Hope Springs Eternal
What will the Falcons do for an Encore?
Contact/Follow @Sean or @MWCWire
Falcon Stadium in Colorado Springs is literally covered in ice, but that has no bearing on the Air Force Football team as they make preparations for a run at the Mountain West title. So while the Academy got to showcase their facilities in the NHL’s Stadium series game between Colorado and Los Angeles, their cadets of the gridiron kicked off spring practice last week.
Lets not forget about the encore of the stadium series, featuring Air Force versus Colorado College tonight. Puck drops at 5 p.m. local time.
Speaking of encores, spring practice is the primer for an Air Force team that should be full of confidence after the success they enjoyed last season. But that was last season. There is a lot to be sorted out if they want this year to resemble last seasons campaign.
One of the reasons they were able to win 11 games last year was due to a roster that proved to be filled with talent across the board. A significant chunk of that talent graduates in a couple of months. Who will step up and what can we expect from the 2020 Falcons?
Here are five narratives to consider as we enter spring camp.
Depth Under Center
Air Force may feature the most dangerous quarterback in the conference this year. Donald Hammond will never get the recognition that other signal callers do for his ability to hurt a defense through the air, but it doesn’t change the fact that he can spin the bean.
Irrespective of the Mountain West’s failure to acknowledge him on the All-Conference team, Hammond returns as one of the country’s top dual threat quarterbacks. But what about the rest of the QB room?
As confident as you should be in Hammond’s ability to deliver under center, we also have to acknowledge the reality that depth at the position is critical. The Falcons enjoyed unrivaled depth that ran three deep last season, thanks to Mike Schmidt and Isaiah Sanders.
So who will round out the depth chart behind Hammond in 2020? It looks like that will be both open to debate and competition.
Chance Stevenson looks to be moving back to his originally recruited position at quarterback, after spending last year as a running back. Also returning is junior-to-be Warren Bryan. These are the only other returning players who saw the field in 2019.
After that, its anyone’s guess. Second year player, Jake Smith is expected to compete for reps and a place on the active roster. Joining the mix from the 2020 recruiting class is Jameson Wang, a 3-star prospect as graded by 247sports, and Canon Turner who graded out as a 2-star player.
Pass Catchers and Edge Blockers (one in the same)
Wide receivers and tight ends alike are expected to be equally adept at blocking as they are at catching passes. The Falcons will be replacing starters and primary depth at both positions this year.
Tasked with replacing one of the most lethal pass catching duos in the conference, and that the Air Force has ever seen is also on the offseason ‘to do’ list. Geraud Sanders and Ben Waters tormented secondaries last year. We’re talking tops in the country type torment in some critical categories.
Still, as crazy as it sounds, the Falcons may have the depth to reload at wide out. Because of how well Sanders and Waters performed, its easy to forget that they weren’t necessarily locked starters this time last year. Suspensions to up-and-comers David Cormier and Brandon Lewis cleared the runway.
While its unclear if Cormier and Lewis will have their standing restored on the football team, it has not been ruled out. Combine that with an experienced senior in Ben Peterson, and Dane Kinamon, who showed promise seeing action as a freshman last year, and the passing game should not suffer. Senior to be, Daniel Morris also saw playing time last year, particularly as a rangy run-blocker on the edge.
Admittedly, tight end is an area where I am very intrigued. This is a position that lost a two-year starter, and two depth players to graduation. That is a host of experience gone from the locker room.
But it is in the promise of potential that I am eager to see how things progress. Air Force landed a touted recruit in Kyle Patterson last year, and he got a jersey for a few games as a freshman. In the 2018 class, a year prior, the Falcons got Chris Kane, another promising 3-star talent.
If neither Patterson or Kane work their way up the depth chart, look for seniors to be, Rhett Harms and Luke Miller to round out the depth. Harms was a reserve for the most part last year, but with injuries to the position he did climb the depth chart. Miller on the other hand showed well last spring, but never really surfaced as the season progressed.
Depth-fensive Line
Technically, the Falcons only lose one bonafide starter from the defensive line. But man do they lose a big one. Big in stature. Big in production.
Hopefully Mosese Fifita finds himself on an NFL roster while Air Force sorts out his replacement this offseason. A first team All-Conference performer, Fifita was the perfect nose-guard for the defenses 3-4 scheme.
Seniors to be Kolby Barker and Daniel Woodring ended last season as the depth behind Fifita. Nakoa Pauole saw action in his freshman and sophomore season and could find himself in the mix for playing time on the inside or at end, opposite Jordan Jackson.
Speaking of complimenting their standout Jackson, we saw multiple players start and rotate last year, but no one really took hold of the top of the depth chart. By seasons end, then sophomore Christopher Herrera earned a majority of the snaps. Kaleb Nunez and Michael Purcell also saw the field last year, and should figure in the equation for 2020.
And even though freshman aren’t supposed to crack the starting lineup at the Academies, unless you are Jordan Jackson, the Falcons have some intriguing prospects inbound. In a recruiting class for the ages, especially at defensive line, Air Force added five 3-Star prospects according to 247 sports; Ryan Ives, Blake Burris, Jayden Thiergood, Matthew Aribisala and Sam Peterson.
Frankly, Air Force has never hedged their success on the ratings of their prospects. This is a program that has a very specific fit, and does an excellent job of developing commonly under-recruited athletes who fit their culture. But one can’t help but wonder, what can Troy Calhoun and company do with this infusion of prospect talent?
Make Specials Teams Great Again
The Falcons bring back their primary return specialists from last year, but the cupboards are bare as it relates to legs.
Jake Koehnke was as reliable as they come in the kicking game. Replacing him will be a tall order, and there are no proven commodities waiting in the wings. The Falcons did land the 11th ranked kicking prospect in the country as part of their 2020 class. But don’t expect them to place all their eggs in Fabrizion Pinton’s basket just yet.
Junior to be Brice Honaker is back, but is far from proven. Then again, he never really had an opportunity behind Koehnke, who was perfect on field goals, and even notched a 57 yarder. Tevye Schuepelz-Rohl did get the opportunity for a point after try, and will also be a junior.
At punter, they also graduated last years starter, Charlie Scott. Unless one of the contending place kickers hones their punting game, similar to Koehnke who also shared some punting duties, junior Jacob Goldberg is the only other name carrying over from last season.
What to Expect when there’s Expectations
The final narrative that I would like to introduce is weight of expectations. The last time Air Force eclipsed double-digit wins, they followed it up with consecutive five win campaigns and spent the bowl season at home.
That post 2016 dip aside, the Falcons have acquitted themselves quite well as it relates to expectations following successful years like we witness a few short months ago.
I think you can attribute this kind of consistency to the fact that Air Force doesn’t really “sneak up” on anybody. Because of the character and mentality of young men that comprise their roster, and the type of scheme they run in the triple option, teams do not dismiss them on the calendar. They are typically going to get their opponents best shot because their opponent can take it straight to Vegas, Air Force is never going to run out of effort or leave it on the bus.
Yes, there are some unknowns due to the departure of a lot of talent and experience. But there are enough known commodities coming back, as well as an earned confidence by the coaching staff to believe they will compete again.
Aspirations of a Mountain West Championship are not a reach. And the Commander-In-Chief’s trophy should be an expectation.
