BY THE NUMBERS

UPDATING THE NUMBERS. Fisher DeBerry's record after 235 games, through the Northwestern game of 2003, as head coach at Air Force stands at 151-83-1(.645) overall; 72-53-1(.575) on the road or at neutral sites and 79-30(.724) in home games

DEE-FENSE, DEE-FENSE? From November 18, 1999, through this season's Northwestern game, Air Force has played thirty-eight games against division 1-A opponents. In 25 (69.4%) of those games Air Force has allowed 24 or more points to the opposition. In those 25 games when allowing 24 or more points AFA has gone 11-14(.440). In the thirteen games in which the defense has allowed fewer than twenty-four points AFA has gone 11-2(.846). When AFA limits the opposition to fewer than 24 points it wins. When AFA allows twenty-four points or more its chances to win decrease rapidly and the figures support this assessment. In these thirty-eight games against division 1-A opponents Air Force has compiled a 22-16(.579) record. On October 19, 2002, Notre Dame became the first team to defeat AFA when scoring fewer than 24 points since Utah beat the Falcons, 21-15, in the Snow Bowl on October 16, 1999. The only other game Air Force has lost since November 18, 1999, when allowing fewer than twenty-four points is the San Francisco Bowl to Virginia Tech by a 20-13 score. A CHANCE TO ADVANCE. Here is a look at the leading rushers in AFA history through the Northwestern game of the 2003 season. Chance Harridge needs 453 yards rushing to become the sixth player in AFA history to reach the 2,000 yard mark. Harridge could challenge fullback John Kershner for third place on the career rushing list. He needs to run for 1,180 more yards to surpass Kershner--an exceptional FB in his playing career--as the third leading rusher in AFA football history. Before having his day cut short due to an ejection, Harridge ran for 45 yards against Northwestern and passed Mike Thiessen on the career rushing list. If Harridge uses a cooler head against North Texas he should be able to top the 1,600 yard career level.

1. 3612 Dee Dowis
2. 3379 Beau Morgan
3. 2726 John Kershner
4. 2284 Pat Evans
4. 2284 Brian Bream
6. 1993 Greg Johnson
7. 1860 Marty Louthan
8. 1762 Jason Jones
9. 1760 Rodney Lewis
10. 1702 Rob Perez
11. 1677 Bart Weiss
12. 1633 Terry Issacson
13. 1630 Ken Wood
14. 1551 Shelby Ball
15. 1547 Chance Harridge
16. 1534 Mike Thiessen
17. 1478 Jake Campbell
18. 1470 Leotis Palmer
19. 1406 Qualario Brown
20. 1400 Scotty McKay
21. 1371 Mike Quinlan
22. 1354 Spanky Gilliam
23. 1347 Larry Thomson
24. 1296 Nakia Addison
25. 1233 Johnny Smith
26. 1129 Blane Morgan
27. 1091 Curtis Martin

The next name for which AFA fans should keep an eye peeled is that of current halfback Anthony Butler. He had a quiet start to the season carrying the ball a mere three times for twelve yards against Wofford. Against Northwestern it was another story. Butler posted his first 100 yard day with a timely effort against the Wildcats in Evanston last weekend. Butler's career totals now stand at 843 yards on 151 attempts for a 5.58 yards per carry average. He needs one hundred fifty-seven additional yards to become the 28th player to reach the one thousand yard mark in AFA history.


AND JUST FOR KICKS. Entering the 2003 season PK Joey Ashcroft was on a pace to set and/or challenge several significant place-kicking records in AFA football history. While he didn't attempt a field goal versus Wofford, Ashcroft's 25 yard boot against Northwestern provided the game's winning points with less than three minutes to play. Have a look at where he stands in some prominent categories in AFA place-kicking annals.

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AFA Career FG Percentage Leaders

FGM-FGA PCT.

1. Joey Ashcroft-current 17-20 .850
2. Jackson Whiting-1998-99 19-23 .826
3. Joe Wood-1989-91 39-49 .796
4. David Adams-1998-2000 26-34 .765
5. Carlos Mateos-1984 12-16 .750

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AFA Career FG Percentage Leaders
Career Field Goals Made

1. Dave Lawson 51 (1972-75)
2. Sean Pavlich 42 (1980-83)
3. Joe Wood 39 (1989-91)
4. Dennis Leuthaser 27 (1967-69)
5. Dave Adams 26 (1998-2000)

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AFA Career FG Percentage Leaders
With his three pointer against Northwestern, Ashcroft now has 17 FGs in his career and needs nine more to join this list. Field Goals Made in a Season 1. 19 Dave Lawson 1974
1. 19 Dave Adams 2000
3. 17 Joe Wood 1991
4. 16 Jim Sturch 1978
4. 16 Joey Ashcroft 2002

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AFA Career FG Percentage Leaders
AFA AGAINST THE POINTS. From 2001 to the present here's look at how the Falcons have fared against the point spread. Bear in mind that Las Vegas does not set a line for a game matching a division 1-A team against a division 1-AA team. In 2001, Air Force went 3-8 against the spread. In 2002, AFA went 9-4 against the point spread. The Falcons are 0-1 against the spread this year. There was no line set for the Wofford game. AFA did not cover the 7 1/2 point line against Northwestern. From the start of the 2001 season through this season's Northwestern game, the Falcons have gone 12-13 against the point spread. WHITEWASHED. Air Force posted its ninth shutout during Fisher DeBerry's tenure as head coach when it beat Wofford, 49-0, to open the 2003 season. Army (1991), The Citadel (1993), San Jose State (1996) Colorado State and Army (1997), Wake Forest (1998), Army (1999) and Tennessee Tech (2001) are the other shutouts administered by the Falcons in the DeBerry era. WEEK BY WEEK. When Air Force beat Wofford in this year's first game it raised Fisher DeBerry's record to 17-3 (.850) in season openers. Air Force has a stellar record in the second week of the season as well under DeBerry. The Falcons' win over Northwestern makes the team a strong 15-5(.750) in the DeBerry era in second games of the season. Heading into this week's game against North Texas, DeBerry's teams have posted a 12-7(.632) record when playing the third game on the schedule. Air Force will bring a 2-0 record into the game versus North Texas. It's the thirteenth time in DeBerry's twenty years as the Falcons' head coach that Air Force has started its schedule with a 2-0 record. The Falcons will be looking to craft their seventh, 3-0 start to a season under DeBerry by posting a victory over the Mean Green this coming weekend in Falcon Stadium.