The End

Saturdays Air Force Football game at Colorado State is the final game of the season for the Falcons. Is there a lot riding on it? I say yes, and not because of the obvious. CSU needs the win to become bowl eligible. Air Force needs the win to avoid the worst season in school history. I've seen every game in Troy Calhouns Head Coaching career with the Falcons. I have not seem him that animated and frustrated as I did after Thursday loss to UNLV. He ripped his team, saying they can no longer use youth and inexperience as excuses. His tone (rant would be too strong a word) shocked many of his players, who have been used to seeing Calhoun deal with losses this year in a more reserved manner. But maybe thats what this club needs. I've always been from the school that rasing your voice once in a while and calling people out and demanding accountability is never a bad thing. Players can control effort and hustle. There was none of that for most of the first half Thursday Night. It got better but by then it was too late. If Air Force should beat the Rams Saturday some of the credit needs to go to Calhouns open questioning of his teams desire to the press after the UNLV game. And a win Saturday could give us a peek at what could be a very interesting 2014. But the Falcons need to come out and play with some spark and spirit. Some of that may need to be brought out by the head coach. But a lot of it needs to come from the players. It could be a springboard for next year if the results are positive. But it could also be a dismal end to the worse season in program history.

Next year Begins Thursday

Air Force has 2 football games left. There's no "saving" the season. You are what you are, and the Falcons are 2-8. True, you can put a crimp in UNLV's chances for a bowl, and perhaps do the same next week at Colorado State. But these two games have to be about Air Force. I was glad to see Troy Calhoun did not let up off the pedal during the bye week. Young inexperienced teams need work, and this team, especially on defense, needs a lot of work. And to build a base for next year, these two games can serve as a bit of a platform for the 2014 season. Whatever ails the Falcons on defense can only be fixed through hard work, and taking a step back and looking at every aspect of the defense, including schemes and coaching. After a week off, and perhaps a fresh perspective, its clear that this season can mean something if Air Force treats these next two games as building blocks for next year. Otherwise, nothing good comes out of this season.

Changes?

After watching yet another disappoining loss by Air Force to New Mexico Friday night, one has to ask if major changes are needed within the program after the season. Even the worst of defenses forces a team to punt every so often, but the Falcons could not get the Lobos off the field Friday Night. What hurts, (among many things) is, that was a 2-6 football team Air Force lost to. They threw 3 PASSES. Thats it. The Lobos never felt threatened to the point where they had to try more than 3. So whats the problem with the Falcon Defense? It's not just one thing, and I don't profess to have the answer, although earlier in the year it was clear against passing teams Air Force was too passive and played way too far off the line. But the fact this malaise has continued for the entire season would suggest Troy Calhoun has to take a hard look at everything defense. 1) The 3-4 Scheme-I've always liked the 3-4 but you have to wonder as teams evolve on offense how effective it continues to be. Crazy as it sounds, a 4-2-5 look might be the next defenisve evolution. 2) Youth-Its been a challenge all season long. 3) Injuries-See Youth 4) Coaching-Air Force has struggled on defense the last couple of years, so #'s 2 and 3 listed above were not as much of an issue last year. The Falcons seem to be a bend but lets-not-break squad. Thats not good enough anymore. If you rush 3 and drop 8 you will get beat. If you play too much zone you will get beat. I would like to see the coaching staff play more man to man and gamble more in the box. But the biggest question may be, does Air Force need a change of leadership on defense? I'm the last person to suggest firing people-the world is a tough enough place as it is. I do believe the Falcons, if not doing so already, must open themselves up to different concepts on defense. They may seem foreign, but you know what they say about doing the same thing over and over again. The Coaching staff can't be stubborn, (and I'm not suggesting they are) but they must do things differently on defense than what they have shown the last two seasons. Otherwise 2014 won't look much better than this year.