Air Force's football senior class hopes to finish careers on positive note

Troy Calhoun called his seniors together for a meeting after practice Monday, not to give an emotional message, just informing them about what would happen at Senior Day on Saturday.

As Calhoun shared the mundane details, some of the seniors gathered around him started to realize the finality of this week.

“I think that’s when it finally hit me,” receiver Jonathan Warzeka said. “My parents always ask me ‘Has it sunk in yet, being your senior year?’ It really hasn’t. I think finally (Monday) is when it sank that this will be the last time we’re in that locker room at Falcon Stadium.”

This senior class has been a special one for Air Force football. This is the first group comprised entirely of players Calhoun recruited. They have been to three bowl games, winning twice, and have won the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy back-to-back years. The 28 seniors who will be honored before Saturday’s game against UNLV have made a definite impact on the program.

“If somebody in 15 years said, ‘Hey, I’ve got a special group I have to put together – whether it’s a leadership endeavor, a battle, or an entrepreneurial or educational situation – what if I started with these seniors that were a part of the 2011 Air Force football team?’” Calhoun said. “That answer would be an absolute yes.”

This Senior Day will be a little bittersweet because the season hasn’t gone entirely to plan. The Falcons had high hopes but are just 5-5. Two of those games were against Football Championship Subdivision opponents. The Falcons haven’t beat a Football Bowl Subdivision team with a winning record – the combined record of the three FBS teams they beat is 8-22.

“Disappointment,” guard A.J. Wallerstein said. “Back in August I thought – and I still think – we have a really good team on our hands. If you would have told me would be 5-5, I definitely wouldn’t have been happy.”

“I’m pretty sure none of us in here expected to be in this situation,” Warzeka said. “I certainly didn’t. But if you play this game long enough, you hit some bumps in the road.”

The seniors have talked this week about what went wrong. There were unfortunate and costly injuries. The team has made too many untimely mistakes, particularly with fumbles. They feel they had chances to win but let some games slip away.

Yet, they also have an optimistic attitude. They won the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy again, and can still make a bowl game with two wins to end the season. That isn’t the storybook ending many were hoping for, but they also are aware that they are leaving a pretty strong legacy.

“It’s a class that’s going to be known for not giving up,” receiver Zack Kauth said. “We were down in both service academy games this year and came back and won. It’s a class that has played through a lot of injuries through our years. We’re one of the classes that has helped put Air Force back on the map with eight-, nine-win seasons the last few years.”