Wes Cobb has a fantastic opportunity ahead of him.
Air Force has been superb at running the ball for decades, and under Troy Calhoun, the tailback position has become a featured spot. The quarterback and fullback used to be the stars in Fisher DeBerry’s option attack, but Calhoun prefers more zone-blocking plays.
Tailback Asher Clark graduated as the second-leading rusher in school history after back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons.
Clark is gone, and there was no obvious replacement on the roster. The Falcons got creative and inserted Cobb at tailback in the spring. Last year’s starting fullback impressed the staff.
“He doesn’t fumble; he’s tough; his teammates respect him because they know he’s going to be there,” Calhoun said. “He’s a dependable guy.”
While the Falcons will keep all options open in training camp, Cobb will probably start camp at tailback and is the top option to begin the season at that position.
The first part of the move was that Air Force has good depth at fullback, even with Cobb at tailback. Mike DeWitt was a more productive runner than Cobb as a backup last season, and backups like Broam Hart and Scott Day can provide depth behind DeWitt.
The transition to tailback shouldn’t be too tough for Cobb, because that’s where he began his career at Air Force. He switched to fullback last year because the Falcons were losing their starter at the position and had no obvious replacement.
This spring, Cobb had to get used to looking for big plays at tailback instead of being in the mindset to grind out tough yards at fullback.
“I joked at Mike (DeWitt) and Scott (Day) that I was going to have to dust the wheels off,” Cobb said. “Shift it down to sixth gear so I can get around the corner again, get used to that again. But I think I did that well.”
If Cobb sticks at tailback, he gives the Falcons a little more size at the position than the other backup options. He and DeWitt can be a punishing backfield considering both bring a fullback’s grit to running the ball.
If the Falcons find some new tailbacks in August, Cobb could always move to fullback. He shrugs at the suggestion. He’ll be fine — and valuable — no matter where he lines up.
“Am I a fullback or a tailback?” Cobb said.
“I just tell people I’m a running back.”