No big programs courting Air Force's Calhoun despite success

The Air Force men’s basketball program has been a victim of its own success recently as three head coaches since 2004 — Joe Scott, Chris Mooney and Jeff Bzdelik — have been lured away from the academy by offers to coach elsewhere.

Could similar offers be awaiting first-year football coach Troy Calhoun?

With a victory over San Diego State in its regular season finale on Saturday, Air Force would finish 9-3 and complete a stunning five-game turnaround. The Falcons, picked to finish seventh in the Mountain West Conference in the preseason, would be no worse than tied for second place in the conference.

Calhoun said Sunday on a teleconference with reporters that he had no predetermined answer for potential suitors and that if “someone calls my boss, that’s the only way that it can even become a discussion.”

Asked if he’d be open to such a discussion, Calhoun said, “I am extremely open to doing everything we can to get the utmost of this season, and that’s where I don’t think you can have an ounce of focus in any other direction.”

When pressed on the issue, Calhoun praised the academy and said, “I haven’t thought of any other direction.” He also said that coaching at an elite Division I program is “just not something you give a tremendous amount of consideration to.”

“There are rewards in coaching that go beyond how much you’re on television,” he said.

Air Force sports information director Troy Garnhart said the academy had not been contacted by any schools with interest in Calhoun.

Calhoun also said he hopes the NCAA makes changes regarding how officials are scheduled.

Calhoun said in games between teams from different conferences, third-party officiating crews and replay officials should be used. For example, games between schools from the Pac-10 and Big 12 would have Big Ten officials. And games between Air Force and Notre Dame or Navy would not include Mountain West officials — as Saturday’s victory over the Fighting Irish did — or replay officials from the conferences Notre Dame and Navy use for officials. A controversial fumble near the end of Saturday’s first half was inexplicably not reviewed.

“You eliminate all of the junk, all of the discussion of ‘You need to be aware of what crew has this game,’” Calhoun said. “We just don’t want an ounce of perception that that can be a factor in a game.”

As for Air Force’s schedule, Calhoun stressed the importance of the two games it plays other than its eight conference contests and games against Army and Navy. He said one of those two games should be part of a home-and-home series with a school that is “very committed to academics,” and the other should be a home game on parents’ weekend.

Calhoun said this year’s schedule, in which Air Force finished a home-and-home series by playing at Notre Dame and opened the season by playing host to South Carolina State on parents’ weekend, served as a good template. While acknowledging “finances are part of it,” he said he did not think “selling our soul to give up a home game” to play at Washington in 2005 or playing at Tennessee in 2006 was good for those Air Force teams.

Notes

Senior guard Caleb Morris (sprained left knee) is doubtful for the Falcons’ season finale, and senior tight end Travis Dekker, who sat out the Notre Dame game because of a concussion he suffered a week earlier, is probable, Calhoun said.