AFA senior Hyder settling in at safety

When Air Force opened fall practice, one of the bigger surprises was the shift of senior Luke Hyder from offense — where he was expected to contribute as a tailback and Z receiver — to defense.

One of the more pleasant surprises of the preseason for coaches has been how well Hyder has adjusted to his spot at safety.

“He’s really had a nice camp,” defensive coordinator Tim DeRuyter said. “He’s playing fast, and he’s playing with a lot of confidence.”

Hyder has benefited from not having to start from scratch. At the start of his sophomore year, he was moved from offense to defense, and he spent the 2007 season as a backup safety.

“I had never played safety before, and I spent a lot of time (in 2007) trying to figure it all out,” he said. “It’s come a lot more natural than it did two years ago.”

Hyder likely will start in the nickel package with five defensive backs.

Ollis improving
Another player who switched positions — sophomore Austin Ollis — also is adjusting well, according to coach Troy Calhoun. The 5-foot-11, 195-pound Ollis was shifted from receiver to fullback in the summer.

“We just told him his best chance to get on the field was to move to fullback,” Calhoun said. “He was a great wrestler in high school so he’s got good balance, and he’s got decent ball skills and he’s a fairly natural runner.”

Then, there are his bloodlines. His older brother, Jim, was Air Force’s second-leading rusher in 2007 and owns arguably the top highlight of Calhoun’s two-season tenure — a 71-yard touchdown run on fourth-and-1 against TCU that forced overtime in the teams’ 2007 meeting. And his younger brother, Jordan, is at the academy prep school.

“He’s an Ollis,” Calhoun said. “He’s tough as can be, he loves playing football and the whole bit. But he’s still learning fullback.”

In addition to learning the position, Calhoun said Ollis also needs to gain weight.

“I think he’ll be best if he can get to 207, 208,” Calhoun said.

Kids Day
Air Force will hold “Kids Day 2009” following today’s practice at Falcon Stadium.

The practice, which is scheduled for 9:30-11:30 a.m., is open to the public. Following the practice, players and coaches — along with cheerleaders and The Bird (Air Force’s mascot) — will talk to fans and sign autographs.