AIR FORCE ACADEMY — It’s all right to have a horse-and-buggy offense as long as Air Force fullback Jared Tew is pulling the buggy.
After waging a knock-down, drag-out battle with a tenacious Wyoming defense on his first 18 carries, Tew broke to his right and turned up the middle on his 19th carry and raced 17 yards for the game’s only touchdown with 10:48 left in the game Saturday.
That was all Air Force’s defense would need as the Falcons posted their first shutout in conference play in 12 years with a 10-0 win at Falcon Stadium.
“It was pretty tough; they had my number all day,” Tew said of his workmanlike effort of 105 yards on 27 carries.
“It was a belly play. (Wide receiver) Kyle Haldeman had a great block, and that opened a seam for me. And it was pretty much a 17-yard sprint to the end zone. We knew we had to score. We didn’t want to lose this game.”
Wyoming nose guard Fred Givens credited the Falcons with sticking with their game plan.
“We stopped him (Tew) all day,” Givens said. “Then he pops one. That’s just part of the game.”
Air Force’s own tenacious defense patiently played a cat-and-mouse game with Wyoming quarterback Austyn Carta-Samuels. With a yeoman effort from a defense that was a little makeshift because of injuries at the linebacker positions, the Falcons sacked the freshman quarterback six times for 46 yards. With cornerback Reggie Rembert’s 10 tackles leading the way, the Falcons recorded eight tackles for 52 yards of losses. Air Force’s previous conference shutout was 24-0 over Colorado State in a 1997 Western Athletic Conference game.
Until Tew’s score made it a two-possession game, the two Front Range opponents played as if it were the first day of practice. A total of 23 penalties were dished out, costing the Cowboys 71 yards on 10 calls and just about any chance of scoring. The Falcons were worse with 13 penalties for 125 yards.
Air Force coach Troy Calhoun brought in sophomore Connor Dietz at quarterback with 7:35 left in the third period when he thought starter Tim Jefferson was favoring his right ankle from a previous injury.
“We played magnificently on defense, but we didn’t create enough scoring opportunities,” Calhoun said.
He pointed right at the penalties.
“That’s as many penalties that we’ve had as a team in a long, long time,” Calhoun said. “That can’t be the Air Force Academy.”
Wyoming coach Dave Christensen also was bothered by the sloppy play.
“The penalties were my fault,” Christensen said. “I didn’t prepare them well enough for the crowd noise.”
Air Force kicker Erik Soderberg broke the scoreless deadlock with a 29-yard field goal with 37 seconds left in the third quarter.
Air Force punter Brandon Geyer was a key contributor to the defense.
Geyer averaged 41 yards on six punts, landing two inside Wyoming’s 10-yard line in the third quarter.
“I was confident, and our defense was confident,” Geyer said. “I felt like it was just a matter of time before our offense got something going.”
Irv Moss: 303-954-1296 or imoss@denverpost.com
Three questions
A look at how Air Force answered Irv Moss’ three questions in Saturday’s game against Wyoming:
1. Which side will win out, Wyoming’s suddenly revived passing game or Air Force’s stingy pass defense? Give it to the Air Force defense in a big way. Falcon defenders recorded six sacks for losses of 46 yards, resulting in freshman Austyn Carta- Samuels finishing with minus-4 yards rushing.
2. Air Force hasn’t lost three consecutive regular-season games in coach Troy Calhoun’s three seasons. Will it happen Saturday? It was close, but it didn’t happen with a 10-0 Air Force victory.
3. Can Wyoming stop a three- game slide in this historic series? The Cowboys not only didn’t snap a three-game slide, but Air Force’s fourth straight victory was the first time in the series that either team won four straight.
Key stat
Ugly flags: The teams combined for 23 penalties for 196 yards.
Key play
Jared Tew’s 17-yard touchdown run with 10:48 remaining, with the PAT giving the Falcons a 10-0 lead.
Mike Chambers, The Denver Post
