LARAMIE — It wasn’t quite like being dumped into the middle of a hornet’s nest, but the Air Force Falcons got stung a little bit Saturday at Wyoming’s War Memorial Stadium.
Facing a Wyoming team with damaged reputations after lopsided losses to Texas and Boise State, the Falcons had to call on all their might to rally for a 20-14 victory.
Air Force coach Troy Calhoun pulled out all the stops to thwart Wyoming’s well-staged upset bid. Trailing 14-7, Falcons quarterback Tim Jefferson and a vicious running game behind fullbacks Jared Tew and Nathan Walker and tailback Asher Clark hacked out scoring drives of 78 and 80 yards in the fourth quarter to overtake Wyoming (1-3, 0-1).
Calhoun went for it on fourth down in each drive, and Clark and Tew, working behind a solid line, converted both. The Falcons (3-1, 2-0) converted 4-of-5 fourth-down tries, including a 5-yard run by Jefferson on Air Force’s 80-yard drive in the second quarter to tie the game at 7. Tew also converted a fourth down on the Falcons’ final possession, which allowed them to run out the clock.
“Wyoming punched us in the face a couple of times, but we were able to regain our composure and come back,” said linebacker Patrick Hennessey, who finished with four tackles, one for loss.
Tew, who finished with 136 yards on 27 carries, said the offensive line created the opportunity.
“The O-line came in and said to put the game on their backs,” Tew said. “It made my job easy. When we have fourth down, we know it’s a must situation. Whatever it takes, we have the mental mind-set that we’re going to get the job done.”
Calhoun said: “There was nothing beautiful about it. I thought physically, the Wyoming team popped us a little today. We’ve got mistakes to correct, but we’ve got guts. We’ve got some heart, and when you’ve got that, you can press forward.”
Jefferson felt “the urgency to put points on the board” when the Falcons entered the fourth quarter trailing 14-7.
Air Force gained command behind a running game that amassed 23 first downs, three touchdowns and 379 yards. Tew led the charge, but there might not have been any more important rushing gain than Clark’s 8 yards on fourth-and-7 at the Wyoming 26 during the touchdown drive that tied the score at 14.
“We had to score on that situation,” said Clark, who finished with 80 yards on 14 carries.
“Air Force was able to stay ahead of the sticks,” Wyoming coach Dave Christensen said. “(The Falcons) would get into the third-and-short yardage, and they were tough to stop.”
While Wyoming, which had just 73 yards rushing all season, and quarterback Austyn Carta-Samuels surprised the Falcons with a strong running game — which produced 174 yards, 123 by running back Alvester Alexander — the Falcons made two critical defensive plays.
Safety Jon Davis was spectacular with a leaping interception of Carta- Samuels’ pass in the end zone in the first quarter. Carta-Samuels had 60 yards rushing but just 66 yards passing (6-of-11).
And it was Davis again pouncing on a fumble forced by cornerback Reggie Rembert at the Wyoming 47 with 2:50 left in the game. The Falcons finally could breath more easily with the ball and enough horsepower to run out the clock.
Irv Moss: 303-954-1296 or imoss@denverpost.com
Three questions
Will the Falcons let Wyoming’s rushing offense, which had compiled only nine first downs in three games, break out and be a factor?
Wyoming’s running game came out of the chute and surprised the Falcons early. After just 73 yards combined in their first three games, the Cowboys had 62 yards rushing on their first drive and 140 yards by halftime. Wyoming finished with 174 yards, 123 by running back Alvester Alexander.
Can AFA shake off the previous week’s 27-24 loss at Oklahoma and get back on the winning side?
The Falcons were pressed early and had to play from behind most of the game but came on strong in the fourth quarter with two TDs, including Tim Jefferson’s game-winner with less than four minutes to play.
Will Air Force’s defense be a match for Wyoming quarterback Austyn Carta-Samuels, who had completed 70.1 percent of his passes with four touchdowns?
Carta-Samuels was held in check and had his worst outing of the season. He completed just 6-of-11 passes for a career-low 66 yards and an interception. He rushed for 60 yards on six carries.
Key stat
Plus-1: Air Force won the turnover battle 2-1, with safety Jon Davis intercepting a pass and recovering a fumble. The Cowboys got an interception by safety Chris Prosinski.
Key play
With the Falcons down 14-7 and facing fourth-and-7 at the Wyoming 26 early in the fourth, Asher Clark ran for 8 yards and a first down. The Falcons scored four plays later to tie the game, then scored on their next drive, which lasted 14 plays, to secure the win.
