Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Army

Air Force plays Army Saturday in Colorado Springs, and if there's any hope of taking a tiny sting out of what has been a bad season, a win over the Black Knights could do that. There are some games where its less about the opponent and more about you. I think this game falls in that catagory. A winnable game for the Falcons? Yes. Doesn't mean its a victory. The Falcons have too many holes on defense and too much inconsistency on offense. And think about how Army views this game. Air Force is down, and Navy is certainly beatable this year. It could be the best chance the Black Knights have of winning the Commander In Chiefs Trophy in a long time. But this game is about the Falcons and what they do. At times you see sparks-stopping San Diego State on 3 4th down plays....Driving like they did at times against the Notre Dame defense. But there's no consistency. Much of that is youth. Some of that is coaching. There's just 4 games left this year. No bowl game. You gotta make these games count. Forget who you are playing. Take care of your own business first, and see what happens.

Wednesday, October 23, 2013

5 Left...What Happens?

Air Force football players talked this week about how they can still get to a bowl if they win their last 5 games. Its the right mindset to have after a 1-6 start and 16 days off between games. The biggest hurdle of the 5 is Saturday when Notre Dame comes to Colorado Springs. It's like a second season getting underway for the Falcons. There's an old saying, "They don't remember how you start-They do remember how you finish." The Falcons must finish strong. Injuries have been a factor and inexperience has played into the season as well, but the time is now to put those things behind them. It won't be easy. Notre Dame is not as good as last year, but still plenty good period. Their defense has really come on in the last 4 weeks, and won them the game last week vs USC. The Falcons must have a daring offensive game plan for the Irish. Air Force was too conservative in the 4th quarter against San Diego State and it contributed to the loss. And I'm not talking about running a reverse and having Sam Gagliano throw the football. Air Force needs to roll out more and throw short. They did that once against San Diego State and completed the pass. They don't have to throw 50 times a game, and every pass they do call does not have to be a bomb. Just give the Irish something else to think about besides the option. Otherwise next year may get here sooner than anyone wants.

Friday, October 11, 2013

Hurt, But Hope

There have been a lot of challenges this year for Troy Calhoun and his Air Force football team. Losing 2 starting quarterbacks, injuries, youth, inconsistency. But Thursday night the Falcons got off the mat and played an inspired game. They gave up a 14 point 4th quarter lead and succumbed to San Diego State 27-20. Yes, its easy to say Air Force is 1-6 and should have won last night, and the season is going nowhere. But if you looked closely you saw a lot from a gutty group of football players. 1st, Air Force loses another quarterback. Karson Roberts went out after taking a shot and Freshman Nate Romine came on. I asked him afterwards if he felt nervous, calm, anxious. He said to me, "Excited." Love that attitude. He can play. Romine managed the game well. Late in the 4th quarter, and out of timeouts he threw the best pass this year by a Falcon quarterback over the middle to Garret Griffin for a big gain and a first down. (Griffin made a hell of a catch too, up around his helmet.) 2nd-Signs of life from the Air Force Defense. I have been critical of the defense all season long. They play too far off the ball and have not attacked. Part of that is how the coaches have asked them to play. Last night, completely different. The Falcons were aggresive on the line of scrimmage. They had two sacks, and plenty of Quarterback hurries. They were spirited, animated, hungry, and even desperate, which is a good way to play. They stopped the Aztecs 3 times on 4th down, 2 in 4th and goal situations and once, on a big time one on one tackle by Christian Spears to save a touchdown at the 1 yard line. In recent weeks the coaching staff has simplified the playbook and helped the kids think less and play more. Plus, in watching last night I really believe the Coaches were more aggressive in their play calling and not sitting back playing everything underneath. I have said on this blog you can't play defense backing up. You attack. They did last night. Yes they did give up 21 4th quarter points and yes its a loss, but I believe you saw the beginnings of this team shaking off their malaise. Can good things come from a loss? Yes. In life sometimes the best lessons come from pain. Dawn still hasn't broken for the Falcon Football team, but the sky is slowly getting brighter.

Monday, October 7, 2013

Is there Time to Salvage the Season

Following the Falcons loss to Navy Saturday the title of this blog seems appropriate. At 1-5 Air Force is staring at a December without a bowl game for the first time in 7 seasons. Win out, or take 5 of 6 and you can go to a bowl. But you don't get any sense this team has that kind of run in them at the moment. Its youth has been a big factor. Injuries have not helped. And they are playing good teams. The team has been inconcistent in so many areas. The hope is things can turn around but you wonder if there's time this season for that to happen. Its more than a young team getting experience. And more troubling is the trend that says in its last 31 games Air Force is 14-18. And 3 of the 13 wins are against Football Championship Teams. Take them out and you are 11-18. There's a lot at stake these last 6 games. I've always believed this is where Coaches earn their money the most-when teams are down and struggling. There is hope for the rest of the year, but the window is closing.