Behind The Numbers: Wyoming Spring Football Game

LARAMIE -- Let's start with the number 68.

That was the temperature during Wyoming's annual Brown and Gold spring game inside a sun-spanked War Memorial Stadium.

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While the focus was certainly on the game itself, many were still talking about what happened yesterday leading up to the midnight hour -- absolutely nothing. That's exactly what the fans, and coaches alike, wanted to see with the spring transfer portal finally coming to a close.

On the field, Landon Sims overcame a shaky start under center, leading the Gold Team to a 21-7 victory. The sophomore signal caller, who came to Laramie via East Central Community College in Mississippi, fired a pair of touchdown strikes to tight end Isaac Schoenfeld and wideout Jaylan Bean.

Nico Hamilton was also the top rusher in this one, rolling up 73 yards on just 17 carries. His last tote, a game-high rush of 20, was his last. The redshirt freshman suffered a broken left arm.

If all goes well, head coach Jay Sawvel said, Hamilton could be back in as little as eight weeks.

Many of the regulars were on a "pitch count" in this one. This staff knows what those guys can do. Same can be said for a number of starters like Jack Walsh, Caden Barnett, Wes King and John Michael Gyllenborg, among others, who didn't even dress.

"I think we're a better football team than what we were a year ago at this time," Sawvel said postgame. "I think we have a lot of work to do, you know, so it's not one of those things that you sit there and go, 'OK, we're good.'

"Look, the first step was, we got better this spring -- and we are largely healthy."

Here are some of Saturday's stats:

11

Gary Rutherford, or "Hell on wheels" as Sawvel refers to the redshirt freshman linebacker, finished with 11 stops in this one, seven of the solo variety. The Peoria, Ill., product has stood out all spring, and that didn't change today. He also finished with an interception. Fellow linebacker Dash Bauman also tallied 11 tackles, including a sack and two tackles for loss. Evan Eller chalked up nine tackles and Brooklyn Cheek, Tyson Deen, Brayden Johnson, Isaac Sell and BJ Inmon all finished with four.

4

An opportunistic Cowboy defense snagged that many interceptions Saturday, two off the right arm of Sims courtesy of safety Justin Taylor and Rutherford. Kaden Anderson also tossed a pick to Cheek and Markie Grant closed out the game, high-pointing a throw from Gillette product Mason Drube before landing in the end zone. Wyoming, as a team, picked off just six total passes a season ago.

7

That's the number of catches for sophomore Chris Durr Jr., the unofficial star of last season's spring game. He racked up 29 yards on those grabs and finished with a long of 13. Fellow slot receiver Deion DeBlanc capped his outing with 48 yards on six receptions. These two should pose real problems for defenses this fall. Jaylan Bean, Jaylen Sargent and Arizona transfer Jackson Holman all had four catches on the afternoon.

8

That's how many times the quarterback would've gone down today if this was an actual game. Sims was touched in the backfield three times while Anderson and Drube both got dropped twice. Gage Brook also got caught.

175

That's the number of yards Drube threw for in his unofficial Cowboys' debut. That was the top mark among the four quarterbacks. He completed 16-of-29 throws in the process.

45

Gavyn Helm averaged that number above today on three punts. He finished with a long of 54 and pinned the Brown Team inside its own 20-yard line twice. Erik Sandvik, who as of now is slated to be the Cowboys' starting placekicker, unleashed five punts for 198 yards. That averages out to 39.6 a boot. He also downed one inside the 20.

6

That's the number of penalties in this one. The Brown Team was flagged for a false start on the opening snap. Four more went against them for a total of 35 yards. That was the squad Anderson and Drube led. The opponent suffered one setback, another jump before the whistle. All in all, clean game.

6-of-25

Not great numbers Saturday when it came to third-down conversions. Sims and Brook's team finished 4-of-14 on that all-important down. they made up for it on fourth, converting 4-of-5 attempts.

3-of-4

That's the official red-zone success in this one. Running back Dontae Burch opened the scoring in the first quarter, plunging in from two yards out. The scoring tosses to Schoenfeld and Bean were the others.

56

Sandvik attempted just one field goal in the spring game. It came from that distance above. It went wide right and was a tad short. Remember, the sophomore only attempted two field goals during his high school career in Steamboat Springs.

122

That's the number of plays ran in this one, 66 by the Gold Team, which also had a better than two-minute advantage in time of possession. The two teams combined for 532 yards, both eclipsing 213 through the air.

49

That's how many rushing attempts these two combined for on Saturday. The Gold Team was responsible for 35 of those, amassing 63 yards on the ground.

32

That's the amount of first downs in this exhibition.

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