Air Force Earns Offensive, Defensive And Special Teams Players Of The Week

The Air Force Falcons swept this week's Mountain West Conference Players of the Week in Saturday's victory over the Navy Midshipmen. Quarterback Tim Jefferson, linebacker Jordan Waiwaiole and linebacker Jamil Cooks won the offensive, defensive and special teams respectively. Last week, junior safety Jon Davis won the defensive awardfor his play over Wyoming.

Jefferson rushed for 62 yards on 10 carries and matched his career high with two touchdown runs, including one on a career-long 50-yard run. He also hit 5-7 passes for 83 yards.

Waiwaiole recorded a career and team-high 15 tackles (eight solo stops), an interception and a sack. With the Midshipmen driving into Falcon territory with 25 seconds left in the game, Waiwaiole recorded his first-career interception to seal the game. Waiwaiole's 15 total tackles are the most by an Air Force player this season and doubled the junior linebacker's previous career high.

Cooks made two pivotal special teams plays. On the Midshipmen's second drive of the game, Cooks leaped over the Navy offensive line and deflected Joe Buckley's 21-yard field goal attempt. Early in the fourth quarter, Cooks penetrated the Midshipmen line once again, this time blocking Kyle Delahooke's punt attempt which lead to an Air Force touchdown.

VIDEO: Extended Highlights Of Air Force's 14-6 Win Over Navy

Scoring was sparse today, but this rivalry game did not lack in the highlights.

Air Force Beats Navy, 14-6

Colorado Springs, CO (Sports Network) - Quarterback Tim Jefferson threw for 83 yards and rushed for 62 more and a pair of touchdowns as the Air Force Falcons defeated the Navy Midshipmen, 14-6, in a non-conference showdown at Falcon Stadium to take a step towards capturing the Commander-in-Chief trophy for 2010.

Jared Tew carried the ball 17 times for 111 yards in the win for Air Force (4-1), who up-ended the Midshipmen for the first time in eight years.

Navy (2-2) saw a less than impressive day from quarterback Ricky Dobbs who connected on just six of his 18 pass attempts for 103 yards and two interceptions. Dobbs also ran for 43 yards on 18 carries in the tough loss for the Midshipmen.

Air Force scored the only first-quarter points on a 50-yard touchdown run by Jefferson as the Falcons took the 7-0 advantage.

Navy received a 25-yard field goal from kicker Joe Buckley midway through the second quarter, marking the only second-quarter score as the Midshipmen entered the intermission trailing 7-3.

Buckley connected again on Navy's opening drive of the second half, this time from 32 yards out, as Air Force held on to a mere 7-6 lead as the teams battled into the final frame.

Jefferson once again found the end zone in the fourth quarter for the Falcons, scoring from one yard out to put the home team ahead to stay at 14-6.

The Falcons, who entered the week leading the nation in rushing with an average of 394 ypg, generated 292 yards on the ground. Navy, which posted 209 yards on 50 rushing attempts on the afternoon, came in ranked ninth in the country with 272.7 ypg.

Navy has won the Commander-in-Chief trophy, presented annually to the service academy which holds the best record among the three programs (Army), every year since Air Force last held it in 2002.

Air Force Intercepts Navy Late In The Game To Seal The Win

Air Force's Jordan Waiwaiole intercepted Navy's Ricky Dobbs deep in Air Force territory as Navy was driving.  The interception ended any chance for a Navy comeback, and this win was the first win for Air Force over Navy since 2002. With the struggles that Army football has had over the past few years the Commander-In-Chief trophy looks to be heading back to Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Air Force Blocks A Navy Punt, Then Marches Down The Field To Score And Go Ahead 14-6

Air Force's Jamil Cooks blocked a Navy punt which gave the Falcons the ball at the Navy 15 yard line. Air Force then was able to punch the ball in for a touchdown by Air Force quarterback Tim Jefferson. The Falcons now lead 14-7 with under 14 minutes left in the game.

Navy Takes Advantage Of An Air Force Fumble To Cut The Lead To 7-6

Air Force promptly fumbled the ball on their first possession of the second half when Tim Jefferson was caught behind the line of scrimmage. Navy then took the ball down the field and kicked a 32 yard field goal from an eight play 21 yard drive.

Air Force Scores Only Touchdown As They Lead Navy At The Half, 7-3

Air Force's quarterback Tim Jefferson has scored the only touchdown in today's game with a 50 yard touchdown run late in the first quarter.  Navy did get on the board with a 25 yard field late in the first half, but they did miss a chip shot 21 yard field goal.

Besides the touchdown the only difference in this game is the 43 yard edge that Air Force has in the rushing game. Below are the first half stats.

Also, Air Force receives the ball to start the third quarter.

Could This Be An Image Of The Air Force Uniforms For The Navy Game?

Rumor has that Air Force will be unveiling special uniforms for the game with Navy this weekend. We received the image below and it looks like the real deal. 

If that isn't the most America looking uniform in history then I don't  know what is. 

Air Force Takes On Navy, Looks To Get First Win In Eight Years

Colorado Springs, CO (Sports Network) - The chase for the Commander-In-Chief's Trophy will begin this Saturday afternoon when the Air Force Falcons host the Navy Midshipmen at Falcon Stadium.

The Commander-In-Chief Trophy is presented to the winner of the football competition between all three service academy schools. The Midshipmen have won the trophy a record seven straight times, and have won 15 consecutive matchups against Army and Air Force. Against the Falcons, Navy has won seven in a row, but despite the recent winning streak the Midshipmen still find themselves on the wrong end of a 25-17 margin in the all-time series.

Looking for their eighth straight trophy, the Midshipmen head into this matchup riding a minor two-game winning streak. After opening the year with a tough, 17-14 setback on the road against Maryland, the Midshipmen have reeled off back-to-back victories over Georgia Southern (13-7) and Louisiana Tech (37-23). Navy was not in action this past weekend, so coach Ken Niumatalolo's men should be well rested for this matchup with Air Force.

As for the Falcons, they have won three of their first four matchups, and the lone loss was a close, 27-24 setback to Oklahoma in Norman. It was not pretty, but last week coach Troy Calhoun's crew bounced back into the win column with a 20-14 decision over Wyoming on the road.

Navy has developed into one of the top running teams in the nation, and the team's dominance on the ground continued in its recent win over Louisiana Tech.

The Midshipmen rumbled for 297 yards and four touchdowns on 4.9 yards per attempt and are now averaging 272.7 ypg via the run. Gee Gee Greene led the way with 87 yards, while Ricky Dobbs and Vince Murray both scored and finished with 67 and 62 yards, respectively. After three games Murray is currently leading the team with 224 yards, while Dobbs has contributed 174 yards and a team best three touchdowns.

Clearly the Midshipmen are a running football team, but Dobbs, who is the quarterback for Navy, must show he can throw the ball at times so defenses will remain honest. At this point, Dobbs has completed 59.4 percent of his throws for 376 yards, and while that is nothing special, it does keep opposing teams from concentrating solely on the run.

The Midshipmen might have been victorious in their last contest, but the defense for coach Niumatalolo showed some weaknesses against a lackluster team in Louisiana Tech.

The Bulldogs attacked Navy's defense through the air, throwing for 251 yards and one touchdown. It was a shocking display by Louisiana Tech, especially since Navy is limiting the opposition to just 99.3 passing ypg on the year.

While the play against the pass was not expected the team's performance against the run continues to be a problem for this defense. Navy, which is being punished for 162.7 ypg on the ground, allowed Louisiana Tech to rumble for 154 yards on 4.8 ypc.

The defense relied on its big plays, as Navy forced three turnovers, and stopped the Bulldogs when it mattered most, on third down, limiting Louisiana Tech to ju 3-of-14 in those crucial situations.

The Falcons have taken a page from Navy's gameplan, and have pulverized opposing defenses with their ground attack, which is churning out 394.0 ypg. Air Force has already scored 20 touchdowns on the year, and 17 of those scores have come via the run.

Quarterback Tim Jefferson is leading the team with five rushing touchdowns, while Jared Tew is pacing the squad with 371 rushing yards. However, Asher Clark has also made his presence known, pounding out 353 yards on 6.4 yards per attempt.

Air Force's dominance on the ground continued in its victory over Wyoming, as the Falcons dismantled the Cowboys for 279 yards on 5.3 ypc. Tew and Jefferson scored one touchdown each in the win, while finishing with 136 and 94 yards, respectively.

Not to be overlooked has been the play of the defense, which is limiting the opposition to just 19.0 ppg. Teams are only producing 306.8 total ypg against this defense, but if there was a trouble area for Air Force it would be against the run, as opponents are churning out 142.5 ypg.

Air Force's inability to stop the run was evident in the win over Wyoming, as the Cowboys gashed coach Calhoun's squad for 174 yards on 5.1 yards per attempt. Overall, Air Force surrendered just 240 yards and held Wyoming to just 12 first downs. Jon Davis led the way with six tackles and also forced a fumble the win, while Brady Amack, who is leading the team with 28 tackles, finished wi five against Wyoming.

Navy has dominated the other service schools over the past few seasons, but every good run must come to an end, and for the Midshipmen it looks like their winning streak is about to be finished. The Falcons rely on their ground game, which at the moment is better than Navy's and if Air Force can win the time of possession battle, then look for coach Calhoun's squad to earn a win.

Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Air Force 24, Navy 20

Saturday, October 2nd, 2:30 p.m. (et)