In 1978, the Air Force football team had suffered four straight losing years under longtime coach Ben Martin. Coach Martin decided it was time to retire and become a color analyst for ABC Sports. He was succeeded by Bill Parcels, who only coached the Falcons for one year before leaving for a job with the New York Giants. The Falcons then hired Parcell’s offensive coordinator, Ken Hatfield as the new head coach. The following year, Hatfield hired an assistant coach from Appalachian State, Fisher DeBerry, to be his quarterback coach, promoting him to offensive coordinator the following year. DeBerry immediately got to work converting the offense to the triple option.
Air Force’s Best Season: 1985
