Air Force falls to SJSU, 17-7, in Mountain West opener

U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY. Colo. – In the eighth edition of the series between Air Force and San Jose State, the Falcons fell, 17-7, on Saturday evening, Sept. 7, at Falcon Stadium.

Air Force closed their evening with 197 total yards of offense; Seven rushers accumulated yardage on the ground; Junior receiver Cade Harris led all AF rushers with 50 yards on eight attempts and Air Force's one score of the evening.

San Jose State signal caller, redshirt sophomore Emmett Brown finished 17-of-32 in the air, totaling 262 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. Five Spartan rushers were held to 50 total yards, averaging just 1.5 yards per attempt.

Ten Air Force defenders logged four tackles or more, with seniors Trey Williams (DB), Osaro Aihie (LB) and Grant Uyl (LB) all leading with seven tackles apiece, marking career highs for both Williams and Uyl. Junior defensive end Payton Zdroik and sophomore defensive back Lincoln Tuioti-Mariner both logged sacks on the evening, with Zdroik adding a pair of hurries on Brown.

After Air Force deferred possession in the first half, SJSU struck first, scoring on an eight-play, 75-yard opening drive, capped by an 18-yard passing touchdown to Spartan wideout Nick Nash with 11:23 remaining in the quarter.

After punting away its first possession, Air Force regained the ball on an interception by senior defensive back Jerome Gaillard Jr., the first of his career. Gaillard, picking off Brown at the Air Force 31 yard-line, raced to a 41-yard return. A subsequent personal foul on SJSU's Sione Nomani gave Air Force the ball at the SJSU 14. The turnover culminated in a six-yard carry for junior receiver Cade Harris to even the score. Harris' touchdown marked his third of the season.

With five minutes remaining in the first quarter, a pass interference call on an SJSU third-and-nine passing attempt along the Air Force sideline resuscitated the Spartans' drive. Two plays later, Brown hit tight end Jackson Canaan downfield for a 58-yard passing score to give the Spartans a 14-7 lead.

With four minutes remaining in the second quarter, Air Force failed to convert on a fourth-and-one attempt at the Falcon 32, resulting in a turnover on downs deep in Falcon territory. On the opening play of San Jose's drive, senior defensive tackle James Tomasi and Uyl combined for a nine-yard tackle for loss, holding San Jose to a punt on the drive and returning possession to the Falcons with 2:43 to go in the half.

At the half, the Falcon run defense had held San Jose to negative two rushing yards on 12 attempts.

The third quarter was a scoreless affair for both Air Force and San Jose State, with the Falcons doubling-up the Spartans' time of possession while keeping SJSU out of Falcon territory for all but four plays of the quarter.

SJSU was able to extend its lead at the 8:25 mark in the fourth behind a 34-yard field goal by Spartan kicker Kyler Halvorsen, leaving Air Force to contend with a 17-7 deficit late in the game. On the resulting Air Force drive, Busha's deep shot up the middle to Robert Rahimi on second-and three was picked off with 6:34 remaining to seal off hopes of a Falcon comeback.

Air Force junior punter Luke Freer put up six punts on the evening, totaling 284 yards. With 2:30 left in the opening quarter, Freer's 72-yard punt for touchback marked a career long and the 12th longest in school history. Freer's 72-yarder is the longest since Charlie Scott also had a 72-yarder versus Utah State in 2017. Freer's previous career long was 54 yards, earned in week one in Air Force's win over Merrimack.

Air Force falls to 5-3 in the all-time series with San Jose State; The Falcons are now 14-12 in Mountain West openers dating back to 1999, are 8-6 in conference openers at home and fall to 26-19 all time in conference openers.

Up Next:
In a 2022 Armed Forces Bowl rematch, Air Force (1-1, 0-1 MW) heads to Waco, Texas to take on Baylor at McLane Stadium, Saturday, Sept. 14 at 5:30 p.m. MT.

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