Army defensive end Josh McNary is so impressive, he reminds Air Force coach Troy Calhoun of another more well-known pass rusher.
“Those are Lawrence Taylor numbers,” Calhoun said, recalling the former New York Giants linebacker now in the Hall of Fame. “That’s a phenomenal performance.”
McNary has 10 1/2 sacks and 16 1/2 tackles for losses for the Black Knights (3-5), who play Air Force (5-4) today at 1:30 p.m. at Falcon Stadium.
McNary’s tackles for loss put him tied for No. 1 among NCAA FBS schools. His sacks are tied for second.
The junior from Houston has blossomed this year under the direction of first-year Army coach Rich Ellerson and his staff. McNary isn’t the biggest defensive end around at 6-foot, 230 pounds, but he brings an explosiveness off the edge.
“He has the ability to quickly change directions, has good acceleration and burst off the ball,” said John Mumford, Army’s defensive line coach.
McNary credits an aggressive approach by his coaches to helping him rack up big sack totals.
“They’ve given me the opportunity to run around and make plays,” McNary said.
Calhoun is expecting a tough, physical defensive game with the Black Knights. Army is beginning its bid to win the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy and a loss to the Falcons would allow Navy to retain the trophy for the seventh consecutive year.
Calhoun is after his defense to step it up to meet Army’s intensity after what he thought was a slightly off day last Saturday in a 34-16 victory over Colorado State. Calhoun said that too many 3-yard plays turned into 6-yard plays against the Rams because of poor tackling.
Bowl watch.
Representatives of the Fort Worth, Texas-based Armed Forces Bowl, to be played Dec. 31, are scheduled to watch today’s game at Falcon Stadium. Air Force has played in the Armed Forces Bowl the last two years, losing 42-36 to California in 2007 and 34-28 to Houston last year.
The bowl setup for the Mountain West Conference gives the Las Vegas Bowl the first choice, the Poinsettia Bowl in San Diego the second choice and the Armed Forces Bowl the third choice. The Falcons need a victory to become bowl eligible. At 4-2, they’re in fourth place in the conference, behind TCU, Utah and BYU. TCU is in great position to gain a BCS bowl.
Irv Moss: 303-954-1296 or imoss@denverpost.com
