Air Force likes its options

Gazette, The (Colorado Springs), Sep 26, 2006 by JAKE SCHALLER THE GAZETTE

Air Force quarterback Shaun Carney was looking through a football book at offensive coordinator Chuck Petersen's house last Thursday when he saw something he thought looked a little strange.

It was a picture of an Air Force team lined up in the wishbone -- a formation in which the fullback lines up directly behind the quarterback, and two halfbacks line up behind and on either side of the fullback.

"It showed that set, and I was like, 'What's this all about, coach?'" Carney said. "And he said, 'That's how we used to run it.' I was shocked, I didn't even know they did that."

Air Force, which made its name in college football with the wishbone, scrapped the formation before the 1995 season, moving to a base set in which the halfbacks line up wider and closer to the line of scrimmage on either side of the fullback.

But while Air Force's offensive formation changed, its philosophy did not.

"We're going to have to run the football to be successful, and we know that and that hasn't changed, I don't think, in 20-something years," Petersen said. "Now that doesn't mean that we can't throw it and we won't throw it. But, generally speaking, we have to rush the football when we want to run it to be effective."

Through two games, the Falcons have averaged 304 rushing yards per game, tops in the Mountain West Conference and second nationally, and 5 yards per rush. The tripleoption has had a lot to do with that success, as Carney -- with major contributions from fullback Ryan Williams and halfback Chad Hall -- is running it with an efficiency and success rate that rivals some of the great wishbone teams of years past.

"That was as good a clinic on the tripleoption offense as I've ever seen," Wyoming coach Joe Glenn said after the Falcons ran for 327 yards in their 31-24 victory over the Cowboys on Saturday.

When run correctly, the triple-option can mask athletic shortcomings and confuse defenses. Because few teams run it extensively, defenses typically don't see it on a week-to-week basis and often have trouble adjusting to it.

"It makes defenses play assignment football," Petersen said. "They have to play sound, and when they don't, the potential for a big play is there."

The "triple-option" gets its name from the choices the quarterback makes during the play. When he receives the snap, he can go with option one -- handing the ball to the fullback up the middle. If the quarterback does not hand to the fullback, he can keep the ball -- option two -- or pitch it to the halfback trailing behind him -- option three.

"I don't think anybody can stop all three," Carney said. "I think they can limit how successful the three options are, but I don't think anybody's able to stop it as long as we don't beat ourselves."

See Saturday's 18-play drive against Wyoming. Air Force ran the option on about 75 percent of the plays and put the ball in the air just once during an 80-yard march that ended with a touchdown.

"Why go away from it when it's working?" Williams said. "We've got one of the most accurate passers in option history, and we haven't been throwing the ball much because we've been running it so well."

That hasn't been a problem for Carney, who has made the best of his limited pass attempts, with all 10 of his completions going for either first downs or touchdowns. He joked that he'd rather play in the shotgun formation than the wishbone, but he's happy with what the Falcons are doing.

"I always feel like I can be turned loose throwing the ball," Carney said. "I think if we need to, then we will. But right now people have to prove that they can stop our run game."

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