COLORADO SPRINGS — The Wyoming Cowboys outgained Air Force but were undone by fourth-quarter mistakes in a 24-21 loss Saturday afternoon at Falcon Stadium on the campus of the U.S. Air Force Academy.
“It came down to mistakes in the fourth quarter,” Wyoming head coach Jay Sawvel said. “A turnover that kept us from getting seven or at least three (points), a bad interception that gave them three and then defensively we didn’t play as well in the second half as what we had in the first half. We had a couple critical situations where we could have got off the field and didn’t get that done. All of us share in that.”
Sawvel said the Cowboys expected a slower-paced contest. “We had four possessions in the first half,” he said. “That’s the type of game it was going to be because we were going to defend them better than these other teams that give up touchdowns in three plays. So, it was going to be a different mindset. I thought in the third quarter we came out and just ran the ball. We needed to stay in that mode. Then we just made a couple mistakes at a couple critical points.”
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Wyoming finished with 409 yards of total offense, including 211 yards through the air and 198 on the ground. Air Force totaled 363 yards, 330 of which came on the ground.
Running backs Terron Kellman and Samuel “Tote” Harris each rushed for 83 yards to lead Wyoming. Kellman added two touchdowns, while Harris caught four passes for 42 yards. Wide receiver Jaylen Sargent had a season-high five receptions for 65 yards. Quarterback Kaden Anderson completed 23 of 29 passes for 211 yards with one touchdown and one interception.
Defensive end Tyce Westland led the Cowboy defense with a career-high 14 tackles, including two for loss and one pass breakup. Safety Andrew Johnson recorded eight tackles, while safety Jones Thomas added seven.
Air Force opened the game with a nine-minute drive that ended in a field goal. Wyoming responded with a nine-play, 74-yard drive capped by Kellman’s 23-yard touchdown run to take a 7-3 lead late in the first quarter.
The Falcons added another field goal midway through the second quarter to make it 7-6 at halftime.
Kellman found the end zone again on a 23-yard rush to open the third quarter, putting Wyoming ahead 14-6 after a 10-play, 75-yard drive. Air Force answered with a one-yard touchdown run by quarterback Liam Szarka and added a two-point conversion to tie the game at 14.
Two fourth-quarter turnovers by Wyoming led to 10 Air Force points and a 24-14 deficit. Anderson connected with wide receiver Michael Fitzgerald for a late touchdown, but the Falcons held on for the 24-21 win.
Szarka led Air Force with 141 rushing yards and a touchdown. Fullback Owen Allen added 105 yards on 10 carries.
Wyoming returns home next Saturday to host Colorado State in the annual Border War. Kickoff is set for 5:30 p.m. on CBS Sports Network.
