Air Force Passed SDSU Test : Falcons Made Their Lone Pass Count, Controlled Ball and Game

Never before had a team accomplished so much by passing so little against San Diego State.

The Air Force Academy passed three times Saturday night, an all-time low against the Aztecs. Air Force completed one pass, tying the all-time low against SDSU.

Yet the Falcons passed the biggest test of all by beating SDSU, 22-10, to take over first place from the Aztecs in the Western Athletic Conference.

“The best way to shut down San Diego State was to keep the ball away from their offense,” Air Force Coach Fisher DeBerry said. “That’s why we didn’t throw the ball more than we did.”

Air Force didn’t complete a pass against UCLA in 1964 or Texas El Paso in 1984--yet it won both games.

The Falcons’ only completion against SDSU was significant. Tyrone Jeffcoat caught a 24-yard pass from Mike Tomallo on third and 12 during Air Force’s first drive, leading to the game’s first touchdown.

SDSU passed for 85 yards on its first two drives but it was unable to score either time.

And therein lay the story of the night. Since Air Force trailed only once, 10-7, it was never forced to deviate from its run-oriented wishbone offense. The Falcons controlled the ball for 34:05, compared to SDSU’s 25:55.

“If we had scored any more touchdowns, I think we would have seen them throw more,” Aztec Coach Denny Stolz said. “We were concerned about their ability to throw off the option.”

As it turned out, SDSU’s main concern was attempting to stop Air Force’s ground game. The Falcons were successful at their specialty, rushing 69 times for 314 yards and 2 touchdowns.

The Aztec defense did have its moments, recovering four fumbles. All of SDSU’s points resulted from the turnovers.

“They (the Falcons) are an awfully hard team to take the ball away from,” Stolz said. “Our defense gave up a lot of yards but did a great job of getting turnovers. Four takeaways should have been enough to win with. I imagine if they had lost, they would have said the four turnovers cost them the game. Here we are saying that other things cost us the game.”

SDSU paid dearly for its lack of execution in critical situations. The Aztecs failed to score five times after they had moved to Air Force’s 40.

There were individual plays that hurt SDSU. Todd Santos overthrew Kenny Moore when he was wide open beyond Air Force’s defense. Santos underthrew Alfred Jackson when he had beaten the defense. And Chris Hardy spun and fell on what could have been a breakaway touchdown run in the third quarter.

“The opportunities were there,” Stolz said. “We never made a big offensive play. We were just that close to getting points.”

SDSU’s offense has come up with few points recently, scoring 35 points in its last three games. The Aztecs scored 116 points in their first four games.

Penalties have been particularly noteworthy the past two games. SDSU was penalized 13 times for 100 yards in a 15-10 victory at Texas El Paso, having a touchdown and field goal nullified by penalties. Against Air Force, the Aztecs were penalized 12 times for 89 yards. Two late hits by the defense on successive drives led to an Air Force touchdown and field goal.

“One disturbing thing is that a large number of those penalties are major,” Stolz said. “We’ll have to do what we do about anything--talk about it and practice it. Some penalties are impossible to eliminate, some are bad judgment. We have to eliminate bad judgment.”

Aztec Notes

Todd Santos played for the second consecutive week with his broken right wrist taped. He completed 28 of 44 passes for 272 yards and 1 touchdown with 1 interception. “He didn’t throw as well in the second half as he did the first half,” Coach Denny Stolz said. “Obviously, he has soreness. I don’t think he’ll use that as an excuse. I won’t make excuses for him.” . . . Tight end Robert Awalt was slowed by a sprained ankle and bruised breastbone. He caught 3 passes for 20 yards. Stolz said the chest injury affected Awalt’s blocking. . . . Offensive tackle Greg Williamson (sprained knee) is the only regular not expected to start Saturday’s game at Colorado State. SDSU, Colorado State and Brigham Young are tied for second in the WAC at 3-1. Air Force is 5-1. Air Force plays seven conference games; the other contenders play eight. . . . Stolz was disappointed by Saturday’s attendance of 27,336 at San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium. “I thought there would be a bigger crowd,” he said. “When I got reports during the week, it was evident there wasn’t going to be (a big crowd). My job is to control the football team. Hopefully, we can beat Colorado State and have a big crowd for Wyoming (Nov. 15).”