October 1, 2008 3:23 PM

Air Force hopes to end Navy's dominance

AIR FORCE ACADEMY -- It's been six years since the coveted Commander-in-Chief's Trophy that goes to the winning school of the service academy football games between Air Force, Navy and Army has been won by the Falcons.

That fact hasn't been overlooked as Air Force prepares to play Navy Saturday at Falcon Stadium in the first outing of this season's CIC games this season.

Air Force once dominated the round-robin competition. The Falcons have won the CIC Trophy 16 times since CIC Trophy series was launched in 1972.

The Falcons 47-25-0 record and number of trophies won is the best of the three schools but Navy has assumed possession of the trophy for the past five seasons.

"When you walk around the hallways this week, there is a little different vibe that goes on amonst the cadet wing," coach Troy Calhoun said. "I think the history is important, to make your guys have some understanding and appreciation for what goes into winning the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy.. It is a unique championship. When you go play in the games for those 3 1/2 hours, they are great contests, very fierce contests.

"When it was first established in 1972, the first 10 years we never had the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy. Then we invested significantly probably starting right around 1980 in recuriting and allocation in terms of what what we did on a weekly basis and what you saw was some momentum and it began in 1982. In terms of the Trophy, it was able to be at the Air Force Academy for quite some time."

Calhoun claims he hasn't emphasized Navy's current 11-game winning streak against Air Force and Army but that's something he doesn't have to mention.

"Not in terms of bringing it forth but it is something that's very meaningful," he said...

Posted by Jim Benton at 3:23 PM | Comments (1)