Wyoming Football: Previewing the Cowboys Offense
The Wyoming Cowboys offense is a mixed bag of both questions and assurance. You know what you’re going to get, but can they improve their passing game to become something special?
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The Overall Picture
The Wyoming Cowboys offense will once again rely on the play calling of Brent Vigen, who enters his seventh season as the pokes offensive coordinator. As old fashioned as they come, Wyoming’s run-heavy offense has seen its up and downs, ranking 11th in the conference in yards per game at 336.5 in 2019, and 106th overall. Now, this stat is misleading, given the major injuries the pokes faced, yet is of some concern.
The grit and grind approach is rare in college football today but the Cowboys have found a formula for success. It is hard to find flaws with winning seasons, yet necessary to improve. The lack of a viable passing game is very worrisome, as shoehorning into a one-dimensional offense has not provided the greatest results recently. Wyoming has been in the bottom half of Mountain West offenses since the departure of Josh Allen. The pokes ranked 105th in total first downs in 2019, which dispels the ball control myth.
The pokes managing to still win 8 games with these numbers just goes to show how great of a job Craig has done, but makes you wonder, how special could this program be with a higher-performing offense, and could their offense this year match the great efforts of their defense? Here is my 2020 preview of the Cowboys offense.
Quarterback
The Cowboys will be once again led by the 6’3” redshirt sophomore Sean Chambers, whose toughness and grit is a match made in heaven for the Cowboys. Chambers isn’t your prototypical QB, especially coming from the man who recruited Josh Allen and Carson Wentz.
His playstyle is much more reliant on his feet. I would personally compare his heart and toughness to that of college football legend Tim Tebow. A hard-nosed athletic QB who even through his flaws, finds ways to win. Stats alone do not accurately depict his importance to this team.
The best way to say it, he is a winner. Before going down with a season-ending knee injury on a touchdown run against Nevada, he had led the Cowboys to a 5-2 start, and a 24-3 lead that eventually pushed the Cowboys to 6-2.
His numbers aren’t flashy by any means, throwing for 915 yards with 7 touchdowns and 3 interceptions, but that is not his game. Chambers uses his legs to find success running 567 yards with 10 rushing touchdowns, bringing his total to 17 scores in just 7 and a half games. The biggest leap we would love to see would be with his accuracy. He has shown flashes with solid arm strength but needs to improve as his completion percentage is an abysmal 43.0%.
He will likely be backed up by redshirt freshman Levi Williams, an interesting prospect with a similar play style who provided a desperately needed spark for the pokes when Chambers went down. The potential is there for Chambers and do not be surprised to see him take that jump in the passing game and take the conference by storm.
The Backfield
Wyoming’s bread and butter, perfectly paired with their star back. The running game of the pokes accounted for nearly 60% of their total offense in 2019 and 69% of their plays, to compliment their impressive 214.8 rushing yards per game (23rd in the nation).
There is no question as to who the pokes workhorse will be, as star junior back and 2019 All MW 1st team awardee Xazavian Valladay (who also deserves the award for best name in the conference) returns with high expectations.
Accounting for 1265 rushing yards, there aren’t many backs you would rather have in the country. Valladay averaged 5.1 yards per carry and is set to carry the bulk of the offensive load on his back come 2020.
You also can not mention a great running back in this pro-style offense without giving credit to his fullback Jeff Burroughs, a position that deserves more recognition.
I would not be surprised to see Wyoming lead the Mountain West in rushing this year and comfortably pass their 2019 total, with Xazavian possibly winning the MW player of the year award.
Wide Receivers
Since the departure of their star-studded 16’ team, it has not been a secret that the Cowboys biggest weakness on offense has stemmed from the receiving corps or lack thereof. Whether this is due to personnel or play calling, or possibly a mix of both, improvements are needed.
The Pokes didn’t have a single wide receiver break 400 yards last year. Now I know they rely on the run heavily, but that is no excuse. In 2016 under the same staff, they had three wideouts break 500+ yards including a 1326 yard season from Tanner Gentry. In all honesty, the pokes haven’t had a true WR1 since Gentry, and it shows.
This upcoming season’s group is full of mystery, but it allows many the opportunity to step up and fill the needed void.
The wide receivers themselves are full of question marks, but it is expected that the core will be headed by Ayden Eberhardt and senior Dontae Crow. These two combined for 11 catches and 200 yards in 2019. This leaves time and opportunities for the numerous young receivers to step up and break out this season.
Another unique thing about the Cowboys scheme is the dual tight end look that is used quite often. This is nearly as common as a unicorn and can be an extremely useful utility for not only the running game but also in the passing game. Promising sophomore Jackson Marcotte and junior Nate Weinman are in a position to make the offense much more dynamic, depending on their impact.
Only time will tell, but the performance of the passing/receiving game will be the difference between a good and great season.
Offensive Line
You can’t do a preview without showing the big boys up front some love. They are what makes everything possible, the unsung heroes of every great team. They become even more critical when you need to create holes for your star back.
Luckily for the pokes, all five starters from 2019 are set to return. This is a line that was 32nd in the nation in sacks allowed and with even more experience, the Cowboys should have nothing to worry about. This line made it possible to average 214.8 yards per game on the ground while continuously facing loaded boxes.
This line deserves appreciation and with new depth, the combinations will be sure to make a difference this year.
Final Thoughts
In totality I see Wyoming continuing the upward trend the program has taken since the arrival of Craig Bohl. Even with question marks around the receiving core, they have a winner at QB and an elite back who is complemented by one of the best lines in the conference.
Though the lack of a real passing game is worrisome, that is not this team’s identity. They are built to win off of running you into the dirt and making you make the mistakes. A well-coached team with a diehard loyal fanbase, who is continuing to improve as the Bohl culture grows. I expect the offense to show improvements from last year, and the future is bright with this program.
