John Lee Eldridge III goes the distance, capping Air Force's rally past Wyoming

Updated Oct. 14, 2023 10:44 p.m. ET

Associated Press

AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. (AP) — John Lee Eldridge III raced 58 yards for the go-ahead score with 2:17 remaining and Air Force rallied from a halftime deficit to defeat Wyoming 34-27 in a battle for first place in the Mountain West Conference on Saturday night.

The long touchdown came after John Hoyland missed a 52-yard field goal for Wyoming. Eldridge scored on the third play following the miss and Air Force (6-0, 4-0) stopped Wyoming (5-2, 2-1) on downs on the ensuing possession.

The win kept the Falcons alone in first place as they rallied from deficits of 14-0 in the first quarter and 21-17 at halftime.

The Falcons took the second-half kickoff and drove 75 yards in 17 plays, taking 10:13 off the clock. Quarterback Zac Larrier's 1-yard touchdown run gave Air Force a 24-21 lead and the Falcons added a Matthew Dapore 43-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter.

Andrew Peasley threw his third touchdown pass of the game for Wyoming and the score was tied at 27 after the extra-point attempt was blocked.

Larrier led Air Force with 109 yards rushing and was 6-of-9 passing for 58 yards. Emmanuel Michel added 97 of the Falcons' 356 yards on the ground.

Peasley was 15-of-25 passing for 212 yards. He also had a 1-yard run for the game's first score.

In taking a 21-17 halftime lead, Wyoming gained 267 yards and was 9 of 10 on third down. The Cowboys finished with 321 total yards and were 0 for 5 on third down in the second half.

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AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/college-football and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll