Air Force hasn’t had the same quarterback start two consecutive games since sophomore Tim Jefferson started the Falcons’ second and third games of the season (at Minnesota and at New Mexico).
Granted, the flip-flopping mostly has had to do with Jefferson’s right ankle, which he injured against New Mexico and then re-injured against Navy.
But last Saturday, Jefferson was pulled for sophomore Connor Dietz – who started the games Jefferson did not in recent weeks. And it marked the first time a quarterback change was made for reasons other than health. Coach Troy Calhoun was looking for a spark and thought Dietz could make more plays in the running game.
Calhoun has said he’s not opposed to using a two-quarterback system but admits it works better when you settle on one.
I would think one reason it works better with one is because if you’re rotating quarterbacks, they might become afraid to make mistakes that lead to a quick hook. Dietz said a quarterback can’t play with that fear.
“The worst thing for a quarterback is to play conservative,” he said. “So whether you have that pressure on you or not, you really can’t hold back. If you’re going out there kind of second-minded, you’re far more likely to make a mistake.”
Calhoun hasn’t named a starter for Saturday’s game at Utah but said last Sunday that Dietz had been “more effective” of late.
No matter who starts, it will be interesting to see what happens to the quarterbacks’ styles of play if more mid-game changes are made.
Moore with less: Air Force senior inside linebacker Justin Moore has been an observer at most Air Force practices in recent weeks, standing away from the action with a protective boot on his right foot.
But it hasn’t hurt his production. He’s had 11, 12 and five tackles, respectively, in the Falcons’ last three games.
Moore said the fact he’s been in the system for a while has a lot to do with how he’s been able to stay productive without practice.
“I know what’s going on,” he said. “And then just watching film. Because that’s basically my practice – watching film and then standing behind a play 20, 30 yards (during practice) and watching what’s going on. That’s been helping a lot, because obviously I can’t be in there getting the reps up close.
MWC Bowl Agreements: The Mountain West Conference today announced a deal with the Independence Bowl and renewed deals with the New Mexico and Armed Forces Bowls in future seasons.
So here is what the bowl landscape looks like for the MWC. First, this season:
Las Vegas: MWC #1 vs. Pac-10 #4 or 5
Poinsettia: MWC #2 vs. Pac-10 #6
New Mexico: MWC #3 or 4 vs. WAC #1, 2 or 3
Armed Forces: MWC #3 or 4 vs. C-USA #2, 3, 4, 5 or 6
Humanitarian: MWC #5 v. WAC #1, 2 or 3
And here is what it looks like for 2010 through 2013:
Las Vegas: MWC #1 vs. Pac-10 #5
Poinsettia: MWC #2 vs. Navy* (2010); WAC #1, 2 or 3 (2011 and 2012); Army* (2013)
Independence: MWC #3 vs. ACC #7
New Mexico: MWC #4 or 5 vs. WAC
Armed Forces: MWC #4 or 5 vs. C-USA
* – If Army or Navy are not bowl eligible in these years, a WAC opponent will be selected.
Navy QB Change: GoMids.com is reporting that sophomore Kriss Proctor will start Saturday against Wake Forest in place of Ricky Dobbs, who is considered day-to-day.
Question Jake:
If Air Force is the MWC #2 in either of the ’10 or ’13 seasons, will the Poinsettia Bowl seek to prevent a re-match with Navy and/or Army like they did in Calhoun’s first season?
Hi Jake,
Great Stuff. I have a couple of questions for you when you have a minute:
Let’s say Air Force is the MWC#2 next year. Will they be able to go to the Poinsetta and have a rematch against Navy? Do they have any special rules against a rematch with Army?
I was watching the Broncos game and saw a player line up to catch the field goal attempt for a possible return. Can you do that in college ball? If it’s a really low kick and you have a really great leaper (Like Jon Davis) can you swat down the kick at the crossbar or is that unsportsmanlike conduct?
TDD and Stats -
Just spoke with Javan Hedlund, associate commissioner for communications at The Mountain West Conference and Bruce Binkowski, the executive director of the Poinsettia and Holiday Bowls.
The first thing to remember, as Javan mentioned, is that the Poinsettia Bowl having the No. 2 MWC team doesn’t necessarily mean the it picks the team that finishes No. 2 in the MWC. What it means is that bowl has second choice of bowl eligible MWC teams. Now, more often that not, a bowl with second choice will take the team that finishes second. But there are extenuating circumstances. Like what happened in 2007 and could happen next season.
As for what would happen next season if Navy is bowl eligible and Air Force finishes second in the MWC (or in 2013, if Army is bowl elibible and AF finishes second), we’ll have to wait and see. According to Binkowski, the Poinsettia Bowl does not have any hard and fast rule against re-matches. He said the bowl is fine with them, but only if BOTH teams agree to it. Two years ago (07), Navy balked at a re-match. Who knows if that would be the case again. Maybe if AF beats Navy next season, Navy would want a re-match in the Poinsettia Bowl. But AF would have a chance to turn down the bowl if it didn’t want the re-match and go to some other MWC bowl.
The other piece of this is whether Air Force can make its own arrangements in ’10 and ’13 just in case of this scenario. There is a clear answer to this: No. Because AF is a member of the MWC, it can’t make side agreements. And even if, for argument’s sake, Navy declines a rematch in 2010, the MWC would find a bowl for a bowl-eligible Air Force team.