Air Force punter Will Duncan leans on box breathing to calm his nerves. Three seconds in, hold for three seconds, three seconds out.

He finds it slows the heart rate, allows him to fully think through what he’s doing.

Then he tried it in front of more than 27,000 people.

“Definitely easier said than done,” Duncan said.

It worked out for Duncan, as he punted twice for an average of 56.5 yards in his college debut in a 34-0 victory over Duquesne.

Air Force saw 10 players make the first start of their college career Saturday, and that doesn’t even count specialists like Duncan or place-kicker Carter Cremascoli who had never appeared in a game.

As the team moves to Game 2, a Mountain West matchup vs. North Dakota State that could well have ramifications in the conference race, the initial nerves that come with the unknown will be quelled.

“It’s definitely a lot different than in high school,” said senior Rudy Varela, who had played in only a few late-game situations before starting at center in the opener. “The speed of the game is so much faster, especially getting up to linebacker level. They are a lot faster. So I know I’ve got to practice faster, practice harder and have more attention to detail this week.”

Strong safety Cade Paterson — one of four sophomores to start in the defensive secondary, including fellow first-time starter Ehimen Oyamendan — found no surprises as he played for the first time at this level.

“Coaches did an amazing job prepping us and scout teamwork their (butts) off during the week and gave us a really good look,” Paterson said. “Obviously, game speed is a little different, but that’s just something you adjust to on the fly. But, uh, it was an amazing atmosphere.”

Though last week brought no big surprises for Paterson, he anticipates the second game will be accompanied by a greater comfort level.

“It’s just football, fly around and have fun,” he said. “Trust in what we put in throughout the week and what we rep over and over and then it gets to a point of just playing the game, no matter who we go against.”

The Falcons will be facing North Dakota State for the first time. The Bison (2-0) won 10 national championships at the Football Championship Subdivision level from 2011-24.

“There’s an old adage that says you should make your most improvement between Game 1 and Game 2,” Air Force coach Troy Calhoun said. “Well, guess what? We have to make our most improvement between Game 1 and Game 2.”

Note

Air Force slot receiver Matt Long, who was carted off the field with an injury in Saturday’s victory, practiced in a limited capacity Monday and was expected to attempt a full practice Tuesday.