Offense
Air Force may have found a future star last season at the quarterback position in Liam Szarka. The junior saw action in 10 games last season before breaking his wrist. He led the Mountain West Conference with 13 rushing touchdowns, was second in the Mountain West Conference with 92.2 rushing yards per game, while also adding nine touchdown passes and five interceptions.
The backfield is always stocked at the Air Force Academy. Fullback Owen Allen returns after being the team’s second leading rusher, with five 100-yard games last season. Running backs Rocco Conti and Jalen Rashad Turner, along with fullback Gage LaDue will see action.
The biggest concern on offense is the receiving core. Which at a service academy may not seem much, but there isn’t a lot of experience. Wide receiver Jonah Dawson is the leading returning pass catcher from last season with 12 receptions. Others will need to emerge, but the Falcons ran the ball 80% of their offensive snaps last season.
The offensive line loses a couple of All-Mountain West selections but should reload. Nathan Elwood, Alec Falk, TJ Tarascio, and Luke Vanderhaar, amount others, all have experience.
Defense
The defensive line room will be very inexperienced in 2026 as graduation took a toll on this unit. Grady Forsythe, Bennett Williams, and Chaz Barnett, among others, need to emerge as playmakers for this defense.
The linebacker unit may be the best on the team. Blake Fletcher was an All-Mountain West selection last season and led the team with 108 tackles. He should have a real opportunity to play on Sundays. Dallas Daley and Isaac Hubert round out the starting group and are also very talented.
The secondary returns tons of experience. Safety Roger Jones Jr. will compete for All-Mountain West honors. Cornerbacks Mikhail Seiken and Korey Johnson, along with safeties Max Mustell and Cade Paterson also have been tested.
Specialists
Jacob Medina returns as the kicker after struggling and losing his job last season. He had a solid spring and seems ready to go. Will Duncan will be the new starting punter.
2026 Schedule
- 9/5 Duquesne
- 9/12 North Dakota State
- 9/26 at Nevada
- 10/3 Navy
- 10/10 at Northern Illinois
- 10/17 UNLV
- 10/24 at Wyoming
- 10/31 UConn
- 11/7 at Army
- 11/14 San Jose State
- 11/21 UTEP
- 11/28 at New Mexico
Final Analysis
Troy Calhoun is entering year 20 as the head coach at the Air Force Academy. After two losing seasons, things are looking up. The team is more experienced overall and has a star talent at quarterback. In a new look Mountain West Conference, expect the Falcons to make some noise.
