It was a perfect evening for football in Colorado Springs. The pomp and pageantry of Academy football were on full display among the announced crowd of 24,869 ready to see the Falcons take on the Aztecs. The Falcons were favored by 10 points and it was expected defense would prevail. First to strike were the Aztecs on what was undoubtedly the best drive of the season. Jaylen Mayden managed a 17-play, 80-yard drive culminating with a 21-yard scoring strike to Josh Nicholson. This gave the Aztecs (2-4, 0-2 MWC) a surprising early lead against the Falcons (5-0, 3-0 MWC).