AIR FORCE ACADEMY — Coach Troy Calhoun took a moment Tuesday as he looked at Air Force’s last two games of the regular season to compliment his 15 seniors who Saturday will play their final game at Falcon Stadium.
Noting that as freshmen they carried the brunt of the change in coaching staffs, Calhoun said the group carried through without missing a step. As the Falcons (6-4, 4-2 Mountain West Conference) prepare to host Nevada-Las Vegas before playing Nov. 21 at Brigham Young, several seniors have had significant playing time on all three of Calhoun’s teams.
Since Calhoun succeeded Fisher DeBerry for the 2007 season, the Falcons have had two consecutive winning seasons (and are one win from securing a third) and played in two bowl games (and are eligible to play in a third).
“The part about this group that needs to be shared is that they were recruited by the previous coaching staff and they had tremendous respect for that group of coaches,” Calhoun said. “We came here in January of their freshman year and they have been ‘all in’ players. There’s no way you can tell them thanks enough for being that receptive and putting a foundation in place for our program.”
Calhoun reiterated he hopes to build senior classes that number into the 20s. His long-range goal is to play mostly juniors and seniors when he has molded the AFA roster to his liking.
“When it comes to absolute quality, this has been an incredible group,” Calhoun said. “These guys give what team is all about. Since this group has been here, I can’t look back and truly say ‘we just didn’t practice very well today.’ It has been the leadership of our seniors.”
Calhoun singled out linebacker John Falgout and defensive end Myles Morales as inspirational players because both encountered problems along the way and had to wait until their senior season to see much time on the field. Falgout leads the Falcons in tackles with 80 and Morales ranks ninth with 31.
“Each went through times when they didn’t get to leave the academy for a few months and yet they hung in there, had a smile on their face, they worked, they never once said, ‘I’m entitled to an opportunity,’ ” Calhoun said. “Instead they did everything they could to create an opportunity. They earned it.”
Irv Moss: 303-954-1296 or imoss@denverpost.com
