AIR FORCE ACADEMY — As recruiting coordinator for the Air Force Academy football program, Charlton Warren has to know the geography.
Warren, who has strong ties to Georgia, is having some fun when asked to pinpoint where Air Force has learned to focus its recruiting sights.
“I think Georgia probably leads in having the most players on our two-deep (roster),” he said. “There’s a lot of trash talk among the people on our staff about Texas, Ohio and Georgia in terms of which state has the largest number of players.”
The Peach State contributed eight players to Air Force’s two-deep roster, including quarterback Tim Jefferson, halfback Asher Clark and linebacker Andre Morris. Texas and Ohio provided seven players each and California six.
Warren, who also coaches the Falcons’ defensive backs, doesn’t allow a little in-staff levity to diminish the seriousness of his job.
“Texas always will be a hotbed for recruiting players,” he said. “We’re finding that Georgia and Ohio are creeping up. They’re not as over-recruited as Texas and Southern California.”
Warren adds a personal touch when he’s on a recruiting assignment in Georgia.
“I know a lot of people down there from my days of playing high school football in Atlanta,” he said. “I know the back roads and ins and outs, and that all helps in getting players interested in the Air Force Academy.”
Air Force plays an Atlanta school, Georgia Tech, on Dec. 27 in the Independence Bowl in Shreveport, La. The Yellow Jackets have numerous players from Georgia. Warren remembers talking to some of them about coming to Air Force. In one case, a family was divided. Junior Roddy Jones stayed home and attended Georgia Tech, while younger brother Darius Jones came to Air Force. Both play halfback.
Warren is the coordinator of a different plan for recruiting that coach Troy Calhoun instituted when he took over at Air Force in 2007. Calhoun decided the best course for Air Force was to be more specific in recruiting needs and to bring in smaller numbers of freshman players. He has targeted recruiting classes of about 25.
The more specific recruiting focus has paid off. Under Calhoun, the Falcons have had four consecutive winning seasons and are playing in their fourth consecutive bowl game.
Calhoun might call this year’s bowl game the Interstate 20 Bowl for the Falcons, noting his 8-4 team playing in Shreveport gives the Falcons a presence from Dallas to Atlanta along the interstate highway.
Warren is a former Air Force player, and he believes that experience helps to get the message across to potential recruits.
“When I make a home visit, I explain that I graduated from Air Force in 1999,” Warren said. “We have nine Air Force graduates on our staff and we can be genuine in telling what this place is all about.”
Warren doesn’t discourage thoughts in a potential Air Force player’s mind that he will play in the NFL. But he can tell them that a diploma from the Air Force Academy provides a quality backup plan.
It’s somewhat like Warren looking at the entire recruiting landscape with Georgia on his mind.
Irv Moss: 303-954-1296 or imoss@denverpost.com
