| Air Force Falcons football | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| |||
 | |||
| First season | 1955; 70 years ago | ||
| Athletic director | Nathan Pine | ||
| Head coach | Troy Calhoun 19th season, 136–93 (.594) | ||
| Stadium | Falcon Stadium (capacity: 56,409) | ||
| Location | Air Force Academy, Colorado, U.S. | ||
| NCAA division | Division I FBS | ||
| Conference | Mountain West | ||
| All-time record | 439–353–13 (.553) | ||
| Bowl record | 16–13–1 (.550) | ||
| Conference titles | |||
| WAC:1985,1995,1998 | |||
| Conference division titles | |||
| WAC Mountain:1998 MW Mountain:2015,2021 | |||
| Consensus All-Americans | 5 | ||
| Rivalries | Army (rivalry) Colorado State (rivalry) Hawaii (rivalry) Navy (rivalry) | ||
| Current uniform | |||
 | |||
| Colors | Blue and silver[1] | ||
| Fight song | "Falcon Fight Song" (unofficial: "The U.S. Air Force") | ||
| Mascot | The Bird | ||
| Marching band | United States Air Force Academy Drum & Bugle Corp "The Flight of Sound" | ||
| Outfitter | Nike | ||
| Website | GoAirForceFalcons.com | ||
TheAir Force Falcons football program represents theUnited States Air Force Academy incollege football at theNCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly Division I-A) level. Air Force has been a member of theMountain West Conference since its founding in 1999. The Falcons play their home games atFalcon Stadium inAir Force Academy, Colorado, north ofColorado Springs.Troy Calhoun has been the team's head coach since 2007.
The three majorservice academies—Air Force,Army andNavy—compete for theCommander-in-Chief's Trophy which is awarded to the academy that defeats the others infootball that year (or retained by the previous year's winner in the event of a three-way tie).
The Falcons are not only recognized by the lightning bolt on the side of their helmets, but their traditionaloption attack. Air Force is one of the premier rushing teams in the nation. Since Fisher DeBerry took over as Falcons head coach in 1984, they have ranked among the nation's top 10 in rushing 19 times in 21 years. The Air Force football team has enjoyed success not only on the field but also in the classroom. In 49 years of Air Force football, there have been 39 Academic All-Americans.[2]
1985 was the most successful season in Air Force football history. Under 5th-year coach Fisher DeBerry, the Falcons came within one win of playing for thenational championship. They recorded 10 straight wins to start the season, climbed the polls to No. 2 in the nation, but lost to BYU 28–21 in the penultimate game of the regular season. Air Force rebounded with abowl game win overTexas in theBluebonnet Bowl and finished with a 12–1 record as the No. 5 ranked team in the nation.
Air Force has been affiliated with the following conferences.
| Year | Conference | Coach | Overall record | Conference record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1985† | Western Athletic Conference | Fisher DeBerry | 12–1 | 7–1 |
| 1995† | 8–5 | 6–2 | ||
| 1998 | 12–1 | 7–1 |
† Co-champions
| Year | Division | Coach | Opponent | CG result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | WAC - Mountain | Fisher DeBerry | BYU | W 20–13 |
| 2015 | MW - Mountain | Troy Calhoun | San Diego State | L 24–27 |
| 2021 | MW - Mountain | N/A lost tie-breaker toUtah State | ||
Air Force has appeared in 2 conference championship games in their history, winning 1 of them.
| Year | Conference | Coach | CG Opponent | CG Result | Game MVP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | WAC | Fisher DeBerry | BYU | W 20–13 | N/A |
| 2015 | Mountain West | Troy Calhoun | San Diego State | L 24–27 | Christian Chapman (QB, San Diego State) Na'im McGee (S, San Diego State) |
Note: Includes appearances where the conference did not use divisions to determine championship game participants.
Air Force has played in 30 bowl games in their history, with a 16–13–1 (.550) record.[3] Their highest finish in the polls was fifth (UPI coaches) in1985.[4]
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In over 60 years of play in college football, the Falcons have had seven head coaches.
| Tenure | Coach | Record | Pct. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1955 | Robert V. Whitlow | 4–4 | .500 |
| 1956–1957 | Buck Shaw | 9–8–2 | .526 |
| 1958–1977 | Ben Martin | 96–103–9 | .483 |
| 1978 | Bill Parcells | 3–8 | .273 |
| 1979–1983 | Ken Hatfield | 26–32–1 | .449 |
| 1984–2006 | Fisher DeBerry | 169–107–1 | .612 |
| 2007–present | Troy Calhoun | 137–94 | .593 |
The Air Force Falcons have finished in theAP poll and/or theCoaches poll 8 times in the program's history, with the highest-ranked finishes being No. 6 in 1958 and No. 8 in 1985.[5] Note: The AP poll began in 1936, and the Coaches' Poll began in 1950. Before 1990, only the top 20 teams were ranked in the AP poll before it was expanded to 25.
In addition to the major polls, theBCS produced rankings from 1998 to 2013 which helped select teams for the BCS Bowls. Then, starting in 2014, theCFP committee began issuing rankings to determine which teams were selected for the playoffs.
| Season | Overall record | Major polls | Others | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AP poll | Coaches poll | BCS Standings (1998–2013) | CFP poll (2014–present) | ||
| 1958 | 9–0–1 | 6 | 8 | ||
| 1970 | 9–3 | 16 | 11 | ||
| 1983 | 10–2 | 13 | 15 | ||
| 1985 | 12–1 | 8 | 5 | ||
| 1991 | 10–3 | 25 | 24 | ||
| 1997 | 10–3 | 25 | |||
| 1998 | 12–1 | 13 | 10 | ||
| 2019 | 11–2 | 22 | 23 | ||
Home games are played inFalcon Stadium, which sits below the main campus at anelevation of 6,621 feet (2,018 m)above sea level. Falcon Stadium is the 2nd highest stadium in the FBS division, with only Wyoming's stadium at a higher elevation. Pre-game activities include flyovers byUSAF aircraft, including theF-15 andB-2. Opened in1962, its highest attendance was 56,409 in2002, when the Falcons hostedNotre Dame.[6]
| Year | Player | Position | Award(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1956 | Larry Thomson | FB | Little America (3rd) |
| 1958 | Brock Strom | OL | Consensus |
| Robert Brickey | HB | Helms | |
| 1963 | Terry Isaacson | QB | Helms |
| Joe Rodwell | C | Helms | |
| 1966 | Neal Starkey | DB | Playboy Magazine All-American |
| 1967 | Neal Starkey | DB | Associated Press (3rd) |
| 1969 | Ernie Jennings | WR | Central Press (2nd) |
| 1970 | Ernie Jennings | WR | Consensus |
| 1971 | Orderia Mitchell | C | Black Sports |
| Gene Ogilvie | DE | UPI (3rd) | |
| 1972 | Orderia Mitchell | C | Associated Press (2nd), Gridiron (2nd) |
| Gene Ogilvie | DE | UPI (2nd) | |
| 1973 | Steve Heil | ROV | Associated Press (3rd) |
| 1974 | Dave Lawson | LB/K | Football Writers |
| 1975 | Dave Lawson | LB/K | UPI (2nd), Football News (2nd) |
| 1981 | Johnny Jackson | DB | Associated Press (2nd) |
| 1982 | Dave Schreck | OG | Associated Press (2nd) |
| 1983 | John Kershner | FB | Football News (2nd) |
| Mike Kirby | WR | Sporting News (2nd) | |
| 1985 | Mark Simon | P | Scripps Howard, Associated Press (2nd) |
| Scott Thomas | DB | Consensus, Walter Camp, Kodak, Football Writes, Associated Press (2nd) | |
| 1986 | Terry Maki | LB | Kodak, Football News (2nd), Associated Press (3rd) |
| Tom Rotello | DB | Football News (2nd) | |
| 1987 | Chad Hennings | DT | Consensus, Walter Camp, Kodak, Football Writers, Associated Press, UPI, Scripps Howard, Sporting News, Football News,Outland Trophy winner |
| 1989 | Dee Dowis | QB | Heisman Trophy finalist |
| Ron Gray | KR | Associated Press (3rd) | |
| 1991 | Jason Christ | P | Associated Press (2nd), Football News (3rd) |
| 1992 | Carlton McDonald | DB | Consensus, Walter Camp, Kodak, Football Writers, Associated Press, UPI, Scripps Howard, Sporting News |
| 1993 | Chris MacInnis | P/K | UPI, Associated Press (2nd) |
| 1996 | Beau Morgan | QB | Associated Press (3rd) |
| 1998 | Chris Gizzi | LB | Associated Press (3rd), Football Writers (2nd) |
| 1998 | Tim Curry | DB | Sporting News (3rd) |
| Frank Mindrup | OL | American Football Foundation (3rd) | |
| 2001 | Anthony Schlegel | ILB | Sporting News (Freshmen 3rd team) |
| 2002 | Brett Huyser | OL | Sporting News (4th) |
| 2007 | Chad Hall | WR | Rivals (3rd), Sports Illustrated |
| Carson Bird | CB | Sports Illustrated | |
| 2008 | Ryan Harrison | K | College Football News |
| 2010 | Reggie Rembert | DB | AFCA (1st),[7] Associated Press (3rd) |
Academic All–Americans at Air Force.[8]
| Year | Player | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1958 | Brock Strom | OT |
| 1959 | Rich Mayo | QB |
| 1960 | Rich Mayo | QB |
| Don Baucom | HB | |
| 1967 | Ken Zagzebski | MG |
| Carl Janssen | OE | |
| 1969 | Ernie Jennings | WR |
| 1970 | Ernie Jennings | WR |
| Bob Parker | QB | |
| Phil Bauman | LB | |
| 1971 | Darryl Haas | LB/P |
| Bob Homburg | DE | |
| John Griffith | DT | |
| 1972 | Gene Ogilvie | DE |
| Bob Homburg | DE | |
| Mark Prill | MG | |
| 1973 | Joe Debes | OT |
| 1976 | Steve Hoog | WR |
| 1977 | Mack McCollum | ROV |
| 1978 | Steve Hoog | WR |
| Tom Foertsch | LB | |
| Tim Fyda | DE | |
| 1981 | Mike France | LB |
| Kevin Ewing | ROV | |
| 1982 | Jeff Kubiak | P |
| 1983 | Jeff Kubiak | P |
| 1987 | Chad Hennings | DT |
| Scott Salmon | DB | |
| James Hecker | DB | |
| 1988 | Scott Salmon | DB |
| David Hlatky | OL | |
| James Hecker | DB | |
| 1989 | Chris Howard | HB |
| 1990 | Chris Howard | HB |
| J.T. Tokish | LB | |
| 1992 | Grant Johnson | LB |
| 1996 | Dustin Tyner | WR |
| Rashad Penton | DB | |
| 1997 | Rashad Penton | DB |
| 1998 | Rashad Penton | DB |
| 2003 | Ryan Carter | DE |
| 2004 | Ryan Carter | DE |
| 2018 | Garrett Kauppila | DB |
Announced schedules as of February 6, 2025.[9]
| 2025 | 2026 | 2027 | 2028 | 2029 | 2030 | 2031 | 2032 | 2033 | 2034 | 2035 | 2036 | 2037 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bucknell | Duquesne | Lafayette | atUTSA | atArizona | Navy | Arizona | UTSA | Army | Navy | Army | Navy | Army |
| atNavy | Navy | Baylor | Navy | Army | atArmy | Army | Navy | atNavy | atArmy | atNavy | atArmy | atNavy |
| Army | UConn | atNavy | atArmy | atNavy | atNavy | atArmy | ||||||
| atUConn | atArmy | Army |
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Air Force has a traditional rivalry against the other two FBSservice academies,Army andNavy; the three play for the right to hold theCommander-in-Chief's Trophy. Air Force has won the trophy 21 times, more than either Army or Navy.
Air Force has played more games againstColorado State andWyoming than any other school, having played each school 60 times since 1957, the Falcons' first season.
Since 1980, the Falcons and Colorado State Rams have competed for theRam–Falcon Trophy. Air Force holds a 27–15 advantage over Colorado State in games that the trophy has been contested in.
In 2019 Air Force renewed a rivalry withColorado, winning at Folsom Field on Sept. 14 by a score of 30–23.[10] The teams had not played since Oct. 5, 1974, a game that Colorado won by a score of 28–27.[11] Air Force won the first meeting between the teams in 1958. The 1963 game between the two college football teams was postponed due to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. The 1973 game, the last one played in Boulder before the 2019 clash, was marred by a riot.[12] Fans threw eggs and beer at Air Force personnel and cadets.[13]
The Kuter Trophy is awarded to the winner of the game between Air Force andHawaii. The trophy is named after GeneralLaurence S. Kuter, who was appointed the first head of the PacificAir Forces Command (located atHickam Air Force Base inHonolulu) in 1957.[14][15][16][17] The two teams have met 23 times, with Air Force leading the series 14–8–1.
Below are Air Force's records against its top ten most-played opponents since 1957.[18]
| Opponent | Games | Wins | Losses | Ties | Pct. | Last meeting |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colorado State | 60 | 38 | 21 | 1 | .642 | Nov 19, 2022 (W 24–12) |
| Wyoming | 60 | 30 | 27 | 3 | .525 | Sep 16, 2022 (L 14–17) |
| Army | 57 | 38 | 18 | 1 | .675 | Nov 1, 2025 (L 20-17) |
| Navy | 55 | 33 | 22 | 0 | .600 | Oct 4, 2025 (W 31–34) |
| New Mexico | 40 | 26 | 14 | 0 | .650 | Nov 12, 2022 (W 35–3) |
| San Diego State | 38 | 20 | 18 | 0 | .526 | Nov 26, 2022 (W 13–3) |
| BYU | 30 | 7 | 23 | 0 | .233 | Sep 11, 2010 (W 35–14) |
| Notre Dame | 30 | 6 | 24 | 0 | .200 | Oct 26, 2013 (L 10–45) |
| Utah | 27 | 14 | 13 | 0 | .519 | Oct 30, 2010 (L 23–28) |
| UNLV | 24 | 18 | 6 | 0 | .750 | Oct 15, 2022 (W 42–17) |
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