Paulson is coming to Air Force's defense

By Jim Benton, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Published October 10, 2008 at 8:11 p.m.

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Kevin Kreck / The Gazette

Air Force defensive end Jake Paulson, top left, and nose guard Ben Garland celebrate over Wyoming quarterback Dax Crum after Paulson sacked Crum during the Falcons' game against the Cowboys.

Traditionally, Air Force football has been associated with strong running attacks that usually rank among the nation's best.

This season, though, the offense has gotten a big assist from the defense, which has played well and has helped the Falcons get off to a surprisingly successful start.

"We really take a lot of pride in what we do," defensive end Jake Paulson said of the defense. "We want to change that reputation."

Air Force (3-2, 1-1 Mountain West Conference) will try to turn up the defensive heat against San Diego State (1-4, 0-1) tonight (7:30, the mtn.) at Qualcomm Stadium.

Aztecs coach Chuck Long didn't overlook the Falcons defense when talking about the matchup.

"We're playing a good Air Force team," he said. "They're playing well, they're scoring points and they're stopping people on defense."

Despite consecutive losses to Utah and Navy, Air Force ranks among the Mountain West and national defensive leaders. Air Force is fourth in the MWC and 32nd nationally in total defense (312.8 yards a game).

The Falcons are third in the conference and 45th nationally in scoring defense, and they are second and sixth, respectively, with 16 sacks.

The Falcons have forced 14 turnovers, tied for first in the MWC and tied for sixth in the country with a 1.40 turnover margin.

Paulson has been one of the defensive ringleaders this season and is the nation's leader in sacks, with seven, for a 1.40 per-game average. With nine tackles for losses and a 1.80 average, he ranks tied for fourth nationally and second in the conference.

"I've been put in a position to make a lot of plays," Paulson said. "I've been blessed to have a heck of a secondary that causes the quarterback to have to hold onto the ball. I've been blessed to play under an awesome defensive coordinator in coach (Tim) DeRuyter, and he's putting us all in position to make great plays."

For the first time this season, against Navy, which threw only two passes, Paulson didn't have a sack.

"We've had the opportunities to step up and make plays, and this year we've had a lot of people step up and make great plays," Paulson said.

Making plays is something many Air Force defenses haven't always accomplished.

"We try to create a sense of urgency all the time on the defensive side of the ball," Paulson said. "We really try to make teams know we are coming after them.

"We're not going to be sitting back, and when they come at us were going to start tackling and putting some pressure on them and see how they react."

Big-play Paulson

Air Force defensive end Jake Paulson's game-by-game statistics this season:

Opponent Statistics

Southern Utah: 4 tackles, 2.0 sacks, 1 tackle for loss, safety.

Wyoming: 3 tackles, 1.5 sacks, forced fumble.

Houston: 7 tackles, 2.5 sacks, pass deflection.

Utah: 3 tackles, 1.0 sack, 25-yard fumble return for TD.

Navy: 7 tackles, 1 tackle for loss, fumble recovery.

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