The Wyoming Cowboy defense kept Air Force’s prolific running game in check, but the Falcons defense forced three Wyoming turnovers on Saturday afternoon in Colorado Springs; Air Force took the regular season finale 20-6 at Falcon Stadium.

“We knew going in [that] this is, I believe, the most complete Air Force team that I have seen since I have been the head coach,” UW head coach Craig Bohl said. “I told [Air Force Coach] Troy Calhoun that before the game. We were going to have a hard time moving the football and we certainly did.”

Wyoming mustered 225 yards of total offense for the game in a contest that saw wind gusts of 40 miles per hour.

“We played hard, we can probably execute a little bit better than what we did,” Bohl said. “It was a great effort, but we can certainly play better. We are going to move forward. I know a bunch of guys are disappointed in the locker room. This is a big ball game for our program. It’s a big game for Air Force as well. Hats off to them; they won. I told our guys to keep their heads up and move forward.”

The Falcons, who came into the game averaging 304 rushing yards per game, were held to 162 yards on the ground and 305 yards of total offense.

The Pokes’ defense was led by safety Alijah Halliburton with 13 tackles. He has 119 tackles this season. Senior Logan Wilson and junior Garrett Crall added 10 tackles each; for Wilson, a finalist for the Butkus award, he now has 414 career tackles. Meanwhile, senior kicker Cooper Rothe became UW’s all-time field goal leader with two on the day, pushing his career total to 58.

Freshman quarterback Levi Williams led the Pokes with a career-high 79 rushing yards. He also added 84 yards passing for the game. Raghib Ismail, Jr. added three catches for 41 yards to lead the Pokes while top rusher Xazavian Valladay was held to 38 yards rushing.

The Falcons opened the second quarter with the first score of the game on a 1-yard run from DJ Hammond. It was an impressive drive that went 16 plays, 73-yards for 8:42. The Falcons held the ball for over 12 minutes in the first quarter.

The Cowboys recovered a fumble inside Falcon territory in the second frame, but could not convert on a fourth down play, as the Falcons took a 7-0 lead into the half. The Falcons offense recorded 134 yards of total offense with the Pokes countering with 78 yards.

The Pokes opened the second half with a 38-yard rush from Williams to the Air Force 40-yard line. But the drive stalled, as the Falcons picked up an interception. The Falcons added a field goal from 31 yards after the turnover to take a 10-0 lead with 5:51 left in the third quarter.

The Pokes got on the board in the fourth quarter with a 26-yard field goal from Rothe. It capped a 16-play drive that went 66 yards and lasted 7:42.

Rothe pulled ahead of former Poke Sean Fleming on Wyoming’s all-time field goal list by connecting on a 23-yard field goal to make it 13-6 contest with 2:58 left in the game. The field goal was set up by a 58-yard kick return from Tyler Hall, the NCAA’s active leader in returns.

However, the Falcons followed that kick with a 75-yard touchdown pass to seal the contest, 20-6. The Falcons moved to 10-2 overall and 7-1 in the MW, as the Pokes fell to 7-5 overall and 4-4 in the conference.

Air Force was led by quarterback DJ Hammond, who went 5-of-6 passing for 121 yards with a touchdown. He also rushed for 35 yards for the game.

The Cowboys will now wait to see where they will play their final game of the 2019 season, as bowl invitations will be sent out on Sunday.