• Looking to improve from 3-9 campaign

For fans of college football, the final countdown to the season is on as teams across the country have entered fall camp including the Wyoming Cowboys. Now in Jay Sawvel’s second season as the head coach, the Pokes will be looking to get the taste of a dismal 2024 season out of their mouths and also improve upon the media predictions which have the team finishing 10th out of 12 this year.

As with most programs, there are a lot of new faces due to the transfer portal as schools continue to try and utilize it to their benefit while also trying to avoid losing players to other universities. There are a total of 47 new faces for Wyoming, 23 of which are from various levels of transfers from all levels of college football.

Offense

The offense returns a hopeful number of starters from last year’s team including quarterback Kaden Anderson who took over the job late in the season from Evan Svoboda who made the move to tight end. The passing game was near the worst in the country last season with both QBs combining for under 2,300 yards. Anderson provided a bright spark before going down with a concussion, forcing Svoboda back into the starter’s job for the finale, a 16-15 road win at Washington State. Landon Sims, a sophomore transfer from East Central Community College in Mississippi will compete for the backup job along with Gabe Brook. Wyoming’s top prep prospect, Mason Drube, is in the room as well as he puts on the same uniform as his father, Kirby, who played tight end for the Cowboys from 1995-98. The brightest spot of the offense looks to be tight end John Michael Gyllenborg who has been named All-MW. Gyllenborg also missed significant time due to injury but still led the team with 30 receptions.

Sam Scott led the team in rushing last season with 435 yards but also missed several games with injury. He will be battling the running back room for carries with a lot of new faces. One primary contender looks to be Charlotte transfer Terron Kellman. Another will be Patrick Broadway II who ran for nearly 3,000 yards in the largest classification of Texas high school last season. Another freshman will be Jaden Lawrence who set a bevy of new prep records in Colorado. Transfer Dmashaja Harris is a transfer from North Texas.

At wide receiver, Jaylen Sargent led the team in receiving yards (480) on just 23 catches and will hopefully continue to provide the big-play spark he showed at times in 2024. Chris Durr Jr. caught 31 passes as a true freshman and will also be looked upon to make an impact. One very intriguing freshman is Deion DeBlanc who also hails from a high level of play in Texas. Perhaps the biggest addition to the wide receiver room is UW Hall of Famer Jovon Bouknight who officially took over the receivers position this past offseason.

On the offensive line, three starters return to help plow the road for the offense. Jack Walsh will be the center after playing guard last season. Caden Barnett returns at right guard and Wes King is back at left guard. Depth will be key for the Cowboys this season with the offensive line being challenged with injuries almost immediately in 2024.

Defense

While the Wyoming offense returns many familiar names, the defense does not.  Virtually the entire side off the ball will be full of either brand new faces or players looking to step into starting roles. In the secondary, Ian Bell started four games last season and returns. Dainsus Miller is a transfer from Mercer and Tyson Deen is a true freshman who may earn a starting role in his first year in Laramie. As a unit the Wyoming ball hawks were in the middle of the pack in the NCAA, ranking 68th last season.

At linebacker, it’s redshirt freshman Gary Rutherford who is being whispered about as a game breaker. Rutherford is unofficially set to start on the weak side. Dash Bauman is back and has been referred to as “Chad Muma 2.0” by Sawvel in the past. Enoch Siboman is a transfer from North Dakota State where he won two championships for the Bison. Ethan Stuhlsatz and Brayden Johnson also came in with college experience via the portal.

On the defensive line, Ben Florentine and Jayden Williams are the two most recognizable faces returning in 2025. Bucknell transfer, Aneesh Vyas will help with size in the middle as will returner Luca Samsula. As a unit, the defensive line only managed 15 sacks last season and with just one returner at defensive end in Tyce Westland, will all the new players be an improvement or a warning? Brayden Wilson is a transfer from Weber State who was named all-conference in the Big Sky the last two years. JUCO transfer Esaia Bogar is a player to watch as well as he had ten sacks a year ago for Riverside CC in California.

The Cowboys open their 2025 slate on the road at Akron on August 28 before returning home for a pair of home games against Northern Iowa and Utah in the newly renovated War Memorial Stadium. All Wyoming home games can be heard on the Spur throughout western Wyoming as part of the Cowboy Sports Network.