It’s always advantageous in sports to have the more talented team — or, in college sports, the more successful program.
But no one wants to be the favorite.
Coaches and players run, screaming, from favored status as if it were a horror-film bogeyman. Being the favorite can lead to complacency. The sense that no one believes in you, whether real or perceived, can be a powerful motivational force.
Air Force is favored by 14 points over South Alabama in Friday’s Nova Home Loans Arizona Bowl at Arizona Stadium. Although they insist it’s irrelevant, being favored is an uncomfortable and unwanted position for the Falcons.
Air Force views itself as a perpetual underdog in the FBS universe, a service academy bound to strict academic standards and largely bereft of elite-level athletes.
Asked Thursday if he was disappointed in his 3-5 record in bowl games, Air Force coach Troy Calhoun said: “No sir. We’d be elated if we could go to one bowl game. We’re working hard to try to build a program at the Air Force Academy. It’s very, very tough to do.”
The Arizona Bowl will mark the Falcons’ ninth postseason appearance in 10 years under Calhoun, who has done his best Lou Holtz impression all week — downplaying Air Force’s accomplishments while praising South Alabama for its “extraordinary” talent level, the way it “dominated” San Diego State and how it has “a bunch of three- and four-star recruits.”
Don’t tell the Falcons they’re favorites. They don’t want to hear it — especially after losing as double-digit favorites three times in a row in October.
“Every week is a title bout for us, honestly,” Air Force senior running back Jacobi Owens said. “There’s nobody that’s not trying to give us their best game, because nobody wants to lose to little old Air Force. That’s exactly how they think of us.”
No one from South Alabama would say such a thing. The upstart Jaguars are eager to embrace the underdog role. It has served them well.
South Alabama is about to complete its fifth season as an FBS program and its eighth with any sort of football team at all. In 2016, the Jaguars became giant-killers.
South Alabama opened the season with a 21-20 upset over Mississippi State. It was the Jaguars’ first victory over an SEC school. They were 28-point underdogs.
About a month later, South Alabama beat then-No. 19 San Diego State 42-24. It was the Jaguars’ first victory over a ranked opponent. They were 19ƒ-point underdogs.
“Those are games we’ll remember a long time,” South Alabama coach Joey Jones said. “I’ll never forget beating Mississippi State. Never. When you’re at a place like South Alabama, it’s a special thing. We’re a young program trying to make our way.
“Any time you have somebody tell you can’t do something, if you’re a competitor, you obviously want to prove them wrong. I think that’s the mindset of most competitors. We understand that we’re playing a quality team. We know that Air Force has got a great program. But I also believe in our players. I also believe in what we’ve done.”
There are reasons South Alabama is a heavy underdog in the Arizona Bowl. The Jaguars have lost 10 starters to season-ending injuries, many from their lines. They went 6-6 during the regular season, including 2-6 in the Sun Belt. The Falcons are 9-3.
The two schools have faced one common opponent this season, Georgia State. The Falcons beat the Panthers 48-14. The Jaguars beat them 13-10 (at home, on homecoming).
Additionally, with the proximity of Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, the Falcons are expected to have a sizable home-field advantage at Arizona Stadium.
Again, it’s a position with which South Alabama is familiar — and one in which it has thrived. The Jaguars’ roster is filled with hungry castoffs, including 19 junior-college transfers, who arrived on campus eager to prove themselves. That determination remains an integral part of their makeup.
“There are a lot of guys on our team that may have missed opportunities before in life,” said South Alabama senior tailback Dami Ayoola, a one-time Arizona commit who played at Arizona Western College. “It just brings us together every time we’re faced with a challenge.”
South Alabama trailed Mississippi State and San Diego State entering the fourth quarter. The Jaguars outscored the Bulldogs and Aztecs by a combined 35-0 in the final period.
Jones also cautioned against underestimating the Sun Belt Conference. The league is 4-1 in bowl games. Four of South Alabama’s six conference losses came by seven or fewer points.
“We were two or three plays from having a nine-win season,” Jones said. “We’ve had a really good year. We’re a hair away from having a tremendous year.”
The Sun Belt has contributed to a run of upsets during bowl season. Entering Thursday’s games, underdogs were 8-9 straight up and 15-2 against the spread in the previous 17 bowl games.
It’s always difficult to predict which side will be more motivated in a bowl. Air Force has talked about sending its 32-member senior class out in style. The 2016 Falcons also have an opportunity to secure the school’s second 10-win season since 1998.
South Alabama, meanwhile, is seeking the first bowl victory in program history.
“We have a chance,” Ayoola said, “to do something legendary.”
