Long-snappers typically get noticed only for mistakes.

A low snap that bounces on the ground and leads to a fumble. A snap that gets to the punter too slowly and leads to a block. A snap that’s too high and over the head of a kicker.

It’s the definition of a thankless job: You get recognized only when things go wrong.

But on Thursday against New Mexico, Falcons long-snapper Scott Howley made a head-turning play that had nothing to do with a botched snap. When New Mexico returner Frankie Solomon dropped a punt, Howley, who had hustled down the field, dove for it and secured a critical turnover for the Falcons.

“I think he definitely had it,” Howley said of Solomon. “I kind of ripped it out of his hands. … You see a fumble and you just jump on it. It’s just kind of nature.”

In addition, Howley and junior holder Brandon Geyer both can share in senior kicker/punter Ryan Harrison’s back-to-back Mountain West Conference Player of the Week awards. As Air Force coach Troy Calhoun and Harrison have said several times, there’s more that goes into a field goal than just the kick. And Howley, Geyer and Harrison operate smoothly as a snapper/holder/kicker trio.

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