Wyoming Cowboys
Mountain West
Wyoming has beaten most of the teams they should beat and lost to most of the teams one would expect. However, heading into the year the Cowboys did not have high hopes. This was a team that finished 3-9 last season. The difference this year has been turnovers. Wyoming creates a slew of turnovers, mostly on forced fumbles, and also does a fine job of taking care of the ball themselves. When Wyoming gets a couple of extra possessions, they are a tough team to knock off.
2011 Record: 8-4, 5-2
Last Bowl Appearance: 2009 New Mexico Bowl vs. Fresno State (W 35-28)
Big Wins: 10/29 at San Diego State (30-27), 11/12 at Air Force (25-17)
Bad Losses: 10/8 at Utah State (19-63), 11/5 TCU (20-31)
Coach: Dave Christensen (18-19 at Wyoming, 18-19 overall)
Bowl Record: 1-0 at Wyoming, 1-0 overall
Offensive Coordinator: Gregg Brandon
Defensive Coordinator: Marty English
Strengths:
On the offensive end, quarterback Brett Smith is the player that deserves the credit for keeping the turnovers down. In 385 pass attempts, he has thrown just eight interceptions. Smith is not the most explosive quarterback in the Mountain West Conference and his pass completion percentage is nothing special, but he is a smart quarterback. If nothing is there, Smith will throw it away or scramble and pick up a few yards. The bad news for the Wyoming offense is the injury to receiver Chris McNeill. He was a steady receiver who led the team in receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns at the time of his injury in November. However, Mazi Ogbonna, Robert Herron, Dominic Rufran and Josh Doctson have all had solid 2011 seasons and are capable of picking up the slack. The ground game has an injury of its own in backup running back Ghaali Muhammad. Alvester Alexander is the work horse in the backfield and Smith is very effective in goal line situations. Thus, the rushing attack has been fine without Muhammad. Alexander is not putting up great numbers this year, like he did last season, but that is mostly due to Smith taking the ball himself in the red zone. Either way, Wyoming is scoring.
Weaknesses:
The defense does an amazing job forcing fumbles. If you have not seen Josh Biezuns force a fumble, you have not seen a Wyoming game. The defensive end is a constant force in the opposing backfield and joins up with fellow end Gabe Knapton to form a solid end duo. While the front line can get into the backfield, they cannot stop the run. The Cowboys have one of the worst rush defenses in the nation and the opposition will take advantage of that all day long. Strong safety Luke Ruff and linebacker Brian Hendricks are good tacklers, but they can only do so much. The secondary does not get tested too often, but Tashaun Gipson, Luke Anderson and Blair Burns are good players who are getting better as a unit.
Statistical Leaders:
Rushing: Alvester Alexander, RB, 678 yards
Passing: Brett Smith, QB, 2,495 yards
Receiving: Chris McNeill, WR, 504 yards
Tackles: Luke Ruff, S, 97
Sacks: Gabe Knapton, DE, 6.5
Interceptions: Blair Burns, CB, 4
2011 Team Stats:
Rushing Offense: 181.45 (35th in nation, 4th in conference)
Passing Offense: 215.55 (72, 4)
Total Offense: 397.00 (50, 5)
Scoring Offense: 27.45 (59, 5)
Rushing Defense: 227.09 (114, 5)
Pass Defense: 207.55 (42, 5)
Total Defense: 434.64 (100, 6)
Scoring Defense: 27.73 (68, 5)
Turnover Margin: 1.36 (3, 1)
Sacks: 1.73 (76, 4)
Sacks Allowed: .91 (11, 4)
