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.