Preview, How to Watch: Air Force re-restarts the season against New Mexico

Restarting the college football season is sounding like a broken record for the Air Force Falcons. They’ve had their conference slate canceled and uncanceled, two games lost to coronavirus (though there’s always a chance that the tilt against Army will happen), and now it looks like they may finally get back to normal against New Mexico.

What is normal, though? Will the Falcons be able to finish out their schedule with no further delays? We can’t really say for now, but what we can do is take a look at the Lobos.

The good news ahead of Friday night’s contest is that New Mexico boasts no more conference wins than Air Force. Unfortunately, that’s because neither has beaten a Mountain West opponent.

In many ways, the Falcons and the Lobos are actually in the exact same position ahead of the game. Air Force has been living in a hotel since early November, and New Mexico has had to completely relocate to Las Vegas due to gathering restrictions.

It’s difficult to pinpoint too many advantages for either side in this game, though all indications are that it will be played as scheduled. Air Force figures to be the fresher team thanks to two unexpected cancellations, but it’s hard to overlook valuable game experience. The Lobos haven’t missed a single week of action this season since the week one cancellation against Colorado State, swapping last week’s scheduled game against Boise State for a game against Nevada.

Both Haaziq Daniels and Warren Bryan have seen action under center for the Falcons this season, with Daniels holding the slight edge on the stat sheet. Timothy Jackson and Brandon Lewis are neck-and-neck on the ground while Kyle Patterson is leading the charge in receiving. It remains to be seen which Falcons are ready for action come Friday night, but we should expect a few familiar faces to return to the field.

On the New Mexico side, Tevaka Tuioti is leading through the air with nearly 500 yards to his name. He’s backed up by Bobby Cole on the ground, and Jordan Kress is proving to be his favorite target. The Lobos’ willingness to sling the rock may certainly prove to be the Falcons undoing, much in the same way that San Jose State and Boise State racked up sky miles.

Air Force holds the overall lead in the series with 23 wins compared to New Mexico’s 14. The Falcons have also won each of the last two meetings, scoring more than 40 points each time. Friday night’s contest is key to getting either team back on track for the season, but the Falcons should have the edge at home.

A little hype video never hurt anyone, so here’s a little motivation ahead of the game:

How to Watch

Kickoff: Friday, Nov. 20, 9:30 p.m. EST

Where: Falcon Stadium — Colorado Springs, Colorado

Watch: Fox Sports 1 | Alex Faust and Petro Papadakis will be on the call

Spread: Air Force is favored by 7.5 points, the over/under is set around 55.5 points.