Week 7: Air Force at San Diego State

This game matches two teams trying to forget about what happened last week, when Air Force's punts kept going backward and San Diego State's offense kept going backward. The Falcons had two blocked punts result in Navy touchdowns in a 33-27 defeat, while SDSU recorded minus-13 rushing yards, 85 total yards and four first downs in a 41-7 loss to TCU, as starting quarterback Ryan Lindley and backup Drew Westling both struggled.

How did the Aztecs' offense score? On a 1-yard drive that followed a fumble recovery, and even that achievement took two plays.

AFA's offensive effort was its most balanced and productive this season, but its 411 total yards (including a remarkable 184 passing yards) and 27 points were not enough, amid the special-teams problems. So it was a frustrating loss for the Falcons, undoubtedly costing them the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy and forcing them to focus on the secondary goals of competing for the Mountain West title and going to a bowl game.

SDSU is regrouping, period. The Aztecs were feeling good after pounding Idaho the previous week, but the Vandals tend to inflate every opponent's confidence. SDSU was overwhelmed by TCU on both sides of the ball, as the Horned Frogs posted 508 total yards and kept possession for 43 minutes, 29 seconds. TCU's 383 rushing yards, including 131 by quarterback Marcus Jackson, is hardly an encouraging statistic for SDSU going into this week, facing AFA's running game.

On the other side, AFA's defense will have to adjust its thinking to prepare for SDSU's offense after Navy attempted only two passes, completing one for 38 yards. They will welcome the pass-rushing opportunities, ranking sixth in the country with 16 sacks in five games.

Things to watch

In a classic Air Force approach, the Falcons gained 227 rushing yards against Navy, even with no player accounting for more than 50 yards.

After recording minus-13 yards against TCU, San Diego State is second to last in the country in rushing, averaging 49.8 yards.

Relatively speaking, Air Force is better at passing than SDSU is at running. The Falcons moved up to 117th (third to last) in passing at 82.4 yards a game.

The Aztecs are below the top 100 in both total offense (101st) and total defense (106th), even having played a Football Championship Subdivision school (Cal Poly) and a struggling Idaho team.

Key player (Falcons) — Jake Paulson, DL

Navy attempted only two passes last week, so Paulson hardly had a chance to add to his seven sacks. He still leads the nation in that category and will have all the pass-rushing opportunities he can handle against the Aztecs.

Key player (Aztecs) — Luke Laolagi, LB

Much like Paulson, Laolagi will be facing an offense that plays into his strengths. The Falcons will run the ball repeatedly, giving him a chance to increase his average of 9.2 tackles a game, ranking third in the Mountain West.

Air Force by 13