UConn spent much of Saturday chasing Air Force, and the clock never really gave the Huskies a break.
The Falcons controlled the game the way a service academy is built to do it, leaning on long possessions and a ground-heavy attack to beat UConn 35-26. By the time the second half settled in, Air Force had already turned the game into a time-draining grind, holding the ball for more than 26 minutes after halftime and shutting the door on UConn’s comeback push.
Kalieb Osborne did what he could to keep the Huskies alive. The quarterback finished 17-for-33 for 263 yards and two touchdowns as UConn dropped to 4-4. His biggest throws helped spark the rally, but the offense simply didn’t get enough chances once Air Force started milking the clock.
The damage began early, when UConn fell behind by two scores in the first quarter. That kind of hole is a tough one against Air Force, which entered the game leading the nation in time of possession. The Falcons backed up that reputation with a punishing first half from senior Kemper Hodges, who gave UConn trouble all afternoon while operating behind center and mixing in fakes that kept the defense guessing.
Hodges ran for three touchdowns before halftime, scoring from 7 yards out, then from 62, then from 3, before the Huskies began to settle in defensively. He added a fourth score later to help finish the job.
In all, he carried 35 times and accounted for 200 of Air Force’s 366 yards, with every bit of that production coming on the ground. The Falcons didn’t complete any of their three pass attempts.
UConn had a rough start on offense, going three-and-out on its first two possessions and then turning it over on downs on the third. But the Huskies found a rhythm late in the half, putting together back-to-back 10-play, 75-yard touchdown drives to trim the deficit and head into the break down 21-14.
The second half opened with Air Force doing exactly what it wanted to do. The Falcons chewed up nearly 10 minutes on their second possession after halftime, even using a fake punt during the march, and capped it with another short touchdown run at the 2:34 mark of the third quarter to stretch the lead to 28-14.
UConn answered quickly. Osborne connected with tight end Alex Godavitarne on a 55-yard touchdown pass, a strike that took just 30 seconds to erase the Falcons’ long drive. Then, after forcing a three-and-out, Kenji Christian broke free for a 46-yard rushing touchdown to open the fourth quarter and pull UConn within two, despite an earlier missed PAT and failed 2-point conversion.
But that was as close as the Huskies would get. Air Force kept the ball, kept the chains moving and kept UConn from getting enough possessions to finish the comeback.
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Kalieb Osborne did his part through the air, throwing for 263 yards and two touchdowns, and UConn avoided turnovers, but that was not enough to offset the long stretches Air Force spent dictating the pace. With a huge home test coming next, the loss leaves the Huskies with a familiar issue to sort through: how to handle an opponent that can shorten the game and keep their offense on the sideline. [Read more 🡒]
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The bigger issue was impossible to miss: Air Force kept finding room on the ground and controlling the terms of the game. UConn had chances to hang around into the closing stretch, but the finish came down to one last two-point try after Osborne was sacked, leaving the Huskies with another road loss and a reminder of how quickly a game can slip away when the defense cannot get the stops it needs. [Read more 🡒]
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