Air Force stays undefeated, wins 34-27 thriller over Wyoming

COLORADO SPRINGS- A back-and-forth contest the entirety of the game, Air Force overcame an early deficit to take down Wyoming, 34-27, Saturday, Oct. 14, at Falcon Stadium.

Quarterback Zac Larrier led the Falcons with a career-high 111 yards on the ground to go with a third-quarter rushing touchdown. Through the air, Larrier completed six of nine passes for 58 yards and a touchdown. Emmanuel Michel was tasked with a game-high 22 carries, totaling 97 yards. Johnny Lee Eldridge and Owen Burk each found the endzone as well.

Jared Roznos paced the Falcons in the passing game, catching three of four targets for 34 yards.

As a team, Air Force ran the football 53 times for 356 yards, averaging 6.7 yards per carry.

Trey Taylor and Alec Mock shared the team lead with 10 tackles apiece. PJ Ramsey, Payton Zdroik and Bo Richter each tallied a sack in addition to combining for 12 tackles.

Saturday's matchup didn't begin in Air Force's favor, as Wyoming scored touchdowns on its first two drives to take a 14-0 lead in the first quarter. However, on Air Force's second possession, the Falcons found the scoreboard. Burk put a stamp on a 7-play, 75-yard drive with a 15-yard rushing score to trim the Cowboys lead to 14-7.

Immediately after the Falcons' initial score, Wyoming missed a 45-yard field goal attempt, setting up Air Force at its own 27. The drive appeared doomed, as the Falcons lined up to punt on fourth-and-six on their own 44, but a fake punt resulted in Burk finding running room along the Air Force sideline for a career-long 39 run. The very next play, Eldridge scampered into the endzone from 17-yards out to tie the game at 14-14.

Wyoming shook off the missed field goal to create a touchdown drive of their own, building a 21-14 lead. Even so, Air Force did well to score points with just 1:43 left in the half, as Matthew Dapore connected on a 24-yard field goal to send the Falcons into the halftime locker room trailing 21-17.
Having deferred to the second half, Air Force opened the third quarter with a vintage Falcons' drive, burning 10:13 off the clock following 17 plays. Larrier plunged into the endzone from a yard out to give Air Force its first lead of the game at 24-21.

Following a Wyoming punt, Dapore was again up to the task, converting a 43-yard field goal to extend the Air Force lead to 27-21.

The Falcons again forced Wyoming into a punt, reclaiming possession with just over eight minutes remaining. However, an injury to Larrier brought Jensen Jones into the game. At the Falcon 25-yard line, the mesh between Jones and Michel was fumbled and recovered by the Cowboys. Wyoming eventually struck for a seven-yard touchdown pass on fourth-and-three to tie the game at 27-27 with 6:14 left.

On the extra-point attempt, Taylor knifed through the Cowboys front to block the try, keeping the score level at 27-27.

With the chance to take the lead with 5:45 remaining, Jones fumbled the football at Air Force's 29 and was recovered by Wyoming following a review. However, the Falcon defense stood tall, as Richter's sack on third-and-10 set up a 52-yard field goal try for Wyoming. The kick was unsuccessful, giving Air Force possession of the ball with just over three minutes to go.

On third-and-three at the Air Force 42, Eldridge took a pitch on the near sideline leading to a 58-yard scamper into the endzone to retake a 34-27 lead.
With one more offensive opportunity, Wyoming's fourth-down pass was incomplete with 1:38 remaining, as the Falcons killed the remainder of the clock.

Next, Air Force travels to Annapolis to play rival Navy on Saturday, Oct. 21. Kickoff is scheduled for 10:00 am MT.

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