Football: TCU thrashes Falcons

  • Published
  • By Maj. Brett Ashworth
  • U.S. Air Force Academy Public Affairs
U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. (AFNS) --  Air Force concluded the 2008 regular season on a sour note in Fort Worth, Texas, Nov. 22 with a 44-10 loss at the hands of Texas Christian University. 

The Horned Frogs dominated both sides of the ball and kept the Falcons' high-powered offense from getting on track on a cool afternoon in Texas. 

After winning the coin toss, Air Force deferred to the second half and allowed TCU to receive the opening kick-off. The Horned Frogs set the tone for the day by driving 60 yards in six plays to take a 7-0 lead only two minutes into the game. And they wouldn't look back. 

"You have to play so darn well on the road, especially to beat a top-15 team, and we did not do that today. They did. They played outstanding," said Air Force head coach Troy Calhoun. 

Following an Air Force punt on their first possession, TCU drove 69 yards with Ross Evans kicking a 32-yard field goal to take a 10-0 lead. 

As has been the case for the Falcons this year, they fought back. Early in the second quarter they sustained a 61-yard drive aided by a career-long 54 yard scamper by freshman running back Asher Clark. The drive stalled and Ryan Harrison booted a 36-yard field goal to get the Falcons on the board. 

The Air Force momentum wouldn't last long with TCU taking the ensuing kickoff and marching 83 yards with quarterback Andy Dalton carrying the ball the final eight yards for a touchdown. Following an Air Force punt the Horned Frogs took control of the game with Dalton hitting Bart Johnson on a 22-yard scoring pass shortly before halftime. TCU took a commanding 24-3 lead into the intermission. 

TCU tacked on two more touchdowns in the third quarter to put the game out of reach. However, Air Force fought to the end with fullback Jared Tew busting loose on a 57-yard touchdown run early in the fourth quarter. But as was the case all day, TCU answered right back with a 10-play, 60-yard touchdown drive of their own, providing the final points of the day. 

TCU's stingy defense held Air Force to a season-low 161 yards of total offense.
Clark and Tew paced the Falcons with 63 yards each on the ground. Linebacker Ken Lamendola had an outstanding day for Air Force defensively with 11 tackles including two sacks. 

TCU head coach Gary Patterson was impressed with Air Force and the future of the program. 

"That's going to be a very good Air Force team. They are young, have good players and they will soon be a force to be reckoned with. We had two weeks to prepare and got ourselves going early," he said. 

The Falcons will have an opportunity to end the season on a high note as their 8-4 record has qualified them for a bowl game. They should know which bowl game they'll be playing in on Dec. 7, when the Bowl Championship Series games are announced. 

The Falcons ended the season 5-3 in Mountain West Conference play, good for fourth in the conference. 

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