UNLV held North Dakota State scoreless after halftime Saturday. Dan Mullen’s next defensive preparation begins with making sure the Rebels do not chase Air Force’s quarterback while leaving another runner free.
The Falcons can put the ball inside with the fullback, keep it with the quarterback or carry it outside. Their motion also can send a receiver across the formation while the ball goes somewhere else. UNLV’s front has to read the blocks and carry out its assignments before pursuing the player who appears to have the ball.
“You gotta be in your gap. And you gotta have your eyes in the right spot,” Mullen said Monday.
Air Force’s opening drive against Northern Illinois lasted 15 plays, covered 83 yards and used 8:02. Owen Allen, Matt Long, Rocco Conti, Gage LaDue and Evan Medders carried as the Falcons changed runners and formations. Long, a receiver, ran outside; Medders carried through the middle from shotgun. Allen finished the possession with a three-yard touchdown.
That drive asks more of UNLV than identifying the quarterback and fullback. A defender following Long’s movement still has to recognize whether Long takes the ball or draws attention away from an interior carry. A linebacker stepping toward the fullback needs the rest of the defense to retain responsibility for the quarterback and the perimeter.
On the reviewed under-center Allen sequence, a back moved across the formation before Allen carried through an interior lane. UNLV cannot let its pursuit of the moving back pull defenders away from the opening the fullback is attacking.
Hodges supplied a lead block on Medders’ four-yard touchdown and again on the quarterback’s 41-yard score, according to the broadcast call. A fullback moving toward the edge can be clearing a path for Medders rather than taking the handoff. UNLV has to read that block without allowing Long’s motion to draw every defender toward the pitch.
NIU did interrupt an early possession. Allen gained nine yards to create second-and-one at the Air Force 43, then Brady Kerperin sacked Medders for a six-yard loss. The broadcast described Medders looking to throw before tucking the ball under pressure. A four-yard gain on third-and-seven left Air Force punting.
Air Force recovered from trouble on its first drive after halftime, however. Two holding penalties helped put the Falcons in second-and-17. Mason Hayes gained 12 yards, Conti converted third-and-five with a nine-yard run, and Allen later scored from 33 yards.
Calhoun cautioned Tuesday against expecting the NIU passing total to repeat. Successful first downs and the score had allowed Air Force to continue running, he said. Against a different front or secondary, the Falcons would have to adjust.
“Each game is completely different,” Calhoun said.
Mullen also warned against treating the absence of passing yards against NIU as permission to ignore Air Force’s receivers. Medders did not attempt a pass in his first start. The Falcons’ only throw came from Kemper Hodges and fell incomplete. Earlier this season, Liam Szarka used passes to extend scoring drives against Reno and Navy before his season-ending leg injury.
UNLV experienced both threats in last year’s 51-48 win. Air Force gained 603 total yards, with Szarka passing for 175 and rushing for 136. Medders is now running the offense, but the Rebels still have to keep a defender from stepping toward the run while a receiver releases behind him.
North Dakota State gave UNLV passing situations in which pressure and coverage produced three interceptions. Air Force converted 10 of 13 third downs against NIU while attempting one pass. The Rebels have to earn the longer-yardage downs by closing the interior lane, keeping someone available for the quarterback and reaching the outside runner.
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