Mountain West Football: Can Air Force Contend with Boise State and TCU?

As we continue preparing ourselves for the 2011 college football season, you get the general feeling that many fans and analysts believe that the battle for the Mountain West Crown will be a two horse race between new kid on the block Boise State and old bully TCU.

That line of thinking is certainly reasonable and understandable, considering the Broncos and the Horned Frogs have combined for 74 wins over the last three seasons, and the rationale is aided by the fact that both programs are now considered to be the cream of the Non-BCS crop.

There are eight teams in the Mountain West this season, but when it comes to the national spotlight, it seems as if Boise State and TCU are the only two schools that matter and they're the ones receiving the bulk of the preseason publicity and attention.

Therefore, the question has to be asked.

Is there a worthy conference contender out there that’s capable of challenging the two established powers this season?

The San Diego State Aztecs are a team that immediately comes to mind, as they have one of the best quarterback-running back combinations in the country with Ryan Lindley and Ronnie Hillman. They also return eight offensive starters from a team that averaged 35 points per game in 2010.

You have to wonder, however, how much head coach Brady Hoke’s offseason exodus to Michigan will affect the team’s mentality this season.

The Aztecs are a talented bunch, but if you’re searching for the team that could really have what it takes to shake things up in the conference this year, then look no further than the Air Force Falcons.

Yes, those Air Force Falcons.

The same Air Force Falcons that finished the 2010 season at 9-4, beat Georgia Tech in the Independence Bowl and scared the you-know-what out of Oklahoma fans.

Last year, Air Force took major strides in the right direction under head coach Troy Calhoun, a rising star in the college football coaching ranks.

The scary part is, it looks as if Calhoun’s crew has a chance to be even better this season.

The Falcons return their three best offensive players—QB Tim Jefferson, RB Asher Clark and OG A.J. Wallerstein—to a run-based attack that ranked second in the country in rushing last season, averaging 306 yards on the ground per game.

Jefferson, who accounted for over 2,300 yards of total offense and 25 touchdowns in 2010, is perfectly equipped to be the pivot man of the option-heavy offense.

The seasoned senior starter will once again be joined in the backfield by Asher Clark, one of the best running backs that nobody seems to be talking about all that much.

Clark, who followed up an eye-opening sophomore campaign in 2009 with an even more impressive performance last season, broke the 1,000-yard mark and showed the type of explosiveness and big play ability that will have defenses paying plenty of attention to him this season.

Opening holes for Jefferson and Clark will be an offensive line that returns three starters and will again be led by guard A.J. Wallerstein, a first team all-conference performer who is one of the top interior linemen in the country.

There’s no doubt that Air Force’s offense should have no trouble keeping up with the pace it set in 2010, but the real key to the team’s success this season will be the continued stability of a defense that returns eight starters and ten of the top thirteen tacklers from a year ago.

Air Force should have the best defense in the conference, outside of TCU and Boise State, and if the unit can stiffen up against the run, the Falcons should be able to improve on the 349 yards and 21 points per game they allowed last season.

It’s obvious that the pieces are in place for this team to make a serious run at a conference championship this season but it’s going to be up to Calhoun to keep his team focused and playing at a high level week in and week out.

We'll quickly find out what the Falcons are really made of when they host TCU on Sept. 10, as they try to avenge their embarrassing 38-7 loss from last season.

If Air Force can pull off the upset of the Horned Frogs, something they haven’t managed to do since 2007, it would be a major early hurdle to clear.

Boise State and TCU clearly have the talent advantage over the rest of the Mountain West this year. But both teams also have their fair share of holes to plug, so it’s conceivable to think that there’s room for at least one more horse in the race for the conference crown and Air Force is a team that looks like it has the legs to go the distance.