Air Force coach Troy Calhoun saw something last week when the Falcons played New Mexico that he hadn’t seen in his 16 previous Mountain West Conference games.
“For the first time since I’ve been here, I thought we were quicker than our conference opponent,” Calhoun said. “We were able to make some open-field plays. But I know that any time an Air Force team wins a conference game in any sport, it’s a good win.”
Calhoun didn’t venture whether he thought the Falcons would have a quickness edge today against visiting San Diego State. But there was evidence of his opinion from the game statistics against the Lobos.
The Falcons had their best rushing yardage (298) of the season against a Division I-A opponent. On defense, Air Force collected four sacks and two other tackles for losses, a fumble recovery and three interceptions, two by defensive back Jon Davis.
Calhoun said the return of cornerback Reggie Rembert contributed to Air Force’s quickness; he returned a kickoff 60 yards and a punt 30 yards.
Calhoun mentioned quickness among the top two traits you look for in sizing up a young player. Durability was No. 1 and quickness No. 2.
Calhoun said his team would require all of its quickness against San Diego State’s passing attack, especially receiver Vincent Brown. Brown comes into Falcon Stadium riding four straight games of 100 or more yards receiving, and his average of 141.3 yards per game ranks second in the nation.
“What makes him so dangerous is what he does after catching the ball,” Calhoun said of Brown. “I also like the way he blocks downfield. He’s playing with more confidence than last year.”
Calhoun singled out Ben Garland, his defensive nose tackle, who played against the Lobos with a broken hand.
“Ben Garland is a warrior, who was going to play and play well,” Calhoun said. “More than anything, he contributed senior leadership. You can send me as many Ben Garlands as you can find.”
Irv Moss: 303-954-1296 or imoss@denverpost.com
