Air Force lost a heartbreaker to Navy in the final seconds last Saturday, but it was a game where many positives could be taken from the defeat. The Falcons have to turn their season around quickly if they want to go bowling this December and that turnaround has, to begin with the visit of UNLV.
Here are the three keys to this one:
Keep the offensive momentum going
Air Force was not good in the first half against Navy last weekend. The Falcons put some things together, but a combination of bad luck, bad penalties, and bad decision making put Air Force behind the eight ball as the start of the second half. It would have been easy to throw in the towel and tank down 31-10 as the Falcons were, but instead, the offense finally found its rhythm and opened up.
From that point onward the only thing that stopped the Falcons offense was the clock running out on them. Of the five second-half possessions that were not ended by the clock hitting zero, the Falcons scored a touchdown every single time and piled up 35 points on a Navy defense that had been good in 2017. The Falcons need to keep that momentum going, come out hot against UNLV, and try to put this game beyond the Rebels before they know what has hit them.
Stop UNLV QB Armani Rogers
When a major sporting publication like Athlon Sports compares a player to a college great like Cam Newton, people take notice. That is exactly what the magazine did this summer with Rebels quarterback Armani Rogers and this week that talk was doubled-down on when Air Force head coach Troy Calhoun echoed the sentiment.
The redshirt freshman has completed 55-of-98 passes this year for 881 yards and five touchdowns. He also has 312 yards on the ground and three touchdowns on 69 carries. Obviously, these are not Cam Newton numbers yet, but the big passer – Rogers is listed at 6-foot-5 and 225 pounds – is getting better each week. The Air Force defense will have to be aware that he can beat them both through the air and on the ground and defend Rogers accordingly.
Run the ball on UNLV
The template for beating this UNLV team was set last week by San Diego State. The Aztecs went run heavy against the Rebels, wearing them down over the course of the first half and then outscoring them 21-0 over the final 30 minutes of the game in a 41-10 SDSU win. The Aztecs used their strong running game to outgain the Rebels 474-283 in total yardage, and that is the blueprint that Air Force must follow with its triple-option to take down UNLV.
Air Force outgained Navy last week, but lost because of a couple of fumbles. Arion Worthman rushed for 139 yards and a couple of touchdowns and his feet are going to be very important in this battle. While Air Force can throw the ball, they will be much more successful if they just chip away at UNLV with the run.
