Air Force takes on San Diego State this Thursday, Oct. 13, at 6 p.m. in Falcon Stadium. The Falcons are playing their lone home game in October this week. Air Force head coach Troy Calhoun met with the media Tuesday to discuss the season and the game.
The winner of tonight's game will have the best shot at 3rd place in the MWC this year behind BSU and TCU.
GAME FACTS: Air Force returns home for the first time in two weeks and back into Mountain West Conference play for the first time since Sept. 10 ... Air Force has had an open week and three straight non-conference games since its last MW game ... This week marks the MW road opener for SDSU ... Air Force and San Diego State each stand at 3-2 overall and 0-1 in conference play ... San Diego State has lost two straight after a 3-0 start ... Air Force has never opened Mountain West play 0-2 ... The Falcons’ last 0-2 conference start was in 1994 with losses at home to Colorado State and No. 21 BYU while in the Western Athletic Conference ... Air Force ranks third in the MW in scoring at 37.4 points per game while San Diego State is second in scoring defense with a 24.0 norm ... SDSU is second in the MW and eighth nationally in turnover margin with a 1.40 mark while Air Force is eighth in the league with a -.80 mark ... Air Force leads the MW in rushing and is second nationally with a 364.2 average while the Aztecs are seventh in the league in rushing defense with a 229.0 mark ... This week’s game features the conference top two individual rushers ... SDSU sophomore Ronnie Hillman leads the league and ranks fifth nationally with a 132.2 per-game average ... Air Force senior Asher Clark is second in the MW and 32nd nationally with a 96.8 average ...Air Force was picked fourth in the MW preseason poll while San Diego State was selected to finish fourth ... The two teams tied for third last season with 5-3 marks ... Air Force leads the overall series 19-10, including victories in four of the last six ... The Falcons are 2-1 in Thursday night games under head coach Troy Calhoun.
COACHES
Air Force: Troy Calhoun (Air Force, 1989) is in his fifth season. He has led the Falcons to a 37-20 career record. Calhoun is 21-12 in MWC games, 16-8 in non-conference games, 21-6 in Falcon Stadium, 12-11 in road games (9-6 in MW road games) and 2-2 in bowl games.
San Diego State: Rocky Long (New Mexico, 1974) is in his first year as head coach at San Diego State after serving two years as the defensive coordinator. Long has guided the Aztecs to a 3-2 overall record. Long has a career record of 68-71 in his 12th season as a head coach. Long was the head coach at New Mexico from 1998-2008.
THE SERIES
• Air Force leads the series 19-10 overall with all games as conference foes.
• The Falcons are 7-6 in San Diego, 11-4 at home and 1-0 in neutral site games.
• Air Force has won four of the last six games in the series.
• The Aztecs broke a three-game Air Force winning streak with last year’s victory in San Diego.
• Prior to Air Force’s streak, the Aztecs had won three straight from 2002-04.
• The Falcons defeated San Diego State, 26-14, in 2009 in the last game played in Falcon Stadium.
• Air Force longest streak in the series is seven games from 1981-87.
• SDSU’s longest streak is three games from 2002-04.
• The teams first played in 1980 in Falcon Stadium, resulting in a 13-10 Aztec win.
• The following year the teams played in Tokyo, Japan, in the Mirage Bowl.
• Air Force won the Mirage Bowl, 21-16, in front of 80,000 fans.