Air Force vs. Wyoming preview: Falcons, Cowboys both try to shake off OT losses

The Air Force Falcons try to shake off a tough rivalry loss with a trip to play in-conference foe Wyoming Cowboys this Saturday in Laramie, Wyo.

The Falcons battled the Navy Midshipmen in their second-straight overtime game last Saturday, this time losing 28-21. Navy fumbled a 1st and goal from the one-yard line in its possession of overtime, recovering in the endzone for the score, then batted down a Connor Dietz fourth-down pass to secure the win.

The loss moves the Falcons to 2-3 on the year, but Air Force is still in play for Mountain West spoils at 1-1 in conference. Dietz leads Air Force's usually-potent rushing attack, which nets 390 yards per game, good for second in the country. Overall, the Falcons rank 18th in overall offense at just over 500 yards per game. But its defense is giving up an unhealthy 421 yards per game itself.

Wyoming (1-4) has had four of its five games decided by either three points or less, or in overtime. Last week, the Cowboys gave up a 28-21 lead with just over a minute left, and eventually lost to the Nevada Wolf Pack in overtime. The Cowboys do have the services of Brett Smith again, who suffered a head injury and missed Wyoming's third game. Smith has completed 64% of his passes this year for 1,177 yards, 12 touchdowns, and five interceptions.

The Cowboys sport the nation's 13th-worst rushing defense, allowing 228 yards per game on the ground -- not a promising statistic when playing Air Force's option attack.