Air Force Falcons Continue Winning Streak, Climb in Power Rankings

It's not about how you start, but about how you finish, and the Air Force Falcons are on track for a strong finish to 2024.

Nov 2, 2024; West Point, New York, USA; Air Force Falcons quarterback Quentin Hayes (7) runs with the ball against the Army Black Knights during the second half at Michie Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Danny Wild-Imagn Images / Danny Wild-Imagn Images

The Air Force Falcons would like everyone to remember that a college football season is a marathon, not a sprint.

While that may be the case, the Falcons did begin to increase their pace on the year much too late to matter, though it could lead to momentum being carried over into 2025.

After starting the year with a 1-7 record overall, Air Force has turned things around after rattling off their third win in as many weeks to improve their record to a much more pleasant 4-7 with one game left to play.

The streak has seen the program's stock rise in the eyes of the media, with Chris Vannini of The Athletic continuing to raise the Falcons from the doldrums of his weekly college football power rankings, having the team in 114th this week after ranking 123rd in last week's iteration.

A 5-7 final record for 2024 is not out of the cards, as the last game of the year for Air Force will come against the San Diego State Aztecs who hold a 3-8 record and are ranked 123rd in Vannini's power rankings.

There are now only six programs ahead of the Falcons in Vannini's power rankings that hold worse records, and some do have a case for their ranking while others do not.

Perhaps the two most egregious teams that rank ahead of Air Force would be the Purdue Boilermakers and the Florida State Seminoles who hold a combined record of 3-19, with the Boilermakers having a 1-10 record and the Seminoles having a 2-9 record.

While Florida State did win this week to improve to 2-9, the win came against the Charleston Southern Buccaneers, an FCS program that served as a tune-up game ahead of their rivalry matchup with the Florida Gators.

The Seminoles' other win did come against the California Golden Bears, a team with a 6-5 record now, but that game was played in September and they only won, 14-9.

For Purdue, their only win of the year came against the Indiana State Sycamores, another FCS team, and it came in August as the Boilermakers' first contest of 2024.

While it is a hard one to make, there is an argument that could be made that the Falcons could beat both of the Power Four teams discussed above, and they should without question be ranked higher than them in any power rankings.

With one game left to play, Air Force has another chance to prove that case as well as build more momentum for the 2025 season.