Wyoming
Wyoming sputters once again, loses by 20 to BYU
If you continue to perform the same action over and over again, expecting a different outcome, that is the definition of insanity.
Wyoming’s offense has looked no different from their opener in Tempe to last night’s game against BYU.
Coach-speak isn’t the answer.
Staying the course isn’t the answer.
SCORING SUMMARY
1st Quarter (7-0 BYU Advantage)
5:58 – 20-yard pass from QB Jake Retzlaff to WR Keanu Hill (Will Ferrin PAT)
Wyoming 0 – BYU 7
2nd Quarter (10-7 BYU Advantage)
9:12 – 3-yard pass from QB Jake Retzlaff to WR Kody Epps (Will Ferrin PAT)
5:11 – 2-yard run by QB Evan Svoboda (John Hoyland PAT)
Wyoming 7 – BYU 14
0:45 – 49-yard field goal by K Will Ferrin
Wyoming 7 – BYU 17
HALFTIME
3rd Quarter (17-0 BYU Advantage)
14:45 – 100-yard kickoff return for WR Keelan Marion (Will Ferrin PAT)
Wyoming 7 – BYU 24
9:42 – 37-yard field goal by K Will Ferrin
Wyoming 7 – BYU 27
0:02 – 20-yard pass from QB Jake Retzlaff to WR Darius Lassiter (Will Ferrin PAT)
Wyoming 7 – BYU 34
4th Quarter (7-0 WYO Advantage)
6:29 – 1-yard run by QB Evan Svoboda (John Hoyland PAT)
Wyoming 14 – BYU 34
FINAL
BYU COUGARS 34 – WYOMING COWBOYS 14
WYOMING PLAYER OF THE GAME
N Wrook Brown – The most impactful defender, Brown came up with an early interception to stymy the Cougars’ redzone offense. He had chances to bring down another pick or two, but was unable to come down with them. Showcasing his role as an on-field leader, Brown will need to maintain his efforts if Wyoming looks to find their first win of 2024.
GRADES
Offense – D-
The score doesn’t reflect how anemic this side of the ball has been since Jay Sawvel has taken over in Laramie.
Alex Taylor, writer for WyoSports, reported on the newly-updated statistics as of Sunday.
*These rankings are out of 133 FBS teams
Total offense: 132nd (201.7 yards per game)
Scoring offense: Tied for 130th (11.3 points per game)
Passing offense: 128th (114.7 yards per game)
Rushing offense: 120th (87 yards per game)
Only two out of 12 drives ended in points.
QB Evan Svoboda had moments of solid play, throwing receivers open and delivering darts.
Alas, that is still far and between – exemplified by a 43.8% completion percentage.
The running game was nowhere to be found.
Sam Scott, D.J. Jones and Dawaiian McNeely combined for 19 carries and 45 yards.
2.36 yards a carry is not going to cut it.
Even the return of John Michael Gyllenborg was underwhelming – the tight end didn’t record a single reception.
Many fans clamored for one of Wyoming’s backup QBs (Jayden Clemons or Kaden Anderson) to get some snaps in the 4th quarter.
That did not happen.
Sawvel made it known to the media after the game that his confidence in Svoboda has not wavered and that the Pokes have played two P4 teams in their first three games.
Wyoming plays North Texas in Denton, Texas, next week.
If a similar performance occurs in the Lone Star state, change should be expected.
Defense – C-
As the offense goes, so does the defense.
The thing is, I can’t blame those under Aaron Bohl’s leadership to have a tough time maintaining their defensive fortitude.
If you know the offense isn’t going to do squat when they get the ball back, motivation is hard to come by.
The defense held strong in the 1st half, limiting BYU to 17 points and keeping the Cowboys in the fight as they went to the locker room.
However, Cougar QB Jake Retzlaff found his rhythm coming out out of the half – finishing the game with 291 yards and 3 TDs.
I will say that outside of Retzlaff’s improvisation when forced out of the pocket, Wyoming held the run game in check – limiting BYU to 78 yards.
An interception by Wrook Brown prevented the Pokes from losing the turnover battle.
Special Teams – D+
Punting can only curve your performance so much.
Credit to Jack Culbreath and his ability to flip the field – he had eight chances to do so.
But when you allow a kick return touchdown right out of halftime that swings momentum violently in one direction, the fallout is on you as a unit.
A potential three-and-out on BYU’s opening possession of the second half could have been massive.
That TD put the game out of reach due to the Cowboys inability to march down the field when in possession.
Kicker John Hoyland converted two PATs, but nothing more.
WHAT DOES THIS RESULT SIGNIFY?
Not even a storied rivalry going back to 1922 was able to turn this ship around.
Sometimes, teams can have disappointing starts, yet, they see a bright light up ahead and know that the season will get better.
Wyoming?
You lost your lone FCS game and haven’t looked anywhere near competitive against two Big 12 teams expected to finish in the middle-to-bottom tier of the conference.
More importantly, I haven’t seen any contagious energy on the sideline or buzz within the team.
Lethargic, melancholy…you can pick whatever adjective you like.
But a team under a new head coach should never evoke this feeling three games in.
GOING FORWARD
North Texas.
Your last non-conference opponent before Mountain West play begins.
The Mean Green are 2-1 with not much on their resume.
A 52-38 win @ South Alabama.
A 35-20 vs FCS Stephen F. Austin.
A 66-21 loss @ Texas Tech where UNT gave up 52 points in the 1st half.
As of now, DraftKings favors North Texas by nine points.
Barring a miraculous turnaround after the bye week in early October, this team will not go bowling.
Mountain West cellar dwellers have improved (New Mexico, Utah State, San Jose State).
The Cowboys’ next two games are arguably their easiest left on the schedule (UNT and Air Force).
Jay Sawvel, Evan Svoboda, and everyone associated with Wyoming football need a win in the next two weeks.
The expansion would open the spigot for 550,000 barrels per day of crude, the company says. Although the crude would mostly pass through eastern Wyoming, the venture opens opportunities for Wyoming oil producers in the region for more transportation access to U.S. refineries and shipping ports, according to Bridger and local industry officials.“It would be the biggest project in our history, if it comes to fruition,” Bridger Pipeline spokesperson Bill Salvin told WyoFile on Friday. “We are, however, in the really early stages of the project. But we’re very excited about it.”Industry trade groups speculate the Bridger Pipeline Expansion is part of a competitive scramble to fill a gap left by TC Energy’s Keystone XL project. That company, in 2021, abandoned the controversial project in the face of major opposition and protests. It would have transported Canadian tar-sands oil into the U.S. market via a route extending through Montana, South Dakota and Nebraska. Among many challenges for Keystone XL was acquiring new rights-of-way easements. Though the Bridger Pipeline Expansion proposal requires some new rights-of-way, that’s not the case for the 210-mile Wyoming segment, according to Salvin.“All of that distance is within, or parallel to, existing pipeline corridors,” Salvin said.
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The Wyoming segment would pass through Crook, Weston, Niobrara, Goshen and Platte counties.Bridger Pipeline, a subsidiary of Casper-based True Companies, submitted a notice of intent to the Montana Department of Environmental Quality in January and noted it will formally initiate environmental applications to the agency. Salvin told WyoFile he’s uncertain about the full spectrum of regulatory requirements in Wyoming.However, the company regards the Cowboy State as a great fit for the project, he said. “This [project proposal] just highlights how important the region is and how Wyoming is a very good place for energy projects like this.”Reached for comment, the Petroleum Association of Wyoming said the proposed pipeline only stands to benefit Wyoming producers and the state.“Investments like these, along with continued growth in areas like the Powder River Basin, show Wyoming will continue to play an important role in the nation’s energy markets,” PAW Vice President and Director of Communications Ryan McConnaughey told WyoFile. “Connecting in Guernsey allows product to be transported to refining hubs like Cushing, Oklahoma.” WyoFile is an independent nonprofit news organization focused on Wyoming people, places and policy.
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LARAMIE — Nasir Meyer converted a three-point play with 35 seconds remaining to give Wyoming Cowboys men’s basketball the lead for good, and Wyoming held Air Force Falcons men’s basketball scoreless over the final two minutes to secure a 66-62 victory Saturday night.
The win marked the 13th home victory of the season for Wyoming, which improved to 16-13 overall and 7-11 in conference play.
“Air Force deserves all the credit and let’s talk about a team that has every reason not to fight, but thats why they are Air Force and the cadets and I have a lot of respect for them,” Wyoming coach Sundance Wicks said. “They were not going to quit, and I didn’t drive that message home enough and hats off to Air Force because they deserved to win. We snuck away with a win. Adam Harakow showed when we need him and he was massive for us. Simm-Marten was made big plays and Naz was clutch for us late.”
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Wyoming shot 35% from the field and went 7 of 28 from 3-point range, making just two from beyond the arc in the second half. Air Force shot 49% overall and 44% from 3, hitting eight shots from long distance. The Cowboys made 13 of 16 free throws (81%) and scored 22 points off 15 Air Force turnovers while holding a 39-36 edge in rebounding.
Damarion Dennis led Wyoming with 16 points and three assists, going 7 of 8 from the free-throw line. Meyer finished with 14 points and tied a career best with eight rebounds. Adam Harakow added 14 points off the bench on 5-of-6 shooting, his first double-figure scoring game since the first meeting with Air Force. Simm-Marten Saadi had nine points in 13 minutes, and Kiani Saxon grabbed seven rebounds.
Air Force opened with back-to-back 3-pointers to take a 6-0 lead. Meyer scored Wyoming’s first basket, and Leland Walker added a 3-pointer to make it 8-5 with 16 minutes left in the first half.
Wyoming responded with a 9-0 run over nearly four minutes, with Saadi and Harakow each connecting from beyond the arc to give the Cowboys an 11-8 lead with under 14 minutes remaining. Air Force regained a 12-11 advantage as Wyoming went scoreless for more than two minutes.
Harakow’s second 3-pointer pushed the lead to 22-16 with nine minutes left in the half, and Wyoming used a 6-0 run while holding the Falcons without a field goal for more than four minutes to build a 28-18 lead with six minutes remaining. The Cowboys closed the half on a defensive stand, keeping Air Force scoreless for the final two minutes to take a 35-25 lead into the break. Wyoming scored 15 first-half points off turnovers.
The teams traded 3-pointers early in the second half, and Air Force cut the deficit to 40-31 with under 17 minutes left before trimming it to seven 90 seconds later. Walker answered with a 3-pointer to make it 43-33 with 15 minutes to go.
Air Force used a 9-0 run during a stretch in which Wyoming went more than 3 1/2 minutes without a point to pull within one with nine minutes left. The Falcons later tied the game at 51-51 with 5:30 remaining after forcing six straight missed shots.
A pair of free throws by Meyer and a basket from Saadi gave Wyoming a 57-53 lead with under four minutes to play. Air Force answered with three consecutive 3-pointers from Kam Sanders to take a 62-59 lead with two minutes left.
Meyer scored with 90 seconds remaining to cut the deficit to one. On the next trip, he converted an and-one to give Wyoming a 64-62 lead with 35 seconds left. The Cowboys added late free throws to close out the 66-62 win.
Sanders led Air Force with 16 points and nine rebounds, going 4 of 5 from 3-point range. Eli Robinson added 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting.
Wyoming closes its home schedule Tuesday against Nevada Wolf Pack men’s basketball at 8 p.m. as part of a doubleheader with the Cowgirls.
The 2-time defending champ Tongue River girls, along with both teams from Big Horn will represent Sheridan County in the small school version of March Madness.
Click here to see results from the regional tournaments.
2A Boys:
First Round:
Thursday, March 5th: (All games played at Casper College)
(#2E) Big Horn vs. (#3W) Shoshoni – Noon
(#1W) Thermopolis vs. (#4E) Sundance – 1:30pm
(#2W) Wyoming Indian vs. (#3E) Wright – 6:30pm
(#1E) Pine Bluffs vs. (#4W) Rocky Mountain – 8pm
Friday, March 6th: (All games played at Ford Wyoming Center)
Consolation Round:
Big Horn/Shoshoni loser vs. Thermopolis/Sundance loser – Noon LOSER OUT!
Wyoming Indian/Wright loser vs. Pine Bluffs/Rocky Mountain loser – 1:30pm LOSER OUT!
Semi-Finals:
Big Horn/Shoshoni winner vs. Thermopolis/Sundance winner – 6:30pm
Wyoming Indian/Wright winner vs. Pine Bluffs/Rocky Mountain winner – 8pm
Saturday, March 7th:
Friday Noon winner vs. Friday 1:30pm – Noon at Ford Wyoming Center Consolation Championship
Friday 6:30pm loser vs. Friday 8pm loser – 3pm at Natrona County High School 3rd Place
Friday 6:30pm winner vs. Friday 8pm winner – 7pm at Ford Wyoming Center Championship
2A Girls:
First Round:
Thursday, March 5th: (All games played at Casper College)
(#2W) Wyoming Indian vs. (#3E) Big Horn – 9am
(#1E) Sundance vs. (#4W) Shoshoni – 10:30am
(#2E) Tongue River vs. (#3W) Greybull – 3:30pm
(#1W) Thermopolis vs. (#4E) Pine Bluffs – 5pm
Friday, March 6th: (All games played at Ford Wyoming Center)
Consolation Round:
Wyoming Indian/Big Horn loser vs. Sundance/Shoshoni loser – 9am LOSER OUT!
Tongue River/Greybull loser vs. Thermopolis/Pine Bluffs loser – 10:30am LOSER OUT!
Semi-Finals:
Wyoming Indian/Big Horn winner vs. Sundance/Shoshoni winner – 3:30pm
Tongue River/Greybull loser vs. Thermopolis/Pine Bluffs loser – 5pm
Saturday, March 7th:
Friday 9am winner vs. Friday 10:30am winner – 9am at Ford Wyoming Center Consolation Championship
Friday 3:30pm loser vs. Friday 5pm loser – 10:30am at Ford Wyoming Center 3rd Place
Friday 3:30pm winner vs. Friday 5pm winner – 5:30pm at Ford Wyoming Center Championship
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