Perspective came for Air Force senior Payton Zdroik before his final game at Falcon Stadium.

The Falcons lost in a 20-3 lopsided contest to New Mexico, just the second loss in a home finale for the program since 2013 and the first home loss to the Lobos in 25 years.

It might seem like a low point, but perspective matters.

When Zdroik ran out to be honored prior to the game he saw, standing with his parents, the parents of former teammate Hunter Brown. A good friend of Zdroik’s dating to their time at the Prep School, Brown died on Jan. 9, 2023, of a blood clot in his lungs, the result of clotting that developed in his legs following an injury suffered in football practice.

“That messed me up a good bit at the beginning,” Zdroik said prior to making four tackles, including two for a loss. “That was a special moment to start the game like that.

“We bleed, we do everything we can to win those games out there. But at the end of the day it’s not the end of the world. Just trying to keep your eyes on the bigger picture – growing up, trying to become better men, better officers, better leaders.”

The football part of this remained difficult to take, closing the home portion of the schedule with the first home loss to New Mexico in 25 years.

The Lobos (8-3, 5-2 Mountain West), who have won five in a row and remain alive in the conference race, dominated the first 21 minutes of action. During that span they built a 17-0 lead, outgained the Falcons 161-4 and forced a turnover.

“We didn’t start fast enough, obviously, on both sides of the ball and we were playing catch-up from thereafter,” Air Force coach Troy Calhoun said.

The Falcons (3-8, 2-5), who started quarterback Kemper Hodges for the first time following a season-ending injury to Liam Szarka last week, put together a pair of 13-play drives behind the converted fullback but didn’t score. Josh Johnson, who started the season’s first three games, entered in the third quarter and led the team’s only scoring drive – a 19-play, 75-yard march – that was capped by a 27-yard field goal from Reagan Tubbs.

Johnson then threw an interception on the following possession, Air Force’s last of the game.

“I thought Josh went in and competed his butt off,” Calhoun said. “That was great to see on Josh’s part. He had a really, really good week of practice and came in and made a couple of throws and sparked a drive that did lead to some points.”

While Air Force settled in defensively, the damage was done early from New Mexico largely on the strength of four quarterback scrambles that turned into big plays.

The Lobos finished with 277 yards of offense, their second-lowest total of the season.

Air Force put up just 161 yards of total offense. It was not only a season-low but the first time the team didn’t hit 300 yards this season.

“They were very talented,” Air Force senior guard Jack Burnett said. “They were physical up front. I think there’s things we could have done better.”

This evening in general might have represented a low point for Air Force’s program, at least in recent years. The eight losses are the most since dropping 10 in 2013 and the Senior Day contest was never particularly competitive. But this low point might have stretched even deeper if not for the way the team played over the final 35-plus minutes.

Keeping that perspective through the end (at least of the home schedule, a final clash with Colorado State in Fort Collins awaits on Friday) counts for something.

“Honestly, got to give credit to the institution on that,” Zdroik said. “That’s not the type of guys that we bring in, and that’s not the type of guys that we raise here at the academy. That’s just not in our DNA to fold or roll over.

“It’s tough to go out like this, for sure. But I’ve got a lot of good memories on that field, a lot of good moments with my brothers.”