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Dowis excited for Jefferson to break his AFA QB wins record
Dee Dowis is among the enshrinees to be inducted into the Colorado Springs Sports Hall of Fame on Oct. 25 at World Arena.
The Class of 2011 includes Basketball Hall of Famer and double Olympic gold medalist Burdette Haldorson, Jennifer Armbruster, the first Paralympic athlete to gain induction, USA Hockey’s accomplished boss Dave Ogrean, Sky Sox Hall of Famer Sam Hairston, the first African-American to play for the Chicago White Sox in 1951, the revered 1961 USA World figure skating team and coach Edi Scholdan, tragically lost in a plane crash, and the 1978 Wasson boys' state championship basketball team that won a state title in the first appearance by the school in the tourney.
The evening begins with a 6 p.m. reception and sports silent auction, with the program starting at 7. A sold-out crowd of 700 was on hand last year. The Gazette is a sponsor.
Reservations for tables or seats can be made by calling Aubrey McCoy at the Colorado Springs Sports Corp. 719-634-7333, ext. 1007 or by e-mail at: aubrey@thesportscorp.org Prices- $2,500 for a VIP table of 10 seats, $1,000 for a patron table of 10 seats; $250 for a VIP seat, $100 for a patron seat. VIP seating includes priority seating location, complimentary wine, and VIP pre-event reception and early (5:30) start for the famed sports silent auction.
Truthfully, Dee Dowis would probably be happy for any Air Force quarterback breaking any of his school records.
Tim Jefferson left a special impression with Dowis, however. Dowis went to last year’s Air Force game against BYU. He knew Jefferson was a very good player after seeing his performance in a Falcons win. Dowis met Jefferson after the game, and was even more impressed by him then.
“He’s a tremendous young man and represents the academy like you’d want him to,” Dowis said. “Just a class guy.”
Dowis won a record 22 games as Air Force’s starting quarterback from 1986-89, and is generally considered the top quarterback in school history. Jefferson has won 22 games as Air Force’s starter, can break Dowis’ record with a win against Tennessee State on Saturday, and can put the record far out of reach before the end of his senior season.
Jefferson hasn’t made a big deal about the record, saying he doesn’t understand why it is even kept because wins are a team statistic, not an individual accomplishment. The Falcons haven’t made a huge deal about it, not wanting to come off as if they’re taking a win over Tennessee State for granted or to put Jefferson’s individual accomplishments on a pedestal.
“It’s a milestone,” Calhoun said this week, in what has been his most expansive comment on the potential accomplishment.
Jefferson will probably appreciate the record in time, but as Dowis said, he’ll have another memory of his career won-loss record.
“I think more about the games we didn’t win and not the ones we won,” said Dowis, who is being inducted into the Colorado Springs Sports Hall of Fame on Oct. 25. “You always think about the ones you should have won.”
Dowis’ competitiveness is legendary, but not when it comes to hanging onto his individual records. He was thrilled for Jefferson.
“I’m excited for Tim and the team,” Dowis said. “It’s great because I think records are made to be broken, especially those kinds of records because it means the program is doing well and they’re having a lot of team success.”
Jefferson hasn’t given any signs he’s thought much about becoming Air Force’s all-time leader in wins for a quarterback, but his teammates are happy for him. They share in the accomplishment as well.
“It’s definitely something special, because when any guy on your team gets a record like that you want to feel like you contributed,” running back Asher Clark said.
One thing the Falcons don’t worry about is Jefferson being distracted by the wins record, or any other record, during this season.
“I think it’s more about this season right now to him,” receiver Zack Kauth said. “I think he’s really good at putting the game at hand as his No. 1 priority. He’s not looking too far in the future, and he’s not looking in the past.”
