Air Force Falcons football

Air Force Falcons football
2025 Air Force Falcons football team
First season	1955; 70 years ago
Athletic director	Nathan Pine
Head coach	Troy Calhoun 19th season, 136–89 (.604)
Stadium	Falcon Stadium (capacity: 56,409)
Field surface	Turf
Location	Air Force Academy, Colorado, U.S.
NCAA division	Division I FBS
Conference	Mountain West (1999–present)
Division	Mountain (2013–2019; 2021–2022)
Past conferences	Independent (1955) University Division Independent (1956–1972) Division I/I-A Independent (1973–1979) WAC (1980–1998)
All-time record	439–349–13 (.556)
Bowl record	16–13–1 (.550)
Conference titles	3
Division titles	3
Rivalries	Army (rivalry) Colorado State (rivalry) Hawaii (rivalry) Navy (rivalry)
Consensus All-Americans	5
Current uniform
Colors	Blue and silver [1]
Fight song	"Falcon Fight Song" (unofficial: "The U.S. Air Force")
Mascot	The Bird
Marching band	United States Air Force Academy Drum & Bugle Corp "The Flight of Sound"
Outfitter	Nike
Website	GoAirForceFalcons.com

The Air Force Falcons football program represents the United States Air Force Academy in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly Division I-A) level. Air Force has been a member of the Mountain West Conference since its founding in 1999. The Falcons play their home games at Falcon Stadium in Air Force Academy, Colorado, north of Colorado Springs. Troy Calhoun has been the team's head coach since 2007.

The three major service academies—Air Force, Army and Navy—compete for the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy which is awarded to the academy that defeats the others in football that year (or retained by the previous year's winner in the event of a three-way tie).

History

Running back Asher Clark and the Falcons take on the Houston Cougars during the 2009 Armed Forces Bowl

See also: List of Air Force Falcons football seasons

The Falcons are not only recognized by the lightning bolt on the side of their helmets, but their traditional option attack. Air Force is one of the premier rushing teams in the nation. Since Fisher DeBerry took over as Falcons head coach in 1984, they have ranked among the nation's top 10 in rushing 19 times in 21 years. The Air Force football team has enjoyed success not only on the field but also in the classroom. In 49 years of Air Force football, there have been 39 Academic All-Americans. ^[2]

The 1985 season

See also: 1985 Air Force Falcons football team

1985 was the most successful season in Air Force football history. Under 5th-year coach Fisher DeBerry, the Falcons came within one win of playing for the national championship. They recorded 10 straight wins to start the season, climbed the polls to No. 2 in the nation, but lost to BYU 28–21 in the penultimate game of the regular season. Air Force rebounded with a bowl game win over Texas in the Bluebonnet Bowl and finished with a 12–1 record as the No. 5 ranked team in the nation.

Conference affiliations

Air Force has been affiliated with the following conferences.

• Independent (1955–1979)
• Western Athletic Conference (1980–1998)
• Mountain West Conference (1999–present)

Championships

Presentation of the 2016 Commander in Chief's Trophy to the Air Force Falcons

Conference championships

Year	Conference	Coach	Overall record	Conference record
1985†	Western Athletic Conference	Fisher DeBerry	12–1	7–1
1995†			8–5	6–2
1998			12–1	7–1

† Co-champions

Division championships

Year	Division	Coach	Opponent	CG result
1998	WAC - Mountain	Fisher DeBerry	BYU	W 20–13
2015	MW - Mountain	Troy Calhoun	San Diego State	L 24–27
2021	MW - Mountain		N/A lost tie-breaker to Utah State

Conference Championship Game appearances

Air Force has appeared in 2 conference championship games in their history, winning 1 of them.

Year	Conference	Coach	CG Opponent	CG Result	Game MVP
1998	WAC	Fisher DeBerry	BYU	W 20–13	N/A
2015	Mountain West	Troy Calhoun	San Diego State	L 24–27	Christian Chapman (QB, San Diego State) Na'im McGee (S, San Diego State)

Note: Includes appearances where the conference did not use divisions to determine championship game participants.

Bowl games

See also: List of Air Force Falcons football seasons

Air Force has played in 30 bowl games in their history, with a 16–13–1 (.550) record. ^[3] Their highest finish in the polls was fifth (UPI coaches) in 1985. ^[4]

Season	Bowl	Opponent	Result	Head coach	Record
1958	Cotton	TCU	T 0–0	Ben Martin	9–0–2
1963	Gator	North Carolina	L 0–35	Ben Martin	7–4
1970	Sugar	Tennessee	L 13–34	Ben Martin	9–3
1982	Hall of Fame	Vanderbilt	W 36–28	Ken Hatfield	8–5
1983	Independence	Ole Miss	W 9–3	Ken Hatfield	10–2
1984	Independence	Virginia Tech	W 23–7	Fisher DeBerry	8–4
1985	Bluebonnet	Texas	W 24–16	Fisher DeBerry	12–1
1987	Freedom	Arizona State	L 28–33	Fisher DeBerry	9–4
1989	Liberty	Ole Miss	L 29–42	Fisher DeBerry	8–4–1
1990	Liberty	Ohio State	W 23–11	Fisher DeBerry	7–5
1991	Liberty	Mississippi State	W 31–15	Fisher DeBerry	10–3
1992	Liberty	Ole Miss	L 0–13	Fisher DeBerry	7–5
1995	Copper	Texas Tech	L 41–55	Fisher DeBerry	8–5
1997	Las Vegas	Oregon	L 13–41	Fisher DeBerry	10–3
1998	Oahu	Washington	W 43–25	Fisher DeBerry	12–1
2000	Silicon Valley	Fresno State	W 37–34	Fisher DeBerry	9–3
2002	San Francisco	Virginia Tech	L 13–20	Fisher DeBerry	8–5
2007	Armed Forces	California	L 36–42	Troy Calhoun	9–4
2008	Armed Forces	Houston	L 28–34	Troy Calhoun	8–5
2009	Armed Forces	Houston	W 47–20	Troy Calhoun	8–5
2010	Independence	Georgia Tech	W 14–7	Troy Calhoun	9–4
2011	Military	Toledo	L 41–42	Troy Calhoun	7–6
2012	Armed Forces	Rice	L 14–33	Troy Calhoun	6–7
2014	Idaho Potato	Western Michigan	W 38–24	Troy Calhoun	10–3
2015	Armed Forces	California	L 36–55	Troy Calhoun	8–6
2016	Arizona	South Alabama	W 45–21	Troy Calhoun	10–3
2019	Cheez-It	Washington State	W 31–21	Troy Calhoun	11–2
2021	First Responder	Louisville	W 31–28	Troy Calhoun	10–3
2022	Armed Forces	Baylor	W 30–15	Troy Calhoun	10–3
2023	Armed Forces	James Madison	W 31–21	Troy Calhoun	9–4

Head coaches

Main article: List of Air Force Falcons head football coaches

Head coach Troy Calhoun (left) leads the Falcons, which he has since the 2007 season

In over 60 years of play in college football, the Falcons have had seven head coaches.

Tenure	Coach	Record	Pct.
1955	Robert V. Whitlow	4–4	.500
1956–1957	Buck Shaw	9–8–2	.526
1958–1977	Ben Martin	96–103–9	.483
1978	Bill Parcells	3–8	.273
1979–1983	Ken Hatfield	26–32–1	.449
1984–2006	Fisher DeBerry	169–107–1	.612
2007–present	Troy Calhoun	131–84	.609

Top 25 finishes

The Air Force Falcons have finished in the AP poll and/or the Coaches poll 8 times in the program's history, with the highest-ranked finishes being No. 6 in 1958 and No. 8 in 1985. ^[5] Note: The AP poll began in 1936, and the Coaches' Poll began in 1950. Before 1990, only the top 20 teams were ranked in the AP poll before it was expanded to 25.

In addition to the major polls, the BCS produced rankings from 1998 to 2013 which helped select teams for the BCS Bowls. Then, starting in 2014, the CFP committee began issuing rankings to determine which teams were selected for the playoffs.

Season	Overall record	Major polls		Others
		AP poll	Coaches poll	BCS Standings (1998–2013)	CFP poll (2014–present)
1958	9–0–1	6	8
1970	9–3	16	11
1983	10–2	13	15
1985	12–1	8	5
1991	10–3	25	24
1997	10–3		25
1998	12–1	13	10
2019	11–2	22	23

Falcon Stadium

Home games are played in Falcon Stadium, which sits below the main campus at an elevation of 6,621 feet (2,018 m) above sea level. Falcon Stadium is the 2nd highest stadium in the FBS division, with only Wyoming's stadium at a higher elevation. Pre-game activities include flyovers by USAF aircraft, including the F-15 and B-2. Opened in 1962, its highest attendance was 56,409 in 2002, when the Falcons hosted Notre Dame. ^[6]

Players

See also: Category:Air Force Falcons football players

Individual accomplishments

See also: Air Force Falcons football statistical leaders

Notable individual records

• Beau Morgan: He became the first player in NCAA history to rush and pass for over 1,000 yards in a season twice. He broke the NCAA single season rushing record for a quarterback, along with being only the second player in NCAA history to run and pass for 3,000 yards in a career.

Alumni in the National Football League

See also: List of Air Force Falcons in the NFL draft

• Sid Abramowitz
• Shane Bonham
• Larry Cole
• Austin Cutting
• Bryce Fisher
• Ben Garland
• Ron George
• Chris Gizzi
• Garrett Griffin
• Chad Hall
• Chad Hennings
• Ernie Jennings
• Bill Line
• Beau Morgan
• Steve Russ
• Anthony Schlegel
• Jeff Smith
• Ted Sundquist
• Mark Simon

All-Americans

Year	Player	Position	Award(s)
1956	Larry Thomson	FB	Little America (3rd)
1958	Brock Strom	OL	Consensus
	Robert Brickey	HB	Helms
1963	Terry Isaacson	QB	Helms
	Joe Rodwell	C	Helms
1966	Neal Starkey	DB	Playboy Magazine All-American
1967	Neal Starkey	DB	Associated Press (3rd)
1969	Ernie Jennings	WR	Central Press (2nd)
1970	Ernie Jennings	WR	Consensus
1971	Orderia Mitchell	C	Black Sports
	Gene Ogilvie	DE	UPI (3rd)
1972	Orderia Mitchell	C	Associated Press (2nd), Gridiron (2nd)
	Gene Ogilvie	DE	UPI (2nd)
1973	Steve Heil	ROV	Associated Press (3rd)
1974	Dave Lawson	LB/K	Football Writers
1975	Dave Lawson	LB/K	UPI (2nd), Football News (2nd)
1981	Johnny Jackson	DB	Associated Press (2nd)
1982	Dave Schreck	OG	Associated Press (2nd)
1983	John Kershner	FB	Football News (2nd)
	Mike Kirby	WR	Sporting News (2nd)
1985	Mark Simon	P	Scripps Howard, Associated Press (2nd)
	Scott Thomas	DB	Consensus, Walter Camp, Kodak, Football Writes, Associated Press (2nd)
1986	Terry Maki	LB	Kodak, Football News (2nd), Associated Press (3rd)
	Tom Rotello	DB	Football News (2nd)
1987	Chad Hennings	DT	Consensus, Walter Camp, Kodak, Football Writers, Associated Press, UPI, Scripps Howard, Sporting News, Football News, Outland Trophy winner
1989	Dee Dowis	QB	Heisman Trophy finalist
	Ron Gray	KR	Associated Press (3rd)
1991	Jason Christ	P	Associated Press (2nd), Football News (3rd)
1992	Carlton McDonald	DB	Consensus, Walter Camp, Kodak, Football Writers, Associated Press, UPI, Scripps Howard, Sporting News
1993	Chris MacInnis	P/K	UPI, Associated Press (2nd)
1996	Beau Morgan	QB	Associated Press (3rd)
1998	Chris Gizzi	LB	Associated Press (3rd), Football Writers (2nd)
1998	Tim Curry	DB	Sporting News (3rd)
	Frank Mindrup	OL	American Football Foundation (3rd)
2001	Anthony Schlegel	ILB	Sporting News (Freshmen 3rd team)
2002	Brett Huyser	OL	Sporting News (4th)
2007	Chad Hall	WR	Rivals (3rd), Sports Illustrated
	Carson Bird	CB	Sports Illustrated
2008	Ryan Harrison	K	College Football News
2010	Reggie Rembert	DB	AFCA (1st), [7] Associated Press (3rd)

Academic All–Americans

Air Force Academy Falcons free safety Bobby Giannini (#11) prepares to finish off Tennessee tailback Montario Hardesty, while Falcons defensive end Josh Clayton (#97) loosens Hardesty's grip on the football. The Falcons lost 31–30 in 2006.

Academic All–Americans at Air Force. ^[8]

Year	Player	Position
1958	Brock Strom	OT
1959	Rich Mayo	QB
1960	Rich Mayo	QB
	Don Baucom	HB
1967	Ken Zagzebski	MG
	Carl Janssen	OE
1969	Ernie Jennings	WR
1970	Ernie Jennings	WR
	Bob Parker	QB
	Phil Bauman	LB
1971	Darryl Haas	LB/P
	Bob Homburg	DE
	John Griffith	DT
1972	Gene Ogilvie	DE
	Bob Homburg	DE
	Mark Prill	MG
1973	Joe Debes	OT
1976	Steve Hoog	WR
1977	Mack McCollum	ROV
1978	Steve Hoog	WR
	Tom Foertsch	LB
	Tim Fyda	DE
1981	Mike France	LB
	Kevin Ewing	ROV
1982	Jeff Kubiak	P
1983	Jeff Kubiak	P
1987	Chad Hennings	DT
	Scott Salmon	DB
	James Hecker	DB
1988	Scott Salmon	DB
	David Hlatky	OL
	James Hecker	DB
1989	Chris Howard	HB
1990	Chris Howard	HB
	J.T. Tokish	LB
1992	Grant Johnson	LB
1996	Dustin Tyner	WR
	Rashad Penton	DB
1997	Rashad Penton	DB
1998	Rashad Penton	DB
2003	Ryan Carter	DE
2004	Ryan Carter	DE
2018	Garrett Kauppila	DB

Future non-conference opponents

Announced schedules as of February 6, 2025. ^[9]

2025	2026	2027	2028	2029	2030	2031	2032	2033	2034	2035	2036	2037
Bucknell	Duquesne	Lafayette	at UTSA	at Arizona	Navy	Arizona	UTSA	Army	Navy	Army	Navy	Army
at Navy	Navy	Baylor	Navy	Army	at Army	Army	Navy	at Navy	at Army	at Navy	at Army	at Navy
Army	UConn	at Navy	at Army	at Navy		at Navy	at Army
at UConn	at Army	Army

Rivals

Commander-in-Chief's Trophy

Air Force has a traditional rivalry against the other two FBS service academies, Army and Navy; the three play for the right to hold the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy. Air Force has won the trophy 21 times, more than either Army or Navy.

• Commander in Chief's Trophy Winners (AF-Army-Navy): 1982, 1983, 1985, 1987, 1989–1992, 1994, 1995, 1997–2002, 2010, 2011, 2014, 2016, 2022.

Colorado State

Air Force has played more games against Colorado State and Wyoming than any other school, having played each school 60 times since 1957, the Falcons' first season.

Since 1980, the Falcons and Colorado State Rams have competed for the Ram–Falcon Trophy. Air Force holds a 27–15 advantage over Colorado State in games that the trophy has been contested in.

Colorado

In 2019 Air Force renewed a rivalry with Colorado, winning at Folsom Field on Sept. 14 by a score of 30–23. ^[10] The teams had not played since Oct. 5, 1974, a game that Colorado won by a score of 28–27. ^[11] Air Force won the first meeting between the teams in 1958. The 1963 game between the two college football teams was postponed due to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. The 1973 game, the last one played in Boulder before the 2019 clash, was marred by a riot. ^[12] Fans threw eggs and beer at Air Force personnel and cadets. ^[13]

Hawaii

The Kuter Trophy is awarded to the winner of the game between Air Force and Hawaii. The trophy is named after General Laurence S. Kuter, who was appointed the first head of the Pacific Air Forces Command (located at Hickam Air Force Base in Honolulu) in 1957. ^{[14] [15] [16] [17]} The two teams have met 23 times, with Air Force leading the series 14–8–1.

Top 10 rivals

Below are Air Force's records against its top ten most-played opponents since 1957. ^[18]

Opponent	Games	Wins	Losses	Ties	Pct.	Last meeting
Colorado State	60	38	21	1	.642	Nov 19, 2022 (W 24–12)
Wyoming	60	30	27	3	.525	Sep 16, 2022 (L 14–17)
Army	57	38	18	1	.675	Nov 5, 2022 (W 13–7)
Navy	55	33	22	0	.600	Oct 1, 2022 (W 13–10)
New Mexico	40	26	14	0	.650	Nov 12, 2022 (W 35–3)
San Diego State	38	20	18	0	.526	Nov 26, 2022 (W 13–3)
BYU	30	7	23	0	.233	Sep 11, 2010 (W 35–14)
Notre Dame	30	6	24	0	.200	Oct 26, 2013 (L 10–45)
Utah	27	14	13	0	.519	Oct 30, 2010 (L 23–28)
UNLV	24	18	6	0	.750	Oct 15, 2022 (W 42–17)

References

1. "Air Force Athletics Style Sheet" (PDF). March 12, 2022. Retrieved July 1, 2022.
2. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on September 28, 2007. Retrieved October 6, 2006.
3. "Air Force Falcons Bowls". College Football at Sports-Reference.com.
4. 2013 Air Force football media guide. Archived 2013-09-27 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 2013-Sep-25.
5. "Air Force Football record By Year". College Football at Sports-Reference.com.
6. "airforcesports.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=3000&KEY=&ATCLID=157958&SPID=804&SPSID=22383". Archived from the original on September 28, 2007. Retrieved October 6, 2006.
7. Mayer, Larry (May 12, 2013). "Tryout players followed unusual path to minicamp". Chicago Bears. Archived from the original on October 21, 2016. Retrieved May 13, 2013.
8. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on September 28, 2007. Retrieved October 6, 2006.
9. "Air Force Falcons Football Future Schedules". FBSchedules.com. Retrieved February 6, 2025.
10. "Remsberg scores in OT, Air Force beats Colorado 30-23" . Retrieved December 31, 2019.
11. "Why renewal of CU Buffs-Air Force football game "should've been done a long time ago"". denverpost.com. September 12, 2019. Retrieved December 31, 2019.
12. "Why renewal of CU Buffs-Air Force football game "should've been done a long time ago"". denverpost.com. September 13, 2019. Retrieved December 31, 2019.
13. Howell, Brian (July 15, 2015). "CU football: Buffs renew old rivalry with Air Force". dailycamera.com. Retrieved December 31, 2019.
14. "UH hopes to revive trophy games in Mountain West". Honolulu Star-Advertiser . June 26, 2011. Retrieved February 28, 2013.
15. "1–8 Warriors battle Air Force for Kuter Trophy on national television". KHON-TV. November 16, 2012. Archived from the original on December 2, 2013. Retrieved February 28, 2013.
16. "Trophy, rivalry back in play as UH takes on Air Force". Honolulu Star-Advertiser . November 16, 2012. Retrieved February 28, 2013.
17. "Air Force beats Hawaii to become bowl eligible". CBS Sports . November 17, 2012. Retrieved February 28, 2013.
18. "Air Force Falcons Head-to-Head Results". Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved October 7, 2021.

External links

• Official website