College Football News Preview 2020: Wyoming Cowboys Keys To The Season
Biggest Key To The Wyoming Cowboys Offense
It’s a simple equation for Wyoming – if the running game is great, the team wins. If it doesn’t, the team loses.
The Cowboys will have another good defense, they’ll keep pushing the ball deep, and they’ll put the clamps down on the games by slowing the tempo to a dead stop here and there. That happens when the ground attack works.
They ran for 190 yards or more eight times – and they went 8-0. The ran for fewer than 190 yards five times – and they went 0-5. The program is 20-2 when hitting the mark or going over since the end of 2015.
Biggest Key To The Wyoming Cowboys Defense
Find a way to replace the stars. Logan Wilson was a fixture for the Cowboy defense for the last four years, closing out his career with 409 tackles and 34.5 tackles for loss from his linebacker position.
Next to him was Cassh Maluia, who made 181 tackles over the last three seasons and was terrific in pass coverage. He’s a New England Patriot, Wilson is a Cincinnati Bengal, and the Cowboys have to find more big play producers like those two.
Oh yeah, and the D has to find a new star in the secondary to replace Alijah Halliburton’s 130 tackles and 11 tackles for loss from last year.
The stat guys will rise up, and the UW defense will be find, but who’ll make the big stops at the big times? Those three leave massive holes to fill, so …
Key Wyoming Cowboys Player To A Successful Season
LB Chad Muma, Jr.
A good part of the linebacking corps last year, the 6-3, 227-pound Muma made 51 tackles with a sack. He’ll likely get the first look to try being the new Wilson, but he’s not as big, not as experienced, and he’s not Logan Wilson.
But Muma has great range and will be a volume tacklers. Everything will come his way in this defensive system, and he’ll have to hold up at one spot, 6-2, 216-pound redshirt freshman Easton Gibbs will likely be the new Cassh Maluia, and the D has to keep moving on.
Key Game To The Wyoming Cowboys Season
Boise State, Nov. 21
The Cowboys have to play San Diego State from the West – but that’s in Laramie. They get Utah State and Air Force at home, too. If they can just hold serve in War Memorial, they have the Mountain there for the taking when Boise State comes to town late in the season.
They pushed the Broncos last year in a 20-17 loss, and they’re 1-13 all-time in the series. They can’t play for the Mountain West title without this win.
– Wyoming Cowboys Schedule Breakdown & Analysis
2019 Wyoming Fun Stats
– Red Zone Scores: Wyoming 37-of-45 (82%) – Opponents 31-of-45 (69%)
– Wyoming 1st Quarter Scoring: 52, 2nd Quarter Scoring: 139
– Rushing Yards Per Carry: Wyoming 4.9 – Opponents 2.9