AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. >> Air Force place-kicker Luke Strebel hadn’t missed a field goal in a Mountain West Conference-record 22 attempts over two seasons, with kicks of 47 and 42 yards earlier in the game, the longest streak in the nation.
HITTING THE HEIGHTS
Highest elevation college stadiums
1. 7,215 ft.: Memorial Stadium, Laramie, Wyo.
2. 6,621 ft.: Falcon Stadium, Air Force Academy, Colo.
3. 5,360 ft.: Folsom Field, Boulder, Colo.
4. 5,190 ft.: Hughes Stadium, Fort Collins, Colo.
But when the Falcons put him in position to win the game in regulation with a 32-yarder as time expired, Strebel inexplicably missed wide right.
Or, maybe not so mysteriously. “I think we might have (gotten to him) a little earlier,” said Hawaii special teams coordinator Mayur Chaudhari afterward. “We got a piece of one of his earlier kicks and our jumpers were coming on.”
For the play Chaudhari inserted 6-foot-4 Marcus Kemp and 6-foot-6 Davasyia Hagger as jumpers. “That was a credit to Ikaika (Woolsey) and those guys,” Chaudhari said. “Ikaika told them they should talk to me about going in.”
Chaudhari’s own kicker, Rigo Sanchez, made good on both his field-goal attempts, 25- and 35-yarders, and is 8-for-8 this season with a long of 55 yards.
“Rigo was ready to go in and win it for us if we needed him,” Chaudhari said. “I really think he could have kicked one 60 yards — or 65 — the way he was bombing them (in practice).”
Sanchez averaged 44.8 yards per punt and 64.6 yards on kickoffs with four touchbacks.
Standing PAT
Head coach Nick Rolovich said UH considered going for a 2-point conversion after scoring in the first overtime to close to 27-26 but decided against it.
“Maybe if we were the second team up (the second OT), but not as the first one,” Rolovich said.
UH kicked the extra point to tie. Then, with the ball to start the second overtime, UH scored on a 25-yard pass from Dru Brown to Marcus Kemp.
Offensive coordinator Brian Smith said, “That’s Rolo’s call and we were prepared to go either way. But we both agreed on it (the PAT).”
Rolovich said he did not consider allowing Air Force to score late in regulation to give the ’Bows more time to mount a counter drive. “No way,” Rolovich said.
2018 schedule
UH athletic director David Matlin confirmed he has has completed a 13-game schedule for 2018.
The addition of Duquesne, a Football Championship Subdivision opponent for Sept. 22, 2018, gives the Rainbow Warriors a nonconference lineup of Navy (Sept. 1), Rice (Sept. 8), at Army (Sept. 15) and at Brigham Young (Nov. 17).
It will be the first game west of the Rockies for the Pittsburgh-based Dukes since 1947.
