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Air Force Football: Offense Leads the Falcons to a School Passing Record and a Win

D.J. Hammond passed for over 327 yards and four touchdowns as the Falcons topped the Lobos.

By HyanRaines
NCAA Football: Army at Air Force Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports

For the second week in a row, Air Force found themselves in a hole early. They went on the road to take on New Mexico at Dreamstyle Stadium in a game that was postponed following the death of Nahje Flowers. For the second week in a row, the Falcons overcame that deficit en route to a dominant win over New Mexico.

New Mexico took the early lead with a Bobby Cole touchdown run to make the game 7-0. The Falcons scored on their ensuing drive and never looked back. They found the end zone seven times on the day and held the Lobos to just two more touchdowns and a field goal. By the time the clock hit triple zeros, Air force had cruised their way to a dominant 44-22 win.

D.J. Hammond had an incredible day passing, with 9/10 completions for 327 yards and four touchdowns. Hammond’s 327 yard performance marks the first time an Air Force quarterback topped that mark since 1989.

Taven Birdow lead the rushing attack with 17 attempts for 110 yards and a touchdown, with D.J. Hammond adding another 41 yards and a score of his own. Benjamin Waters and Geraud Sanders combined to catch all 327 yards and 4 touchdowns through the air.

Every Air Force drive ended in points except for one, which ended with a Taven Birdow fumble at the New Mexico 5-yard line. Demonte Meeks was dominant on the defensive side of the ball, racking up 14 tackles with 6 of them solo. The Air Force defense was a no-fly zone, only allowing 90 yards through the air.

On the special teams side of the field, Jake Koehnke was a perfect 6/6 on extra points. Tre Bugg also returned a blocked New Mexico extra point for a two-point conversion of his own.

Check out the highlights...

The win puts Air Force at 9-2 on the year and their best record since 1998. The Falcons have a good chance to end the regular season with ten wins next week against Wyoming and line up a solid bowl game. Unfortunately, Boise State hasn’t played yet at the time of this writing, so the Mountain West championship is still just a little bit out of reach.