Date of birth | February 20, 1971 [1] |
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Career information | |
Position(s) | Cornerback |
US college | United States Air Force Academy |
Career history | |
As player | |
1992 | Air Force Falcons |
Career highlights and awards | |
|
Carlton R. McDonald (born February 20, 1971) is a former American football player. He was a consensus All-American defensive back while playing for the Air Force Falcons football team in 1992.
McDonald attended the United States Air Force Academy at Colorado Springs, Colorado. While attending the Academy, he played at the cornerback position for the Air Force Falcons football team from 1989 to 1992 under head coach Fisher DeBerry. [2] In the 1990 Liberty Bowl, McDonald intercepted two passes, including one late in the game that he returned 40 yards for a touchdown to clinch the Falcons' 23-11 victory over Ohio State. [3]
As a senior, McDonald was selected as a consensus defensive back on the 1992 College Football All-America Team. [4] He was also selected as the Western Athletic Conference defensive player of the year in both 1991 and 1992. [2] He also finished second in the voting for the 1992 Thorpe Award, presented to the top defensive back in college football since 1986. During his playing career, he was six feet tall and weighed 195 pounds. [2]
After graduating from the Air Force Academy in 1993, McDonald served five years in the Air Force as a finance officer. He subsequently became employed by Winn-Dixie at its headquarters in Jacksonville, Florida. He also became a pilot for the Florida Air National Guard. In 2013, he was inducted into the Air Force Academy's Sports Hall of Fame. [2]
Falcon Stadium is an outdoor football stadium in the western United States, on the campus of the U.S. Air Force Academy near Colorado Springs, Colorado. It is the home field of the Air Force Falcons football and lacrosse teams of the Mountain West Conference, and also holds the academy's graduation ceremonies each spring.
The wishbone formation, also known simply as the bone, is an offensive formation in American football. The style of attack to which it gives rise is known as the wishbone offense. Like the spread offense in the 2000s to the present, the wishbone was considered to be the most productive and innovative offensive scheme in college football during the 1970s and 1980s.
Chad William Hennings is an American former football defensive tackle who played for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Air Force Falcons, earning unanimous All-American honors and winning the Outland Trophy in 1987.
James Fisher DeBerry is a retired American football player. He served as the head football coach at the United States Air Force Academy from 1984 to 2006, compiling a record of 169–109–1. DeBerry led 17 of his 23 Air Force Falcons squads to winning records and captured 12 bowl game bids. Three times his teams won the Western Athletic Conference title. Once in 1985, then in 1995, and again in 1998. DeBerry retired on December 15, 2006 with the most wins and highest winning percentage (.608) in the history of Air Force football. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame as a coach in 2011.
The Air Force Falcons football program represents the United States Air Force Academy in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level. Air Force has been a member of the Mountain West Conference since its founding in 1999. The Falcons play their home games at Falcon Stadium in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Troy Calhoun has been the team's head coach since 2007.
Ron Vanderlinden is a retired American college football coach. Vanderlinden was most recently the linebackers coach at Air Force. He served as the head football coach at the University of Maryland, College Park from 1997 to 2000, compiling a record of 15–29.
The Hawaii Rainbow Warriors football team represents the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa in NCAA Division I FBS college football. It was part of the Western Athletic Conference until July 2012, when the team joined the Mountain West Conference. From 2000 until 2013, the team was known simply as the Warriors. The Rainbow Warriors were the third team from a non automatic qualifier conference to play in a BCS bowl game. They played the Georgia Bulldogs in the 2008 Sugar Bowl and lost 41–10.
The 2002 Mountain West Conference football season was the fourth since eight former members of the Western Athletic Conference banded together to form the Mountain West Conference. Colorado State won the conference championship in 2002, the Rams' third title since the league began in 1999.
The Air Force Falcons are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the United States Air Force Academy, located in El Paso County, Colorado north of Colorado Springs. The athletic department has 17 men's and 10 women's NCAA-sanctioned teams. The current athletic director is Nathan Pine. The majority of Falcon teams compete as members of the Mountain West Conference.
The Wyoming Cowboys football program represents the University of Wyoming in college football. They compete in the Mountain West Conference of the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of NCAA Division I and have won 14 conference titles. The head coach is Jay Sawvel who is entering his first season as head coach in 2024 after previously serving as the Wyoming Defense Coordinator for the previous four seasons.
The NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), formerly known as Division I-A, is the highest level of college football in the United States. The FBS consists of the largest schools in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). As of the 2024 season, there are 10 conferences and 134 schools in FBS.
The Utah State Aggies are a college football team that competes in the Mountain West Conference (MWC) of the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of NCAA Division I, representing Utah State University. The Utah State college football program began in 1892 and has played home games at Merlin Olsen Field at Maverik Stadium since 1968. They have won thirteen conference championships in four different conferences during their history, most recently in 2021.
The 1984 Independence Bowl was a post-season American college football bowl game between the Virginia Tech Hokies and the Air Force Falcons at Independence Stadium in Shreveport, Louisiana, on December 15. The game was the final contest of the 1984 season for both teams, and ended in a 23–7 victory for Air Force.
The Colorado State Rams football program represents Colorado State University and is a member of the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision and the Mountain West Conference. The Rams have long-standing rivalries with Colorado, Wyoming, and Air Force. The team is currently led by head coach Jay Norvell, who was hired in December 2021.
The 1992 College Football All-America team is composed of college football players who were selected as All-Americans by various organizations and publications that chose College Football All-America Teams in 1992. It is an honor given annually to the best American college football players at their respective positions.
Donald C. Popplewell is a former American football player. He played college football for the Colorado Buffaloes and was a consensus All-American center in 1970.
Ernie Jennings is a former American football wide receiver who played college football at the United States Air Force Academy and attended Kansas City Central High School in Kansas City, Missouri. He was drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the tenth round of the 1971 NFL Draft. Jennings had originally joined the Air Force Falcons as a defensive back. He was a consensus All-American in 1970 and finished eighth in Heisman Trophy voting after catching 74 passes for 1,289 yards. He also led NCAA Division I football in receiving touchdowns in 1970 with 17. He is Air Force's all-time leader in receptions with 148, 2nd in receiving yards with 2,392 and leads the team in receiving touchdowns with 28. Jennings was on the 2014 ballot for induction into the College Football Hall of Fame but was not chosen. Jennings spent time in the military after college and was released by the San Francisco 49ers in August 1975. He then began a career at NASA in 1976.
The 1990 Liberty Bowl was an college football postseason bowl game played on December 27, 1990, at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium in Memphis, Tennessee. The 32nd edition of the Liberty Bowl, it matched the Air Force Falcons and the Ohio State Buckeyes. Air Force won the game by a score of 23–11.
The 1992 Air Force Falcons football team represented the United States Air Force Academy in the 1992 NCAA Division I-A football season. The team was led by ninth-year head coach Fisher DeBerry and played its home games at Falcon Stadium. It finished the regular season with a 7–5 record overall and a 4–4 record in Western Athletic Conference games. The team was selected to play in the Liberty Bowl, in which it lost to Ole Miss.