AIR FORCE ACADEMY — It’s not difficult to guess what Air Force sophomore kicker Erik Soderberg heard from his coaches after Saturday’s game at Navy.
“Make the next one,” Soderberg said, repeating the message. “They assured me that I’ll be making a lot of kicks in the future.”
But Soderberg had one of the more difficult recoveries this week from a 16-13 overtime loss to Navy. His 39-yard field goal tied the score at 13 at the end of regulation, but his 31-yard attempt to keep the overtime going was wide left, and the Falcons came home without a chance to win the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy for the seventh straight year.
Even though the Falcons had a chance to score a touchdown and win the game, the missed field goal was a tough carry for a kicker who hadn’t been put in as much of a pressure-cooker situation in his short collegiate career.
“I thought about it a little over the weekend, but I’ll put it behind me and learn from it,” Soderberg said earlier this week. “Part of it is having a thick skin and a short-term memory.”
Kicking coach Ben Miller said the missed field goal in overtime was the best kick Soderberg hit all day.
“He knows the depth of missing that kick,” Miller said. “He’s mentally strong. That’s how he emerged as our No. 1 kicker coming out of preseason practice.”
Eye on a quarterback. A quick look at the passing statistics of TCU quarterback Andy Dalton reveals why Air Force coach Troy Calhoun said his team’s defense will be stretched all over the field. Dalton has completed 68.1 percent of his passes for 814 yards and six touchdowns.
“They can go laterally sideline to sideline and also go downfield,” Calhoun said.
In his four games, Dalton has recorded pass plays of 31, 26, 58 and 34 yards.
The other side. When a team hasn’t scored a touchdown in nine quarters such as Air Force, quarterback Tim Jefferson says people can look at the quarterback if they want.
“A quarterback’s duty is to lead his team down the field,” Jefferson said. “I take responsibility for that, but it’s not just me out there. I have high expectations for my performance on the field. I know I can do a lot more to get our team in the end zone.”
Irv Moss: 303-954-1296 or imoss@denverpost.com
