Air Force accepts bid to Armed Forces Bowl
12/6/2009 12:00:00 AM | Football
Dec. 6, 2009
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U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. - Air Force has accepted a bid as the Mountain West Conference representative to play in the 2009 Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl on Dec. 31 in Fort Worth, Texas. Air Force will take on No. 25 Houston of Conference-USA. The game will be played at Amon G. Carter Stadium beginning at 11 a.m. (CST) and will be aired nationally by ESPN.
"We are thrilled to have the Air Force Academy as the Mountain West Conference's representative in the 2009 game," said Brant B. Ringler, the executive director of the bowl. "What better way to honor our military than with a service academy competing in our game. With Falcon and military fans numerous at our past two New Year's Eve games, we have established record attendance figures for our bowl game the last two years."
"It's quite an accomplishment by our team to earn a bowl bid for the third straight year. We look forward to playing in such a tremendous and well-run event as the Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl. We know the University of Houston has a very rich football history and currently has an incredibly talented team. Our administration, coaches, players, staff and supporters are excited to spend five days in Fort Worth," said Troy Calhoun, head coach at Air Force.
The match-up will be the third between Air Force and Houston in a 15-month span. The schools first played Sept. 13 in Dallas, Texas, in a game moved due to weather. The Falcons won the game, 31-28. The two then played in the 2008 Armed Forces Bowl in Fort Worth Dec. 31. The Cougars won the game, 34-28.
Air Force concluded the regular season with a 7-5 overall record and finished fourth in the Mountain West Conference with a 5-3 mark. The Falcons are headed to a post-season bowl game for the 20th time in school history and third consecutive season. This season marks the first time since 1990-92 that the Falcons have played in three consecutive bowl games.
Houston finished the season 10-3 overall and won the C-USA West division with a 6-2 record. The Cougars feature the nation's top passing offense, averaging 450 yards per game. Houston ranks No. 1 in total offense with a 581.23 per-game average and is second nationally in scoring offense with a 43.92 norm.
Air Force's defense ranks as one of the best in the history of the school. The Falcons have allowed just 15.3 points per game on the year which is the best mark since the 1998 team averaged 13.3 per game. Air Force has ranked among the nation's top 10 in scoring defense (ninth), passing defense (first) and total defense (10th) all season, including allowing just over 280 yards per game which is the best mark at the school since 1966. Air Force has the nation's top pass defense, allowing just 148.7 yards per game.
The Falcons rank among the nation's elite in turnover margin as well, ranking third nationally with a +17 mark this season that include a 1.42 average margin per game. Air Force has been among the nation's top five all season and has scored five defensive touchdowns this season, two on fumble returns and three on interception returns.
The offense has ranked among the nation's top five in rushing all season with over 270 yards per game. The Falcons are poised to win an 11th straight MWC rushing title this season. Air Force is one of just 15 teams nationally to score in 75 percent or more of the quarters it has played.
Brant B. Ringler, executive director of the Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl "We are happy to have Air Force back in the Armed Forces Bowl. They are a class act and we are very appreciative. Air Force represents all that is the Armed Forces Bowl. Houston is an in-state team with a great fan base. There are no negatives to be seen (in a rematch). I think this is only the eighth time in bowl history that there has been a rematch and I feel it is a positive. We always have a strong military fan base at the game and we feel very fortunate to have Air Force. It is great to have such a potent passing attack in Houston against the No. 1 pass defense in the country, Air Force."
Dr. Hans Mueh, Air Force Academy Director of Athletics On behalf of our great Falcon team, we humbly accept a bid to play in the Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl. Fort Worth has become a second home to the Falcons.
Troy Calhoun, Air Force Head Football Coach Houston is an incredibly talented team. They have great size and skill people. They have a great quarterback. They are absolutely loaded at receiver. I have seen them play several times this season and they are impressive. To go into Stillwater, Oklahoma, and beat Oklahoma State is a difficult task and to do so in dominant fashion is no easy thing to do. Anytime you get a chance to have a post-season opportunity in any sport at the Air Force Academy it's a remarkable accomplishment by our cadets. We never take that for granted. It is a great opportunity to play in a bowl game, but we aren't just content to play, we are going to play to win."
Ben Garland, Air Force senior defensive lineman Winning a bowl game has been one of our main goals coming into the season. It would certainly be a great way to go out, for the seniors to win a bowl game. We love this opportunity to play Houston and go up against such a powerful offense with all those great weapons. We look forward to the challenge. This game offers us a chance at redemption from last season. This will give us an opportunity to show what our team is about and get some redemption from last year's game.
Nick Charles, Air Force senior offensive lineman The Armed Forces bowl has been very good to us and they have been very good hosts. To lose to a great team like Houston the way we did last year, you always want a second chance. You don't always get second or third chances, but we have one. It has been an awesome journey for this senior class and (winning a bowl game) would put an exclamation point on our career and a chance to leave our mark
