Vaunted Falcon rushing attack adds another dimension with improved passing
Despite its ugly season-opening loss to UCLA , the San Diego State football team can look forward to things getting better as it heads into this weekend's matchup at Air Force. But it might not be a whole lot better considering the Falcons are coming off a 20-17 upset victory over Washington.
It's a safe bet that Air Force will have extra incentive to beat the Aztec squad it has fallen to the last two seasons - most recently in Colorado Springs at the 2004 season finale.
In the previous two contests, the Aztecs - who boasted the conference's best linebacking corps in Kirk Morrison, Matt McCoy and Heath Farwell - completely dominated the Falcons triple-option attack.
With the departure of all three, expect Air Force to have a much more productive day on the ground and to move the chains on a consistent basis.
Head coach Tom Craft emphasized the need to stay dynamic on defense as Saturday's game progresses.
"With Air Force, you typically think of them as a wishbone team, and they are with the triple-option," Craft said. "When their fullback gets over 100 yards, their winning percentage is over 70 percent. The quarterback (Shaun Carney) is another priority.
"We need to manage ourselves differently in regards to who has responsibility for the quarterback and the pitch. We can't keep it the same all the time."
Offensively, sophomore quarterback Kevin O'Connell should have an edge on the Falcons defense, considering he had his best game as an Aztec against Air Force last year. As a redshirt freshman, he threw for 232 yards and two touchdowns in a 37-31 victory.
Consider O'Connell was without the services of redshirt sophomore running back Lynell Hamilton, and there is good potential for SDSU's offense to put points on the board.
But O'Connell knows the key to success on offense involves balance through both the ground attack and through the air.
"I think it's a combination of things," O'Connell said. "We need to control the ball a little, let No. 22 (Hamilton) do his work and then execute down the field a little more. It's just the consistency in our offense.
"If we can sustain those long drives and help out our defense, it will keep them off the field because they'll be working hard. We're going to focus on getting first downs and moving the chains."
Another issue the Aztecs have to deal with is Air Force's passing game. In their last two meetings, the Falcons have pinned themselves into a corner, running too much early on, falling behind and then becoming predictable in the passing game.
This time around, Craft knows his squad must be prepared for the passing game early in the contest, mainly in the form of play-action. And judging by last week's performance, it looks as though Air Force signal-caller Shaun Carney has a surefire go-to receiver in Greg Kirkwood, who tallied 134 yards and a touchdown against the Huskies.
"With Air Force, you have the play-action, and they've become a little more pronounced in the passing game," Craft said. "They have very capable receivers. They looked a lot quicker than Washington did. (The Washington game) was a good win for them. We know we're going to have to stop the triple-option first and keep our focus in the secondary."
Aside from all the uncertainty still surrounding the Aztecs, one fact remains: With its confidence rattled and the core of last year's defense gone, victory won't come nearly as easily as it has in years past.
Despite its ugly season-opening loss to UCLA , the San Diego State football team can look forward to things getting better as it heads into this weekend's matchup at Air Force. But it might not be a whole lot better considering the Falcons are coming off a 20-17 upset victory over Washington.
It's a safe bet that Air Force will have extra incentive to beat the Aztec squad it has fallen to the last two seasons - most recently in Colorado Springs at the 2004 season finale.
In the previous two contests, the Aztecs - who boasted the conference's best linebacking corps in Kirk Morrison, Matt McCoy and Heath Farwell - completely dominated the Falcons triple-option attack.
With the departure of all three, expect Air Force to have a much more productive day on the ground and to move the chains on a consistent basis.
Head coach Tom Craft emphasized the need to stay dynamic on defense as Saturday's game progresses.
"With Air Force, you typically think of them as a wishbone team, and they are with the triple-option," Craft said. "When their fullback gets over 100 yards, their winning percentage is over 70 percent. The quarterback (Shaun Carney) is another priority.
"We need to manage ourselves differently in regards to who has responsibility for the quarterback and the pitch. We can't keep it the same all the time."
Offensively, sophomore quarterback Kevin O'Connell should have an edge on the Falcons defense, considering he had his best game as an Aztec against Air Force last year. As a redshirt freshman, he threw for 232 yards and two touchdowns in a 37-31 victory.
Consider O'Connell was without the services of redshirt sophomore running back Lynell Hamilton, and there is good potential for SDSU's offense to put points on the board.
But O'Connell knows the key to success on offense involves balance through both the ground attack and through the air.
"I think it's a combination of things," O'Connell said. "We need to control the ball a little, let No. 22 (Hamilton) do his work and then execute down the field a little more. It's just the consistency in our offense.
"If we can sustain those long drives and help out our defense, it will keep them off the field because they'll be working hard. We're going to focus on getting first downs and moving the chains."
Another issue the Aztecs have to deal with is Air Force's passing game. In their last two meetings, the Falcons have pinned themselves into a corner, running too much early on, falling behind and then becoming predictable in the passing game.
This time around, Craft knows his squad must be prepared for the passing game early in the contest, mainly in the form of play-action. And judging by last week's performance, it looks as though Air Force signal-caller Shaun Carney has a surefire go-to receiver in Greg Kirkwood, who tallied 134 yards and a touchdown against the Huskies.
"With Air Force, you have the play-action, and they've become a little more pronounced in the passing game," Craft said. "They have very capable receivers. They looked a lot quicker than Washington did. (The Washington game) was a good win for them. We know we're going to have to stop the triple-option first and keep our focus in the secondary."
Aside from all the uncertainty still surrounding the Aztecs, one fact remains: With its confidence rattled and the core of last year's defense gone, victory won't come nearly as easily as it has in years past.
