AIR FORCE ACADEMY — Troy Calhoun hit a nerve last week after Air Force beat Colorado State when the Falcons’ coach called out one of team’s historically strong positions.
After the Falcons allowed 292 gross yards rushing to CSU, Calhoun said his linebackers played soft.
“We needed to be firmer,” he said.
His words were humbling considering Air Force’s tough heritage at linebacker with the likes of Jim Morris, Terry Maki, Chris Gizzi and Drew Fowler. But with the urgency of playing San Diego State’s productive offense tonight at Qualcomm Stadium, there wasn’t a dissenting vote.
Aztec quarterback Ryan Lindley leads the Mountain West in passing (1,394 yards) and total offense, and running back Ronnie Hillman (594 yards) leads the conference in rushing.
“We can’t play as we did against CSU and expect to win,” junior inside linebacker Jordan Waiwaiole said. “We have to be willing to go 110 miles an hour every play.”
Inside linebacker Patrick Hennessey talked specifics, and agreed with the coach’s review.
“There were a lot of missed tackles,” Hennessey said. “We played too soft.”
The Rams ran the ball 50 times, but the best linebacker showing was Brady Amack’s six tackles, which ranked fourth best for the game.
“That was one of our weakest performances of the season, at least in the second half,” defensive coordinator Matt Wallerstedt said. “We just had a lack of energy and lack of focus in the second half. There aren’t any excuses. We had to be more firm at the second level of our defense.”
Irv Moss: 303-954-1296 or imoss@denverpost.com
