS YDS | PASS ATT | PASS AVG | SCK | SCKY | 1DWN | RUSH 1DWN | PASS 1DWN | PEN 1DWN | PEN | PEN YDS | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Team | 11 | 216 | 3,786 | 830 | 4.6 | 2,548 | 636 | 4.0 | 1,238 | 194 | 6.4 | ||||||||
Team Rank | 76th | 55th | 25th | 78th | 26th | 11th | 39th | 113th | 115th | 69th | |||||||||
Opponent | 11 | 152 | 2,888 | 4.0 | 1,427 | 476 | 3.0 | 1,461 | 251 | 5.8 | |||||||||
Opponent Rank | 29th | 21st | 22nd | 36th | 48th | 32nd | 29th | 44th | 35th | ||||||||||
Net | +64 | +898 | +830 | +0.6 | +1,121 | +160 | +1.0 | -223 | -57 | +0.6 | |||||||||
Net Rank | 45th | 33rd | 25th | 41st | 28th | 12th | 37th | 83rd | 96th | 55th |
| Mountain West | W | L | PCT | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8 | 4 | .667 | |
| 2 | 9 | 3 | .750 |
| Big 10 | W | L | PCT | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 12 | 0 | 1.000 | |
| 2 | 12 | 0 | 1.000 |
| American Athletic | W | L | PCT | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 11 | 1 | .917 | |
| 2 | 10 | 2 | .833 |
| Independent | W | L | PCT | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 10 | 2 | .833 | |
| 2 | 9 | 3 | .750 |
| Big 12 | W | L | PCT | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 11 | 1 | .917 | |
| 2 | 11 | 1 | .917 |
| Pac-12 | W | L | PCT | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 | 6 | .500 | |
| 2 | 2 | 10 | .167 |
| Mid-American | W | L | PCT | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8 | 4 | .667 | |
| 2 | 8 | 4 | .667 |
| Conference USA | W | L | PCT | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8 | 4 | .667 | |
| 2 | 9 | 3 | .750 |