David Ramsey   Gazette sports columnist David Ramsey offers opinions, views and thoughts on the world of sports

And I’m not talking about the upcoming clash with Army.

Air Force can walk away satisfied from its football  season if it defeats Brigham Young on Nov. 21. I know that’s a long ways off, but also know a win over BYU would bring a level of satisfaction that can’t be found with wins over Army, UNLV or Colorado State.

And the Cougars are vulnerable. They’ve gotten hammered by Florida State and TCU. They were on the ropes last season at Air Force.

Yes, BYU will be supported by a throng  of fans.

But AFA should be more hungry. In their four toughest games of this season, the Falcons fought nobly …

And  walked away as losers.

Challenge No. 5 awaits.

And that challenge could define this season.

Tim Jefferson is vastly superior to Connor Dietz on pitches to halfbacks.

That’s the biggest difference between the two quarterbacks. And that difference is why Air Force lead Colorado State, 17-10, at halftime here in Fort Collins.

Jefferson forces defenders to commit and then makes pitches at the right time that catch halfbacks in stride. Dietz struggles with timing and placement.

Dietz, who’s out with a broken hand, is quicker and faster than Jefferson.

But Jefferson is better at operating the triple option.

Taking this week off. Will return to this page on Saturday for AFA-CSU.

Thanks.

Air Force Academy followed its script for this season.

The Falcons came close to beating a quality opponent.

And failed.

Does coming close make any real difference?

No.

The Falcons are the very definition of mediocrity. After eight games, they have four wins and four losses.

Connor Dietz just completed a superb first-half as Air Force’s starting quarterback. He’s rushed for 70 yards while smoothly directing the Falcons option offense.

Most of all, Dietz has looked tough. He’s endured a couple seriously wicked hits from Utah defenders.

We’ll see if he can continue to stand up to the punishment.

The Denver Nuggets were the second-best team in the NBA at the end of last season, and Carmelo Anthony was one of the top dozen players.

And yet …

Sports Illustrated picks the Nuggets sixth in the Western Conference and fails to place Carmelo Anthony on the first-, second-, or third-team all-NBA selections.

I don’t get it.

Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) is asking President Obama to get involved in the mess that is college football.

In a way, this is laughable. The Leader of the Free World has, it would seem, more important tasks on his schedule.

But in another way, Hatch’s plea is understandable. Division I college football ends each season in a confusing mess. Was Utah the best college football in the land at the end of last season?

The answer could very well be yes. The problem is that we will never know the answer. The bowl system raises untold millions for athletic departments all over America. It also denies fans a clear view of a champion.

I graduated from Abilene Christian, a Division II powerhouse. Last season’s ACU team was one of the best in school history, and many of us were expecting a title.

Didn’t happen. Abilene lost in the quarterfinals of the national tournament.

But there are no what ifs for Division II fans. If your team marches all the way through the tournament and wins the crown, there’s no argument, no confusion and no mess.

In other words, Division II football is vastly superior to Division I football when it comes to selecting its champion.

Can Obama deliver hope to Division I?

Nope. I doubt anyone can clean up this disaster.

Here’s my favorite play from the Denver Broncos 34-23 victory over the San Diego Chargers.

With a little over five minutes left, Kyle Orton found tight end Tony Scheffler running open on the sideline. It had the makings of a nice 20-yard gain.

But Scheffler turned the pass into a 52-yard, game-clinching gain. He immediately determined free safety Eric Weddle was chasing from his left. He also could see open spaces on his right.

So he headed there, expertly employing his angles.

The play showed a player thinking while he competing. That’s been the trademark of this team.

The Broncos plays with great effort.

And with great brains.

On a mini-vacation. Won’t post again until Monday night’s Broncos-Chargers game. Thanks for stopping by.

Been hearing from several readers about my recent column on Rush Limbaugh.

Here’s the column:

http://www.gazette.com/sports/nfl-63816-talk-limbaugh.html

A few points:

1) Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton didn’t keep Rush out of the NFL.

Rush kept himself out of the NFL.

Jackson and Sharpton have been correctly criticized for misattributing several Limbaugh observations, but they would have had no trouble finding several observations Limbaugh actually made.

NFL owners didn’t respond to falsehoods spoken by Jackson and Sharpton.

NFL owners responded to Rush Limbaugh and words he actually has spoken.

2) Someone who criticizes Rush Limbaugh is not automatically a leftist.

Limbaugh is, by his own description, an extremist.

That means someone can be a moderate and be offended by his often over-the-top and mean-spirited words.

Rush Limbaugh is not good for America. Neither is Michael Moore.

Barry Goldwater once said that “extremism in defense of liberty is no vice.” Goldwater was, in many ways, a great American.

But I don’t agree with him.

Extremism is almost always a vice.