Air Force Falcons join the list of two victory teams, climbing out of the basement

For the first time since August 31, the Air Force Falcons added another tally to their win column with their 36-28 win over the Fresno State Bulldogs.

It was only the second time this year that the Falcons scored more than 20 points in a single game, and their second highest scoring performance, with their first 37 points coming in a losing effort against the Lobos from New Mexico.

Saturday’s victory drops the Air Force out of the group of (now) five teams with one or fewer wins this year, a list that includes Florida State Seminoles and the Purdue Boilermakers and have seen a slight increase in their shares.

In the latest version of Chris Vannini’s college football power rankings The Athleticsthe Falcons have risen to 126th, an improvement of five spots from last week’s 131st place.

Saturday’s win was in doubt at halftime as the Bulldogs went into the locker room with a 21-17 lead, but Air Force would come out of the locker room strong in the second half, outscoring the opponent 19-7.

It was a tale of two rushing attacks, with the Falcons moving the ball down the ground with ease while Fresno State couldn’t get anything going on that front.

The Air Force defense allowed 284 total yards, including 289 through the air and -5 on the ground.

The Falcons put up 344 rushing yards, leading to a very lopsided time of possession, having the ball at 45:08 while the Bulldogs didn’t have it until 14:52.

Running back Dylan Carson (120 yards and one touchdown on 33 attempts) and quarterback Quentin Hayes (91 yards and two touchdowns on 25 attempts) were the two leaders of the Air Force rushing attack, both gaining 90 or more yards, while wideout receiver Cade Harris (47 yards on four attempts) and running back Owen Allen (45 yards on 10 attempts) gave the team two more guys who rushed for 40 or more yards.

The Falcons now rank fourth in the Mountain West Conference with 202.7 yards per game, behind only the Lobos (237.8), the UNLV Rebels (248.7), and the Boise State Broncos (268.6).

It was a season to forget for Air Force, although it doesn’t get much tougher as the year goes on as the three remaining opponents have a combined record of 3-19 this year.