1959 Air Force Falcons football team

The 1959 Air Force Falcons football team represented the United States Air Force Academy as an independent during the 1959 NCAA University Division football season. Led by second-year head coach Ben Martin, the Falcons played their home games at DU Stadium in Denver and Folsom Field in Boulder, Colorado. They outscored their opponents 160–124 and finished the season with a record of 5–4–1.

1959 Air Force Falcons football
Conference	Independent
Record	5–4–1
Head coach	Ben Martin (2nd season)
Captain	Howard Bronson
Home stadium	DU Stadium
Seasons ← 1958 1960 →

1959 NCAA University Division independents football records

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 1 Syracuse			–					11	–	0	–	0
No. 12 Penn State			–					9	–	2	–	0
Oregon			–					8	–	2	–	0
Rutgers			–					6	–	3	–	0
Detroit			–					6	–	4	–	0
Holy Cross			–					6	–	4	–	0
Miami (FL)			–					6	–	4	–	0
Oklahoma State			–					6	–	4	–	0
No. 20 Pittsburgh			–					6	–	4	–	0
Washington State			–					6	–	4	–	0
Boston College			–					5	–	4	–	0
Pacific (CA)			–					5	–	4	–	0
Air Force			–					5	–	4	–	1
Navy			–					5	–	4	–	1
Army			–					4	–	4	–	1
No. 17 Notre Dame			–					5	–	5	–	0
Boston University			–					4	–	5	–	0
Florida State			–					4	–	6	–	0
San Jose State			–					4	–	6	–	0
Texas Tech			–					4	–	6	–	0
Dayton			–					3	–	7	–	0
Marquette			–					3	–	7	–	0
Oregon State			–					3	–	7	–	0
Colgate			–					2	–	7	–	0
Idaho			–					1	–	9	–	0
Villanova			–					1	–	9	–	0
Rankings from AP Poll

This marked the first year that the Falcons faced Army, resulting in a respectable 13–13 tie before a crowd of 67,000 at Yankee Stadium in New York City on Halloween.^[1] The two academies traditionally met in odd-numbered years (except for 1961) until 1971 and have played annually in the competition (with Navy) for the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy, which was first awarded in 1972.

After the Army game, the Falcons held a record of 4–1–1, but they experienced a downturn in November, losing three out of four games.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 26	at Wyoming		War Memorial Stadium Laramie, WY	W 20–7
October 3	at Trinity (TX)	No. 18	Alamo Stadium San Antonio, TX	W 27–6
October 10	Idaho	No. 18	DU Stadium Denver, CO	W 21–0	17,393	^[2]^[3]
October 17	at Oregon	No. 17	Multnomah Stadium Portland, OR	L 3–20	29,162	^[4]^[5]^[6]
October 23	at UCLA		Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA	W 20–7		^[7]
October 31	vs. Army		Yankee Stadium Bronx, NY (rivalry)	T 13–13	67,000	^[1]
November 7	at Missouri	No. 18	Memorial Stadium Columbia, MO	L 0–13	32,000	^[8]
November 14	Arizona		Folsom Field Boulder, CO	W 22–15	8,500	^[9]
November 21	New Mexico		DU Stadium Denver, CO	L 27–28		^[10]^[11]
November 28	at Colorado		Folsom Field Boulder, CO	L 7–15	40,000	^[12]
Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

^[13]

References

1. "Air Academy battles Army to tie Yankee Stadium". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. November 1, 1959. p. 4, sports.
2. "Air Force strafes Vandals". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. October 11, 1959. p. 9.
3. Missildine, Harry (October 11, 1959). "Air Force flies over, through Idaho, 21-0". Spokesman-Review). Spokane, Washington). p. 1, sports.
4. Strite, Dick (October 16, 1959). "Oregon, Air Force match unbeaten grid records in Portland Saturday". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). p. 2B.
5. Strite, Dick (October 18, 1959). "No 'milk run' for Air Force! Ducks by 20-3". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). p. 1B.
6. "Ducks halt Airacad". Spokesman-Review). Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. October 18, 1959. p. 2, sports.
7. "Falcons claim 20-7 victory over Bruins". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. October 24, 1959. p. 7.
8. "Falcons lose to Missouri". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. November 8, 1959. p. 3B.
9. "Falcons nip Arizona, 22-15, in close tilt". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. November 15, 1959. p. 4, sports.
10. "Lobos nip Air Force in wild game, 28-27". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. November 22, 1959. p. 3, sports.
11. "Air Force shaded". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. November 22, 1959. p. 2B.
12. "Air Force beaten by Colorado aerials". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. November 29, 1959. p. 3B.
13. "1959 Air Force Falcons Schedule and Results". Sports-Reference. Retrieved December 9, 2017.