<p>Air Force coach Calhoun wants fans to go to bowl game
By JAKE SCHALLER
THE GAZETTE
December 9, 2007 - 11:39PM</p>
<p>Air Force coach Troy Calhoun has been wearing many different hats since the Falcons¹ regular-season finale Nov. 17.</p>
<p>He¹s donned his coaching hat in practices for the Dec. 31 Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl game against Cal in Fort Worth, Texas. He¹s worn his recruiting hat, hitting the road to gather his first true class for the program.</p>
<p>He¹s put on a marketing cap as well, encouraging Air Force fans and alumni to buy tickets for the bowl game.</p>
<p>Calhoun wrote a letter to Air Force supporters and has talked about the importance of bowl ticket sales almost every time he¹s been interviewed. There was even a video message from Calhoun posted on the Air Force athletic Web site.</p>
<p>“You like direct talk? Let¹s face it, for us to be able to partake in future bowl games, selling tickets is imperative,” Calhoun says on the video.</p>
<p>The number of fans a school can bring to a bowl game and its host city often is a critical factor in securing invitations from bowls. Air Force has a reputation for not ³traveling² well, selling 1,934 tickets for the 2000 Silicon Valley Bowl in Fresno, Calif., and just 1,259 for the 2002 San Francisco Bowl.</p>
<p>Navy, meanwhile, has sold about 83,000 tickets combined for its past four bowl games.</p>
<p>The impact of how a team travels might have been evident had Mountain West Conference-champion BYU been able to sneak into a BCS bowl game. In that case, officials from several bowls said, the Las Vegas Bowl, which has first choice of bowl-eligible Mountain West teams, would have passed over the second-place Falcons and selected Utah, which tied for third place in the league.</p>
<p>Calhoun said he thinks it’s possible to alter the academy¹s reputation in a year.</p>
<p>“But it puts a lot on our graduates, especially, and our fans,” he said.</p>
<p>They are responding. As of Saturday evening, Air Force had sold approximately 6,400 tickets, according to Chris Peludat, the academy’s assistant athletic director tickets.</p>
<p>The Falcons have offered half-priced tickets ($20) to Air Force graduates, active and retired military personnel, season ticket holders and cadet parents. Active duty and retired military are eligible for one free ticket with the purchase of at least one ticket.</p>
<p>Air Force is asking for fans who won¹t be able to attend to lend their support by buying tickets for cadets and enlisted soldiers at 10 bases in Texas, Louisiana and Oklahoma.</p>
<p>Those tickets can be purchased for $20 on the athletic Web site (<a href=“http://www.goairforcefalcons.com)%5B/url%5D”>www.goairforcefalcons.com)</a>. The tickets will be distributed by the academy, and those who buy them will be sent a letter documenting the purchases as tax-deductible. About 1,300 of these tickets have been sold, Peludat said.</p>
<p>Air Force is required to purchase at least 10,000 tickets at $40 each as part of the bowl contract. Calhoun has set the bar higher, saying “there ought to be 18,000 people that are wearing blue and silver down there.”</p>