AIR FORCE ACADEMY — Air Force coach Troy Calhoun and his team aren’t hanging their heads over an untimely loss to New Mexico as they head into Saturday’s Mountain West championship game at San Diego State.
Calhoun rejected any thought that the 47-35 loss to the Lobos in Albuquerque took some luster off of the title game between the two division winners.
“No, honestly, I don’t think so,” Calhoun said.
Senior right guard A.J. Ruechel said the loss “refocused us.”
The loss ended a five-game winning streak for Air Force (8-4). San Diego State (9-3) enters with an eight-game winning streak, all in league games.
Calhoun maintains the Falcons believe they are worthy of the championship game slot.
“Some people might say this team overachieved, but our players and coaches don’t see it that way,” Calhoun said. “What has happened this season has been astounding in the number of players we’ve had to play at a number of positions because of injuries.”
In that regard, Calhoun said this season has been much different from last year, when the Falcons recorded the biggest turnaround in college football with a 10-3 record after a 2-10 mark the year before.
“Last year, we had the same 24 players out there every game,” Calhoun said.
Calhoun had high praise for the Aztecs, who will be without starting quarterback Maxwell Smith, who injured his knee in Saturday’s game against Nevada and is out for the season. Calhoun singled out running back Donnel Pumphrey, who has rushed for 1,464 yards and 16 touchdowns, and an offensive line that he called probably the best group he has seen in the Mountain West.
“We played them a few years ago when they had Ronnie Hillman,” Calhoun said, recalling that Hillman, now with the Broncos, had a big game.
“Pumphrey is smaller but more explosive. At this point of the year, you should be playing against a really good opponent.”
