Army edges Air Force, 27-24

  • Published
  • By Wayne Amann
  • U.S. Air Force Academy Public Affairs
U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. --  They did what Soldiers do best, take ground and hold it.

Thanks to three long scoring marches totaling 210 yards -- and chewing up 18:05 off the clock -- Army held on for a 27-24 victory over Air Force Nov. 5. There were a season-high 44,782 fans at Falcon Stadium.

The win snapped the Black Knights’ 13-game losing streak in Colorado Springs, which dates back to Army’s 31-6 win Nov. 5, 1977. The game also halted Army’s eight-game losing skid to the Falcons. It was the 40th meeting in this tradition-rich series, which kicked off in New York’s Yankee Stadium in 1959. Despite the loss, Air Force (3-7) holds a 26-13-1 all-time lead over Army.

History was little consolation to the bluesuiters who dropped three of their five home games this season.

“That’s the most disappointing thing,” Air Force head coach Fisher DeBerry said. “Over the years, we’ve had a pretty good track record in Falcon Stadium. The last couple years it hasn’t been what I thought it should be. It should be our house. We’ve made it a little too comfortable and welcoming for people.”

Air Force out gained Army, 433-360 yards, but were too hospitable, fumbling the ball away twice, and getting penalized at critical times.

Senior Adam Fitch started at quarterback in his final Falcon Stadium appearance. But, after two drives stalled, sophomore Shaun Carney -- his left hand wrapped from a seven-stitch cut suffered in the Oct. 29 loss at Brigham Young -- relieved him and the Falcon offense started to click.

Carney capped a seven-play, 60-yard drive with a 1-yard touchdown run to give Air Force a 7-3 lead after one quarter. It was short lived.

Forty-nine seconds into the second quarter, Army running back Carlton Jones sprinted for 22 of his game-high 146 yards to score a touchdown, giving Army a 10-7 advantage.

Less than two minutes later, Carney connected with wide receiver Jason Brown on a 34-yard touchdown strike. Carney was 16 for 21 for 194 yards on the day. He also ran for 104 yards and two touchdowns.

“Shaun ran the game from the field today,” DeBerry told reporters. “He did a masterful job of getting the right plays in and reading their defense correctly.”

Unfortunately, Army’s ball-control offense kept Carney and company off the field for most of the last three quarters.

A 13-play, 75-yard drive resulted in Justin Koenig’s 22-yard field goal, pulling Army to within one point, 14-13, at halftime.

Late in the third quarter, Army marched 60 yards in 14 plays to take a 20-14 lead. The last 16 yards were delivered by running back Scott Wesley, who broke an open-field tackle by Falcon safety Bobby Gianinni, who appeared to stop him.

“I hit him too high,” Gianinni said. “He had the first down when I hit him. I just couldn’t bring him down. He’s a big back.”

Wesley scored another rushing touchdown, the eventual game-winner, to cap an 11-play, 75-yard drive in the fourth quarter.

Before the score, Air Force got down to the Army 1-yard line, but was whistled for illegal procedure, holding and a false start on three consecutive plays. The Falcons settled for a 25-yard Scott Eberle field goal.

“That was a huge momentum swing,” Army head coach Bobby Ross said. “I was afraid their offense could punch it in from five or six yards out. I wanted to push them back and play another down. We were lucky to come out of it OK.”

Air Force had a final shot at a potential tying or winning score, but sophomore halfback Chad Hall fumbled at the Army 43 with 55 seconds left.

The win gives the Black Knights (2-6) a chance to win their first out-right Commander-In-Chief’s Trophy since 1996, if they beat Navy Dec. 3. Air Force last won the hardware, symbolic of inter-service football supremacy, in 2002.

Saturday’s loss marked the first time since ’96 the Falcons dropped both CIC games in one season. Navy edged Air Force 27-24 Oct. 8.

Air Force is idle until its Nov. 19 season finale at the University of New Mexico.