PHOENIX – Max Borghi collected the handoff from Anthony Gordon, lifted his head and surveyed the area around him. Washington State’s sophomore, generally a gifted runner in tight spaces, had only a few yards to go but nowhere to maneuver as a wall of white jerseys collapsed on him.
On fourth-and-goal from the 2-yard line, Borghi gained only half the yardage he needed before Air Force’s Jeremy Fejedelem and Jake Ksiazek made a collective tackle to stop Borghi 1 yard short.
It was only just the eighth play of the Cheez-It Bowl, at a point in the game when the Cougars had more than enough time to recover from early mistakes, but few moments loomed larger in a 31-21 loss to the Falcons on Friday night in front of 34,105 fans at Chase Field.