Academy football coach agrees to new 5-year contract

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U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. (AFNS) --  Officials of the U.S. Air Force Academy Athletic Association and Academy head football coach Troy Calhoun agreed on a new five-year contract that runs through the 2013 season, Academy officials said Jan. 21 here.

Director of Athletics Dr. Hans Mueh said the AFAAA has also agreed to new contracts for the football assistant coaches, and details of all the contracts are still being worked and are going through the Academy process.

"We are delighted that Coach Calhoun has agreed to another five-year contract as the head football coach at the Air Force Academy," Dr. Mueh said. "We have structured a program of compensation that will continue to reward Coach Calhoun and his staff for long-term commitment to Air Force football. He and the entire football staff are the perfect role models for our future Air Force leaders and represent the best ideals of college football in America."

Calhoun is 17-9 in two seasons at the Academy and has led the team to back-to-back bowl games, playing in the Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl vs. California in 2007 and vs. Houston in 2008. The Falcons finished 8-5 this season and placed fourth in the Mountain West Conference with a 5-3 mark. Calhoun's 17 wins in two seasons are the second-most ever for a service academy head coach in his first two seasons. He led the Falcons to a fourth-place MWC finish this season after being picked sixth in the preseason polls. Last year, Calhoun led Air Force to a second-place finish after being picked seventh. The +7 combined improvement over the last two years is the best in the conference.

In his first year at Air Force, the 1989 Academy graduate led the Falcons to a 9-4 overall record, which ties as the most wins ever by a first-year head coach, along with the legendary Ben Martin in 1958. Calhoun led the team to six conference wins, which is the most ever by an Air Force first-year head coach, breaking the mark of four set in 1984. Calhoun was named MWC and the AFCA Region 5 Coach of the Year for 2007.

Calhoun began his coaching career at the Academy, then after serving his military commitment, was an assistant at Ohio University, later becoming the offensive coordinator. He was the offensive coordinator at Wake Forest before joining the National Football League with the Denver Broncos from 2003 to 2005. He was the offensive coordinator for the Houston Texans in 2006 before returning to his alma mater in 2007 as the sixth head coach in school history.

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