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1983 Air Force Falcons football team

The 1983 Air Force Falcons football team represented the United States Air Force Academy in the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) during the 1983 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their 5th season under head coach Ken Hatfield, Air Force played its home games at Falcon Stadium in Colorado Springs and finished the regular season at 9–2 (5–2 in WAC, runner-up). The Falcons were invited to play in the Independence Bowl and defeated Ole Miss 9–3.[1][2] With a 10–2 record, Air Force climbed to thirteenth in the final AP poll.

1983 Air Force Falcons football
Independence Bowl champion
ConferenceWestern Athletic Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 15
APNo. 13
Record10–2 (5–2 WAC)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorFisher DeBerry (3rd season)
Offensive schemeWishbone triple option
Defensive coordinatorFred Goldsmith (2nd season)
Base defense3–4
Home stadiumFalcon Stadium
Seasons
← 1982
1984 →
1983 Western Athletic Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 7 BYU $ 7 – 0 – 0 11 – 1 – 0
No. 13 Air Force 5 – 2 – 0 10 – 2 – 0
Wyoming 5 – 3 – 0 7 – 5 – 0
New Mexico 4 – 3 – 0 6 – 6 – 0
Hawaii 3 – 3 – 1 5 – 5 – 1
Utah 4 – 4 – 0 5 – 6 – 0
Colorado State 4 – 4 – 0 5 – 7 – 0
San Diego State 1 – 6 – 1 2 – 9 – 1
UTEP 0 – 8 – 0 2 – 10 – 0
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll

After the season in December, Hatfield left for Arkansas, his alma mater,[3] where he succeeded Lou Holtz as head coach.[4][5] Days later, offensive coordinator Fisher DeBerry was promoted,[6] and was the Falcons' head coach for the next 23 seasons.[7]

Schedule

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DateOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendanceSource
September 3at Colorado State
W 34–1328,652
September 10Texas Tech*
ABCW 28–1326,800[8]
September 17at Wyoming
L 7–1430,194[9]
September 24BYU
  • Falcon Stadium
  • Colorado Springs, CO
L 28–4634,255
October 8at Navy*
W 44–1734,257[10]
October 15UTEP
  • Falcon Stadium
  • Colorado Springs, CO
W 37–2527,474
October 22Utah
  • Falcon Stadium
  • Colorado Springs, CO
W 33–3123,248
October 29Army*
  • Falcon Stadium
  • Colorado Springs, CO (Commander-in-Chief's Trophy)
W 41–2047,032[11]
November 5Hawaii
  • Falcon Stadium
  • Colorado Springs, CO (rivalry)
W 45–1026,501
November 19at Notre Dame*
W 23–2259,075
December 3at San Diego StateNo. 17
W 38–78,444[12]
December 10vs. Ole Miss*No. 16
W 9–341,274[13]
  • *Non-conference game
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Personnel

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1983 Air Force Falcons football team roster
Players Coaches
Offense
Pos. # Name Class
FB John Kreshner Sr
QB Bart Weiss
Defense
Pos. # Name Class
DL 96 Chris Funk Jr
DL 50 Steve Kelly Jr
DL 62 Larry Nicklas Jr
DL 74 John Ziegler So
LB Terry Maki Fr
CB Tom Rotello Fr
S Scott Thomas So
Special teams
Pos. # Name Class
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  •   Injured
  •   Redshirt

Game summaries

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Notre Dame

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Chris Funk blocked a field goal in the final seconds to preserve the win for Air Force.

Awards and honors

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  • John Kershner, 3rd Team All-American (Football News)

References

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  1. ^ "Football Schedule/Results: 1983-1984". Air Force Athletics. Archived from the original on October 8, 2013. Retrieved April 7, 2017.
  2. ^ "1983 Air Force Falcons Schedule and Results". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved April 7, 2017.
  3. ^ "Air Force's Hatfield hired by Razorbacks". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. December 23, 1983. p. 22.
  4. ^ "Tired, burned-out Holtz quits as Arkansas coach". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. December 19, 1983. p. 21.
  5. ^ "Holtz will take on Big Ten's worst". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. December 23, 1983. p. 22.
  6. ^ "AFA hires DeBerry to replace Hatfield". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. December 28, 1983. p. 4C.
  7. ^ Stapleton, Arnie (December 16, 2006). "DeBerry decides it's time to fly". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. p. B2.
  8. ^ "Air Force bombards Texas Tech". The Shreveport Times. September 11, 1983. Retrieved December 30, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ "Pokes win wishbone showdown". The Billings Gazette. Associated Press. September 18, 1983. p. 3B. Retrieved May 2, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ Jackson, James H. (October 9, 1983). "Mistake-prone Middies fall, 44-17, to Air Force". The Baltimore Sun. p. C13. Retrieved May 2, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ "Air Force Clobbers Army 41-20". The Daily Herald. United Press International. October 30, 1983. p. 11. Retrieved May 2, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ Steve Dolan (December 4, 1983). "Aztecs Finish Their Year Appropriately". The Los Angeles Times (San Diego County ed.). Los Angeles, California. p. F-1. Retrieved January 17, 2017 – via Newspapers.com. 
  13. ^ "41,000 see AFA win stormy Indy, 9–3". The Shreveport Times. December 11, 1983. Retrieved November 4, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.


 

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