At high noon Saturday, Troy Calhoun will undertake the demanding duty of replacing a legend.

When the Falcons face South Carolina State in the opener at Falcon Stadium, Calhoun will be calling the shots on the Air Force Academy sideline, not Fisher DeBerry.

DeBerry retired in December as the winningest coach in academy history with 169 victories in 23 seasons.

Calhoun, a former Air Force quarterback, is the sixth coach in school history and the first graduate to lead the program.

The debut of the Calhoun era will usher in plenty of changes for Falcons fans to scrutinize.

Offense

• Triple option: Abandoned in favor of a more balanced attack, though option plays will remain a part of the offense.

• Quarterback: Senior Shawn Carney will call a lot of plays from the shotgun, and his abilities as a passer will be on display with Calhoun targeting 23 to 25 attempts a game.

• Tailbacks: They will be workhorses, getting most of the carries.

• In a hurry: Calhoun plans to use a no-huddle offense at times, figuring there is too much time wasted in a huddle.

• Game plan: About the first 15 plays will be scripted.

Defense

• Attack: Bend-don't-break philosophy left with previous coaching staff. Look for an aggressive 3-4 scheme that will feature blitzes from everywhere on the field.

• In your face: Soft coverages have been relegated to past. "I just think you have to initiate the action on defense," Calhoun said. "You have to play defense like you are playing on offense."

Go West, young man

Air Force will use the bench on the west side of the stadium so the Falcons won't be facing the sun during afternoon games and will be closer to a majority of fans. The visitors will be in front of cadets.

Numbers game

21 seasons since Air Force has returned a kickoff for a touchdown. Scott Thomas scored on a 100-yard kickoff return against Utah on Oct. 26, 1985. The new rule moving kickoffs to the 30 is expected to open up the return game.

He said it

"We're going to attack on defense. We're going to be a pressure team, be in your face and force an offense into mistakes and not just sit back on our heels. You've got to make the offense turn the ball over to be effective on defense."

Tim DeRuyter, defensive coordinator

Stand-in for opener

Air Force and Northern Colorado delayed resumption of their series, so South Carolina State replaced the Bears on the schedule.

• The school: South Carolina State, a historically black university in Orangeburg, S.C., has an enrollment of 4,700 and is an NCAA Division I-AA team in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference.

• Noteworthy: The Bulldogs, 7-4 last season, commemorate 100 years of football at the school this season.

• He said it: "It's a pretty safe bet that we have as much as we can handle. Now that it's here and you actually have to do it, it got to be a bigger challenge." - Oliver "Buddy" Pough, South Carolina State coach.

Dressed for success

Uniforms will be new, with no numbers on the shoulders. The Falcons will wear blue tops and silver pants at home and all white on the road. The team will wear patches to honor several Air Force units.

Kickoffs from 30

With the strong leg of kicker Ryan Harrison, the Falcons hope to take advantage of a new rule that moves kickoffs to the 30. "It does have a way of injecting even more activity and action into the game," Calhoun said. "It helps to have a guy that has perhaps a more powerful leg."

Team approach

After the departure of offensive coordinator Tim Horton to Arkansas and special teams coach Brian Schneider to the Oakland Raiders, Calhoun will use a coaching-by-committee approach this season.

• Clay Hendrix and Blane Morgan are co-offensive coordinators, but Calhoun will call most of the plays.

• Three assistants will share special- teams duties. Defensive line coach Ron Burton is overseeing kickoff coverage, running backs coach Jamal Singleton is in charge of kickoff returns and assistant coach Brian Knorr will coach punt teams.

Last word

"There's no doubt we have something to prove. I felt like we were a big disappointment last year. There are great expectations this year, a new coaching staff, new offense and defense, and we're excited to go."

Bobby Giannini, senior safety. The Falcons are 13-21 the past three seasons, 7-10 at home.

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