BALTIMORE (Map, News) - For Navy, playing in the Poinsettia Bowl is a bonus because the Midshipmen have reached their goals for the season.

Becoming bowl eligible by winning six games — check.

Claiming the Commander-In-Chief’s Trophy for the fifth straight year — check.

Beating Army for a school-record sixth straight season — check.

Now, the Midshipmen get to escape the chilly weather of the East Coast and enjoy the sunny beaches of San Diego for a few days before playing Utah of the Mountain West Conference at Qualcomm Stadium on Dec. 20 at 9 p.m. on ESPN.

The Midshipmen (8-4) will head west coming off a 38-3 victory over Army (3-9) before a crowd of 71,610 at M&T Bank Stadium on Saturday. It marked the Midshipmen’s 11th straight victory over a service academy, and by winning the Commander-In-Chief’s Trophy, the team will meet President Bush this spring for a fifth straight year.

“To me bowl games are a reward,” Navy coach Paul Johnson said. “Some coaches look at it as another spring practice. I want them to enjoy it.”

Navy’s players certainly enjoyed their last visit to the Poinsettia Bowl in 2005. The players spent an evening racing go-carts and the next night being cheered by about 1,500 fans during a pep rally that featured a band and a buffet of appetizers aboard a ship in the San Diego Bay.

The Midshipmen made the trip a memorable one on the field, too, as they crushed Colorado State, 51-30. Slotback Reggie Campbell recorded 290 all-purpose yards and a tied a bowl record with five touchdowns.

This year, Navy will face another team from the Mountain West Conference — Utah. The Utes finished the regular season 8-4. It will be the first meeting between the schools.

It could also be a history-making one for Navy’s senior class. Navy’s seniors have won 35 games the past four years — one away from tying the Class of 1909 as the winningest class in Navy history.

“The seniors know this is our last game wearing a Navy uniform,” senior fullback Adam Ballard said. “We'll have a week off to get healthy again, and this will be our last shot so we're not going to leave anything in the tank when we go to San Diego.”

Navy also won’t head to San Diego uncertain of its coach’s future, as Johnson denied reports he was a prime candidate for openings at Duke and Southern Methodist, which recently fired their coaches.

“I can only say this: Not one thing [about me leaving] I have seen or read is true,” he said. “There is not going to be an announcement tomorrow or any time. That being said, as any human being would, if someone calls and asks to talk to me about another job, I may listen. But it would take a special deal for me to leave.”