Wyoming Cowboys

Cowboys Make Most of Chances, Outlast Louisville

December 31, 2005

Game Report Posted: July 07, 2009 19:48  

MEMPHIS, Tennessee - With more than a month to prepare for the AXA Liberty Bowl, Wyoming head coach Joe Glenn and his staff knew they needed to develop a game plan that would allow the team to find success in the red zone. In the regular season, Glenn's Cowboys had 47 possessions inside the opponent's 20 yard line, but had only converted 22 of those into touchdowns. Saturday, the Cowboys reversed that trend, scoring three touchdowns on three possessions in the red zone on their way to a thrilling 21 - 18 victory over the Louisville Cardinals in the 45th Annual Liberty Bowl.

"Our inability to put the ball in the end zone when we got in range cost us more than once this season," Glenn explained after the game.

"Consequently, our focus these last three weeks has been on giving our offense the best possible chance to succeed inside the red zone. Obviously, I feel that paid off for us today."

With three touchdowns in three attempts, it could not have gone any better for the Cowboys. Still, red zone efficiency wasn't the only thing Wyoming did well today. The Cowboys also held onto the ball, and didn't give Louisville many opportunities to score. Quarterback Kenneth Wingate was an efficient 21 - 31 for 192 yards, allowing the Cowboys to run the ball 36 times and dominate the time of possession. The Cowboys held the ball for 26 minutes compared to only 14 for Louisville.

"Louisville is a very good team, and they have so many weapons on offense," said Glenn.

"We knew we weren't going to win a shootout with them, and we knew that our defense was going to have to play a phenomenal game to give us a chance. The plan all year has been to take pressure off the defense by not putting them out on the field any more than we have to, and the offense did an incredible job making that possible today."

It was the first bowl appearance for Wyoming since the start of the 21st century, and the win pushed Glenn's career mark with the Cowboys to 19-18. Officially, this was the last game for Glenn under his current contract, but Wyoming officials are expected to offer the well-liked coach a substantial extension sometime next week.

Determined Rebels Rally to Beat Wyoming

November 26, 2005

Game Report Posted: July 07, 2009 18:15  

LARAMIE, Wyoming - It was like two different teams showed up for Wyoming today. At the half, a surging Wyoming was ahead 13 - 0, and looked to be on their way to their ninth win of the season. Some other team must have come out of the locker room, because the Cowboys struggled to find the end zone in the second half, and a defense that had shut out opponents for the previous four quarters surrendered 33 points to lose 22 - 33 to UNLV Saturday.

Though they had settled for a field goal in the red zone twice in the first half, Wyoming seemed to be in control of the game, forcing two early turnovers and dominating field position and time of possession.

The second half was a completely different story. Again, the Cowboys settled for field goals, and UNLV discovered they could run the ball effectively. In three trips to the red zone, Wyoming came away with six points, kicking two field goals and fumbling the ball away once. UNLV finished with 208 yards on 32 carries, and three rushing touchdowns. The Rebels passing game struggled, but converted scores of 16 and 47 yards , the latter with just over two minutes remaining in the game.

"In a lot of ways, the red zone has been our toughest opponent all year," head coach Joe Glenn said after the game. "I'm not entirely sure what it is, but we have a hard time scoring more than three points on a short field. I know that part of it is that defenses don't have to worry about Jovon and Andre burning them deep, and part of it is mental, but it still seems like we struggle more down there than we should.

"The staff will focus on that this off-season, and hopefully we can find some ways to help these kids succeed in the red zone."

The Cowboys finish the regular season at 8 - 4, good for second place in the Mountain West Conference. They are currently predicted to appear in the Las Vegas Bowl against Arizona State of the Pac 10, though that could change, depending on whether conference champion Colorado State receives a BCS bowl bid. The Rams finished the season 11 - 1, and are currently ranked 6th in the BCS. Bowl pairings will be announced December 5th.

Cowboys Win Big With Big Plays

November 19, 2005

Game Report Posted: July 07, 2009 18:03  

LARAMIE, Wyoming - The team that has long been victimized by big plays finally came up with a few of their own, as four Cowboys finished with over 100 yards of offense and Wyoming came away with a 42 - 17 victory over New Mexico on Saturday.

New Mexico, led by senior halfback DonTrell Moore, ran all over the Wyoming defense to the tune of 283 yards on 53 carries, but the Cowboys held the Lobos to 17 points on four trips to the red zone, and never let the New Mexico passing game get into a rhythm, holding them to a season low 63 yards passing, and shutting out the Lobos in the second half. Middle linebacker David Boyer led the way with 10 tackles, safety Scott Potts contributed nine, and O.J. Landrum six.

The Cowboys were frighteningly balanced on offense, gaining a dynasty record 229 yards on the ground, and 269 through the air. The difference in the game was the strength of the Wyoming offensive line, who manhandled the Lobo defense all day, giving quarterback Kenneth Wingate time to throw and opening up huge holes for the running backs. Sophomore Johnny Connor took full advantage of the opportunity, running for 160 yards on only 10 carries, including a 69 yard touchdown scamper in the third quarter, to finish with an incredible 16 yard per carry average.

Wingate finished with 269 yards passing, split evenly between wideouts Jovon Bouknight and Andre Kirkpatrick, both of whom exploited an overmatched and depleted secondary for more than 100 yards receiving. Bouknight had the more impressive stat line, finding the end zone on four of his five catches, but it was Kirkpatrick who started it all off by catching a screen pass on the first play of the game and taking it 77 yards to the two yard line, before being tripped up by a determined Lobo safety. Kirkpatrick scored two plays later on a six yard slant, and the Cowboys were off and running. Bouknight finished with five catches for 128 yards and four touchdowns, Kirkpatrick with 135 yards on six catches and the one touchdown.

"This whole team played a great game today," head coach Joe Glenn told reporters.

"Our offensive line played their best game of the year, and that set us up for all our success on offense, and there was plenty of it. And despite all the yards on the ground, I thought the defense played pretty well. The secondary, especially, put a stranglehold on their receivers, and that let us do a little more in the second half to slow down the running game. We knew coming in Moore would get his yards, but we tackled better than most games and we made him work for most of those yards.

With the win, the Cowboys move to 8 - 3 on the year, and finish the regular season next week against UNLV.

Cowboys Follow Big Win With Tough Loss

November 12, 2005

Game Report Posted: March 29, 2009 05:45  

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah - Despite a 16 minute advantage in time of possession, Wyoming struggled to move the ball when they got into in Utah territory and could not prevent the big plays at the end, losing to Utah 24 - 28 Saturday night.

"This one reminds me a bit of the last couple years," a frustrated Joe Glenn told reporters following the game.

"Not so much in that we held the ball all game, because we weren't always able to do that, but in that we passed up scoring opportunities, maybe a half dozen of them, couldn't take advantage of the other team's mistakes, and couldn't stop the big play when we really needed to."

At times, Wyoming did indeed look strangely reminiscent of the Cowboy teams of old. They moved the ball well on their side of the field, but struggled to get inside Utah's 30 yard line. The Cowboys attempted five fourth down conversions, four of them between the 28 and 35 yard lines of Utah. Only once did the Cowboys need more than three yards, but they failed to convert on all five attempts. Utah turned the ball over four times, but Wyoming managed only ten points.

For their part, Utah never did get into the red zone, but it turned out not to matter. All three of Utah's offensive scores came from at least 25 yards out, including the game winner, a 67 yard bomb on third and 13 with only 2:47 left in the game. The Utes also returned an interception for a touchdown in the second quarter.

"Honestly, I think our bye came at a bad time this year. Previously, we were happy to rest up after the loss to Colorado State. This year, however, we had a great deal of momentum coming off that big win, and we seemed to lose most of that over the course of two weeks. The bottom line is we didn't get the job done today. We never found the killer instinct to finish off drives that would have put the game out of reach, and it came back to haunt us."

With the loss, Wyoming falls to 7 - 3 on the year and 4 - 1 in the Mountain West. If the season were to end today, the Cowboys, as the second place team in the conference, would receive their first bowl bid of the millennium, a spot in the Las Vegas bowl against the number five team from the Pac 10. Wyoming finishes the regular season with home games versus New Mexico and UNLV.

Cowboys Upset #6 Colorado State

October 29, 2005

Game Report Posted: March 29, 2009 05:08  

LARAMIE, Wyoming - It was without a doubt the biggest win in Joe Glenn's short tenure at the helm of Wyoming football, and it was also arguably one of the biggest wins in school history.

Wyoming played with confidence and poise, controlled the clock and kept the Colorado State offense off the field for most of three quarters, all while executing a masterful game plan almost perfectly. The result was a 21 - 0 lead at the end of the third quarter, and although the Rams made a gritty comeback, the defense held on, giving the Cowboys an improbable 21 - 14 victory Saturday in the Border War.

It was the first win over Colorado State in three tries for head coach Joe Glenn, and this victory clearly belonged to Glenn as much as to the players, as it was his confident and creative play calling that allowed Wyoming not only success, but dominance.

"Hats off to Glenn," Rams coach Sonny Lubbock told reporters after the game.

"We were completely unprepared for what they threw at us, and when we adjusted, so did they."

Wyoming was led on offense by sophomore quarterback Kenneth Wingate who made good decisions all afternoon, despite constant pressure. Wingate was sacked four times on the day, but he got right back up every time, and more often than not, his next pass more than made up for the loss.

After the game, Wingate analyzed his performance for reporters.

"Coach gave us a tremendous game plan this week, and we were fortunate to have some success with it. CSU did a pretty good job jamming Jovon most of the game, but that just gave other guys a chance to step up, and they did."

No one stepped up bigger than speedy freshman wide receiver Andre Kirkpatrick. With Bouknight in double coverage most of the day, Kirkpatrick made four catches for 95 yards and two scores. He also had 80 yards on four punt returns, and an 11 yard kickoff return for 186 all-purpose yards.

"Dre did an incredible job making plays today," Wingate said.

"Both his touchdowns were just him making a play. I just put the ball out in front of him, and he outran the coverage and made two great catches."

Kirkpatrick's first touchdown was a 59 yard bomb in which he juked the defender out of his shoes and caught the pass in stride at the 25 with enough separation from the secondary to high step all the way into the end zone. On the second, he caught a drag pass two yards off the line of scrimmage and exploded to the corner to score untouched.

"They were plays that just had to be made," Kirkpatrick stated matter-of-factly.

"They were doubling and tripling Jovon, and we needed to score. As an offense, we just did what we had to do. Plus, the defense really put us in good positions all day. They stopped the Rams on third down I can't remember how many times. It was awesome."

Ah yes, let's not forget about the defense. Colorado State came into the game averaging more than 500 yards of offense a game. Saturday, the Cowboys held them to 203 total yards, most of that in the fourth quarter. Colorado State was 1 - 11, on third down attempts, a pathetic 9% conversion rate.

With the win, Wyoming moves to an unprecedented 7 - 2 on the year, and is guaranteed a winning season for the first time in the 21st century.

Cowboys Win By Controlling the Clock

October 22, 2005

Game Report Posted: March 29, 2009 04:42  

SAN DIEGO, California - Wyoming simply never let the Aztecs touch the ball. The Cowboys ran 73 plays to the Aztecs' 45, and held the ball for almost twice as long, never really giving San Diego State a chance to score, as the Cowboys won 24 - 10.

Wyoming quarterback Kenneth Wingate was brilliant again, completing 25 of 33 passes for 373 yards and three scores, all to senior wideout Jovon Bouknight. The Aztecs simply didn't have an answer for Bouknight, who finished with 11 receptions for 191 yards.

When they were on the field, the defense played well, getting good pressure up front and keeping the wide receivers in front of them, forcing San Diego State quarterback Shayne Mann into a disappointing 6 - 19 performance.

"The guys came in focused and executed well all afternoon," head coach Joe Glenn said.

"When we do that, we're a pretty decent football team. As long as we play smart, and don't make mistakes, we can stay with a whole lot of teams."

Wyoming clearly stayed with the Aztecs today. They will get a much greater challenge next week when 6th ranked Colorado State visits War Memorial Stadium in a battle between conference unbeatens.

Wyoming Rolls in Record Setting Rout

October 15, 2005

Game Report Posted: March 29, 2009 04:07  

LARAMIE, Wyoming - It was almost as if God himself was calling the shots for Wyoming quarterback Kenneth Wingate Saturday. The sophomore standout threw only 20 times in just over two quarters worth of work, but completed 15 of them for 360 yards and six touchdowns en route to conference and national Offensive Player of the Week recognition. The honor was a first for the Joe Glenn era at the University of Wyoming, which has never had a player receive the national award in the two plus years Glenn has been at the helm.

As usual, senior wide receiver Jovon Bouknight was the primary beneficiary of Wingate's sucess, catching eight passes for 238 yards and three scores, also in just over one half of work.

Wingate also ran four times for 38 yards, including a game high 32 yard scamper that helped Wyoming go ahead 42 - 14 less than three minutes into the third quarter. If that score didn't secure the outcome, his 22 yard pass to Bouknight just fourteen seconds later did. It was his last pass of the day, and the final down played by Bouknight and freshman standout Andre Kirkpatrick, as Wyoming set a dynasty record with 60 points, the first time under coach Glenn that the Cowboys have reached that milestone.

"It wasn't anything special we did," Wingate told reporters after the game.

"Our guys just ran solid routes all day, and they (BYU) were leaving guys open every play. What did they want me to do, throw it to them?"

BYU did score three times in the fourth quarter, but it was well after the game had been decided, and after the celebration had begun on the Wyoming sideline.

After the game, head coach Joe Glenn was told that several Cougars had complained about poor sportsmanship on the part of Wyoming.

"I make no apologies about the way we played today. After our first scoring drive the third quarter, I was ready to run the ball and run out the clock. But BYU insisted on blitzing nine men every play, and I wasn't about to let them back in the game, let alone get one of my players hurt. So we kept going over the top, and they never adjusted. That is simply poor coaching."

With the win, Wyoming moves to 5 - 2 on the year, and 2 - 0 in conference play. The Cowboys travel to San Diego State next week to take on the Aztecs before returning home for the Border War against Colorado State on October 29th.

Wyoming Loses Heartbreaker To Nevada

October 1, 2005

Game Report Posted: March 29, 2009 02:38  

LARAMIE, Wyoming - One look at any Cowboy fan will tell you exactly how bad this one hurt. Wyoming got phenomenal individual performances from all the big names on offense, and overcame countless bad breaks to cling to a narrow 31-28 lead over Nevada as time wound down in the fourth quarter, but finally broke when Nevada caught their second tipped pass for a touchdown with only 30 seconds remaining on the clock.

"Some games the ball bounces your way, and some games it doesn't," head coach Joe Glenn reflected after the game.

"This was just one of those games where it didn't."

If ever Glenn could be accused of an understatement, this is it. Try as they might, Wyoming simply could not catch a break. How bad was it? There were enough dropped passes to last a season, many more than the three documented on the official stat sheet. Nevada caught two tipped balls for touchdowns, including the game winner. Observers swore afterwards that the ball defied the laws of physics, actually passing through the outstretched hand of cornerback Drew Gaines. One score came on a play where both the corner and the safety fell down.

"What are the chances of that, that both guys would slip on the same play?" Glenn mused. "That was pretty much our story for the day."

The laundry list of bad breaks goes on. The Cowboys fumbled four times, losing two. Most costly was the short-lived possession in which cornerback Cedric Wilson, starting in the place of injured freshman Andre Kirkpatrick, fumbled the ball away at the 12 yard line on a kickoff return. The turnover led to Nevada's fourth score. Tailback Terrence Billings appeared to convert on third and three with 1:02 left in the game, but was spotted a half-yard short. Sitting at their own 29 yard line, Wyoming chose to punt. The Cowboys looked as though they were going to hold, but no less than three possible interceptions were dropped on Nevada's final possession.

"We kept battling back, and I was sure we were going to hold on to win, but it just wasn't meant to be. I'm hopeful the team responds to this adversity with a renewed sense of purpose and determination. I think we can."

Wyoming has two weeks to rebound, with a bye next week before BYU visits October 15th.

Strong Defense Leads Wyoming

September 24, 2005

Game Report Posted: March 29, 2009 02:24  

LARAMIE, Wyoming - The Wyoming defense has been criticized all year for its anemic pass defense, and the unit came into today's contest against Oklahoma State with something to prove. Wyoming, led by strong performances by both starting cornerbacks, shut down the 23rd rated passing offense of Oklahoma State, allowing zero passing yards in the first half, and only 116 for the game, as the Cowboys in brown controlled the clock and withstood a late comeback attempt to hold off Oklahoma State 17 - 14 Saturday.

The defense was on a mission in the first half, holding Oklahoma State to 58 yards, all on the ground, and only two first downs. The offense, while able to move the ball, again struggled in the red zone as normally reliable place kicker Scott Parker missed field goals of 28 and 47 yards.

The offense finally got on track late in the second quarter, scoring on a pair of one yard runs by quarterback Kenneth Wingate and tailback Terrence Billings to take a 14 - 0 lead into the locker room.

It was more of the same in the third, with Wyoming controlling the clock, and scoring three points on a 26 yard field goal by Parker.

Oklahoma State responded with a 14 play, 78 yard drive that took just over four minutes and ended with a one yard dive from halfback Leroy Molloy, who carried the ball 20 times on the afternoon for a total of 73 yards.

From there, the defense tightened again, and forced two punts by the Cowboys. The offense could not score, and Oklahoma State began a long, slow drive down the field, culminating in a 28 yard strike to the tight end for the score, pulling the Cowboys to within three. Fortunately for Wyoming, the drive took 17 plays and nearly five minutes, leaving only 43 seconds on the clock.

Wyoming recovered the onside kick, but Oklahoma State had three time outs and Wyoming could not convert a first down. Long booted a high, spiraling punt that traveled only 30 yards, but pinned Oklahoma State at their own eight yard line with only twenty seconds remaining, and the Wyoming defense held on for the win.

After the game, Wyoming head coach Joe Glenn praised both Wingate and his defense.

"Our secondary has been burned deep a number of times this year, and when they have, we've heard about it. In practice this week, Cedric and Cal (Wilson and Craig, senior cornerbacks) really stepped up, both in intensity and as leaders. The guys really responded to that, and I think it showed in the game today.

"Add to that a phenomenal job taking care of the football by everyone on the field, and we really put ourselves in a good position to win. In particular, I was impressed by the decisions Ken made on the field. I don't think he had a bad throw all day.

"Especially considering how many guys got banged up over the course of the game, we really got an excellent effort all around. We had what, five, six guys injured just today? And everybody stepped up and made plays when we needed them. I couldn't have asked for more from any of the guys."

Five Wyoming players missed at least one play due to injury, though Wingate (thigh) and Gaines (broken thumb) returned to the game. Safety Scott Potts (ankle) and linebacker O.J. Landrum (strained shoulder) left the game and did not return, although Wyoming personnel predicted both would play next week. The biggest loss was freshman wide receiver and returner Andre Kirkpatrick (concussion) who is expected to miss at least two weeks. Wyoming faces the University of Nevada at home next Saturday.

Parker Kicks Cowboys to Win

September 17, 2005

Game Report Posted: March 29, 2009 02:01  

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colorado - As long as they were outside the red zone, the Wyoming Cowboys had little trouble moving the ball. Once they got there, however, it was a different story. The Cowboys managed to move the ball inside the 20 yard line seven times on the afternoon, and only found the end zone twice, both on the ground. The rest of the time, kicker Scott Parker bailed the Cowboys out, converting all four of his field goal attempts, all from inside the 20, as the Cowboys held off a determined Air Force team for a 28 - 22 win.

Neither team was able to find the end zone for most of the first half. The Cowboys opened the scoring with a 34 yard field goal at the 5:12 mark of the first quarter, and extended their lead to six with a 28 yard kick later in the opening period. Air Force responded in kind in the second, from 40 yards out. The Cowboys answered with an impressive drive that stalled at the nine yard line, and Parker kicked his third field goal, making it 9 - 3 with 2:08 remaining in the half. Air Force finally found the end zone on a two yard dive and the Falcons took a one point lead into the break.

Wyoming took the kickoff and drove the length of the field, scoring on a seven yard scamper by Connor. The Cowboys went for two and got it, giving them a 17 - 10 lead. The Falcons took the ensuing kickoff to the house, but missed the extra point, making it 17 - 16. A motivated Air Force defense forced a three and out, and the Falcons scored quickly on a 65 yard bomb. The two point conversion failed, making it 22 - 17 Air Force with 4:54 remaining in the third.

Both defenses stiffened, but Wyoming took their first possession of the fourth quarter and drove the length of the field to take the lead for good. Parker tacked on his fourth field goal as time expired to seal the win for Wyoming.

After the game, head coach Joe Glenn spoke with reporters.

"I'm impressed with the heart of this team. We had chances early to get a big lead and we didn't take advantage, and then we gave up a couple huge plays, plays that could have demoralized us. Some teams would've thrown in the towel after that kickoff return, or that long touchdown, but we kept fighting, kept scrapping.

"Ken didn't have a great day, but even though he never found the end zone, he kept moving us down field, both with his arm, and his feet. Terrence never broke the big one, but he kept pounding out the yards, 2, 3, 4 of them at a time. Same with Johnny. Air Force kept him pretty well bottled up, but he fought for every yard.

"This was a great team win, a great way to start conference play, and a great demonstration of how far the character of this team has come the last two plus years."

Next week, the Cowboys of Wyoming are at home to face the Cowboys of Oklahoma State in a rematch of their thrilling shootout in 2003. Kickoff is scheduled for 12:30.

Wyoming Loses Grip in Loss to Colorado

September 10, 2005

Game Report Posted: March 29, 2009 01:23  

BOULDER, Colorado - The rain fell for three days solid before today's game between the Wyoming Cowboys and the Colorado Buffalos. The field was a pit of mud long before kickoff. At times, it rained so hard players struggled to see ten yards down the field. Colorado practiced in these tornado-like conditions all week, and fumbled three times, though all three were recovered by the Buffalos. Wyoming practiced at home in light rain most of the week, and fumbled eight times, and recovered just three of them.

They gave the ball up just about every way possible, fumbling away handoffs, quarterback keepers, completed passes, kickoffs and even an interception.

"Obviously, our biggest problem today was none of us could hold onto the ball," quarterback Kenneth Wingate told reporters after the game.

"I've never been more wet or seen a slicker field in my life. Most of the time, you lost the ball the moment you hit the ground, but the worst were the times the ball just seemed determined to get free and would come flying out on even the most incedental contact."

Just about everyone who touched the ball coughed it up at least once. Wingate was credited with two fumbles, halfbacks Billings and Connor fumbled once each, and fullback London Barnes fumbled on the second of only two carries. All-American wideout Jovon Bouknight fumbled away a sure touchdown and safety Herbert Holland was in the midst of an 18 yard interception return when he simply dropped the ball.

"Clearly, our guys were not prepared for the conditions out there today," head coach Joe Glenn stated.

"The blame for that falls squarely on the shoulders of myself and the rest of the coaching staff. The entire team will be spending a good deal more time practicing their ball handling skills the next few weeks, I can assure you that."

"Maybe I can convince the fire chief to bring one of his ladder trucks over to practice so he can hit guys with the water cannon as they practice holding onto the ball. That oughtta be fun."

Wyoming will try to get a grip next week against Air Force, in the conference opener for both teams.

Cowboys Run Over, Around and Through Broncos

September 3, 2005

Game Report Posted: March 29, 2009 01:04  

LARAMIE, Wyoming - Just two years ago, Wyoming travelled to Idaho and got run over by Boise State 35 - 14, as they were out-gained on the ground, 227 yards to 34.

Wyoming returned the favor today at home, carrying 40 times for 193 yards and holding the Broncos to 53 yards on 25 attempts. Running back tandem Johnny Connor and Terrence Billings combined for more than 200 yards and three touchdowns as the Cowboys rolled to a decisive 38 - 10 victory.

"Man oh man," running backs coach Harvey Patton exhaled.

"Was that ever a sight for sore eyes. After two years of struggling to finish games with positive rushing yards, it sure feels good to have a game like this. Two of 'em, actually."

For the second week in a row, the Cowboys ran for at least 150 yards, again taking the pressure off quarterback Kenneth Wingate. For his part, Wingate seems almost disappointed about that.

"All my life, I've been the go-to guy," Wingate told reporters.

"It was like that in high school, it was like that last year here at Wyoming. These last two games have been kinda strange, because they've really been the first time since maybe grade school where it didn't feel like I was responsible for making things happen."

Head coach Joe Glen was quick to clarify what his star quarterback meant.

"Sure, it'll take Ken a few games to get used to handing the ball off with this kind of regularity. Heck, he threw three picks today, mostly because he didn't know what to do with all the time Boise State was giving him. But he understands the importance of balance, and he realizes there will be times when we'll need him to win games for us with his arm. He'll adjust to the different looks from defenses, and then he'll be just as dangerous as he was last year, if not more so."

Wyoming doesn't have much time to celebrate the win. Next week they travel to Boulder, Colorado to face a dangerous Buffalo squad that beat the Cowboys 45 - 10 last year. Kickoff is set for 2:00 p.m.

Wyoming Wins Season Opener

August 27, 2005

Game Report Posted: March 29, 2009 00:51  

LARAMIE, Wyoming - In games between closely matched opponents, the winner is often the team that holds onto the football. Failing that, the winner is usually the team that has the most success running the ball.

Wyoming and Utah State played to a draw on turnovers Saturday, each team committing three. Not surprisingly, then, the winner was the team that had the most sucess on the ground. Uncharacteristically, that team was Wyoming.

"I said all last year that we weren't going to be able to win the close games unless we could find some consistency on the ground, something we never could do," Wyoming head coach Joe Glenn explained.

"The difference this year is we've got two guys in Johnny (Connor) and Terrence (Billings) who are capable of carrying the rock and pounding it out on the ground. Neither is really ready to be out there every down, but they complement each other well, and give us options regarding what we can do."

"Johnny is more of a scat back, not a lot of size, but elusive speed. Terrence is a straight ahead guy who runs right at you with size and strength. Our coahing staff is excited to have both these guys at our disposal."

In the game against Utah State, the two combined for 172 yards on thirty carries. Billings had twenty of them, pounding away up the middle for eighty yards and a solid 4.0 yard per carry average. Connor broke a long run up the right side for 48 yards, more than half his total of 92. Neither fumbled on the day.

The presence of a running game gave quarterback Kenneth Wingate plenty of time to throw, allowing him to complete 24 passes for 375 yards and three touchdowns, against one interception.

The defense held Utah State to 47 yards on the ground, and though they gave up several long completions, played well enough to give the offense a chance to win.

It was a solid performance all around, and it all added up to a 32 - 27 victory over the Aggies of Utah State. Next up is Boise State, another home game for Wyoming, who due to scheduling quirks, play an unusual eight games at home in the 2005 season.