1973 Air Force Falcons football team

1973 Air Force Falcons football
ConferenceIndependent
Record6–4
Head coach
Captains
  • Rich Haynie
  • Jim Morris
Home stadiumFalcon Stadium
1973 NCAA Division I independents football records
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 1 Notre Dame   –   11 – 0 – 0
No. 5 Penn State   –   12 – 0 – 0
No. 9 Houston   –   11 – 1 – 0
Temple   –   9 – 1 – 0
No. 20 Tulane   –   9 – 3 – 0
Memphis State   –   8 – 3 – 0
Tampa   –   8 – 3 – 0
Boston College   –   7 – 4 – 0
South Carolina   –   7 – 4 – 0
Utah State   –   7 – 4 – 0
Air Force   –   6 – 4 – 0
Southern Miss   –   6 – 4 – 1
Northern Illinois   –   6 – 5 – 0
Rutgers   –   6 – 5 – 0
West Virginia   –   6 – 5 – 0
Pittsburgh   –   6 – 5 – 1
Colgate   –   5 – 5 – 0
Dayton   –   5 – 5 – 1
Xavier   –   5 – 5 – 1
Georgia Tech   –   5 – 6 – 0
Holy Cross   –   5 – 6 – 0
Miami (FL)   –   5 – 6 – 0
Cincinnati   –   4 – 7 – 0
Marshall   –   4 – 7 – 0
Navy   –   4 – 7 – 0
Southern Illinois   –   3 – 7 – 1
Villanova   –   3 – 8 – 0
Syracuse   –   2 – 9 – 0
Virginia Tech   –   2 – 9 – 0
Army   –   0 – 10 – 0
Florida State   –   0 – 11 – 0
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1973 Air Force Falcons football team represented the United States Air Force Academy as an independent during the 1973 NCAA Division I football season. Led by 16th-year head coach Ben Martin, the Falcons compiled a record of 6–4 for the third consecutive season and were outscored by their opponents 239–223. Air Force played their home games at Falcon Stadium in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Schedule

DateTimeOpponentSiteTVResultAttendanceSource
September 222:57 p.m.Oregon
ABCW 24–1734,541[1]
September 291:30 p.m.New Mexico
  • Falcon Stadium
  • Colorado Springs, CO
W 10–633,390[2]
October 61:57 p.m.No. 7 Penn State
  • Falcon Stadium
  • Colorado Springs, CO
ABCL 9–1937,077[3]
October 13at No. 17 Colorado
L 17–3850,115[4]
October 2012:02 p.m.at Navy
L 6–4230,076[5]
October 271:33 p.m.Davidson
  • Falcon Stadium
  • Colorado Springs, CO
W 41–1934,682[6]
November 31:01 p.m.Army
  • Falcon Stadium
  • Colorado Springs, CO (Commander-in-Chief's Trophy)
W 43–1041,542[7]
November 101:02 p.m.Rutgers
  • Falcon Stadium
  • Colorado Springs, CO
W 31–1427,149[8]
November 172:30 p.m.at No. 19 Arizona
W 27–2639,733[9]
November 2211:30 a.m.at No. 5 Notre Dame
ABCL 15–4857,236[10]

[11][12]

Game summaries

Penn State

See also: 1973 Penn State Nittany Lions football team
Penn State vs. Air Force
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Air Force 3 0 069
#7 Penn State 0 13 6019

at Falcon Stadium • Colorado Springs, CO

  • Date: Saturday, October 6, 1973
  • Game attendance: 37,077
Game information
First Quarter
  • AFA — Gary Lawson 44-yard field goal
Second Quarter
  • PSU — Gary Hayman 38-yard pass from Tom Shuman (Reihner kick)
  • PSU — John Cappelletti 4-yard run (kick failed)
Third Quarter
  • PSU — John Cappelletti 8-yard run (kick failed)
Fourth Quarter
  • AFA — Billy Berry 45-yard pass from Rich Haynie (kick failed)
Team Category Player Statistics
AFA Passing Rich Haynie TD pass
Rushing
Receiving Billy Berry 45-yard TD reception
PSU Passing Tom Shuman TD pass to Gary Hayman
Rushing John Cappelletti 184 Rush Yds, 2 TD
Receiving Gary Hayman 38-yard TD reception

Penn State defeated Air Force 19–9 on October 6, 1973, in a regionally televised game at Falcon Stadium in Colorado Springs. The Nittany Lions were held scoreless for more than a quarter by a quick and physical Air Force defense, which took an early 3–0 lead on Gary Lawson’s 44-yard field goal. Penn State broke through midway through the second quarter when quarterback Tom Shuman connected with Gary Hayman on a 38-yard touchdown pass.

Only 34 seconds later, following an Air Force fumble, John Cappelletti scored on a four-yard run to extend the lead. Cappelletti added his second touchdown early in the third quarter on an eight-yard run after Penn State marched 80 yards in seven plays following an end-zone interception by defensive back Jim Bradley. Air Force did not score again until the final period, when Rich Haynie threw a 45-yard touchdown pass to Billy Berry.

Cappelletti rushed for a then career-high 184 yards and two touchdowns, leading Penn State to its fourth straight victory and improving the Nittany Lions to 4–0 on the season.

[13]

References

  1. ^ "Oregon rally dies on fumble". The Columbian. September 23, 1973. Retrieved September 23, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ^ "Air Force nips Lobos". The Arizona Republic. September 30, 1973. Retrieved October 9, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ "Penn State beats Air Force 19–9". The Daily Advertiser. October 7, 1973. Retrieved September 23, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ "Buffs smash Air Force". Fort Collins Coloradoan. October 14, 1973. Retrieved September 23, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ "Navy paddles Falcons, 42–6". The Sunday Oregonian. October 21, 1973. Retrieved September 23, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "Milodragovich runs wild for Air Force". The Montana Standard. October 28, 1973. Retrieved August 28, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ "Air Force wallops Cadets". The Arizona Daily Star. November 4, 1973. Retrieved September 23, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ Woodburn, Larry (November 11, 1973). "AFA Outguns Rutgers 31-14". Colorado Springs Gazette-Telegraph. Boston, Mass. p. 1E – via Newspapers.com. Attendance figure in "Falcons, 31-14". The Arizona Republic. Phoenix, Ariz. November 11, 1973. p. D4.
  9. ^ "Air Force thwarts Arizona upset bid". News-Pilot. November 18, 1973. Retrieved October 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "Irish feast on Falcons". The News and Observer. November 23, 1973. Retrieved September 23, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ "1973 Air Force Falcons Schedule and Results". Sports-Reference. Retrieved November 27, 2017.
  12. ^ "1973-74 Air Force Falcons; Schedule/Results". National Collegiate Athletic Association. Retrieved May 16, 2025.
  13. ^ "Penn State beats Air Force 19–9". The Daily Advertiser. October 7, 1973. Retrieved September 23, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.