Welcome to Wyoming Football: Diore Hubbard

LARAMIE -- Wyoming, once again, has welcomed nearly 50 new faces to the roster this offseason.

Transfer portal era, am I right?

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Jay Sawvel again made a list of 10 "keepers" last December, heading into free agency. Running back Samuel "Tote" Harris was, no doubt, high on that list. So were defensive tackles Dante Drake and Jayden Williams. The Cowboys' third-year head coach also wanted to hang on to players like tight end Jake Wilson, wideout Deion DeBlanc, nickel corner Desman Hearns and offensive tackles Rex Johnsen and Braylon Jenkins, among others.

Mission accomplished. All are back for another round on the high plains.

The team did lose its top-four outside targets, including leading receiver Chris Durr Jr., who is now at Maryland. Two impact cornerbacks also hit the open market. Tyrese Boss is at Arizona. Markie Grant headed west to former conference rival Utah State.

Wyoming will also have a new quarterback under center, snagging William and Mary graduate transfer Tyler Hughes, who has one season of eligibility remaining. The hope is he'll right the ship at that spot, keeping the seat warm for Gillette's Mason Drube.

The Cowboys also reloaded in the offensive backfield and at the line of scrimmage, adding 1,000-yard rusher Markell Holman and interior linemen Chandler Donaway, Jason Maciejcak and Jeremiah Katt.

You'll read all about those guys, along with 20-plus freshmen, in this summer series: Welcome to Wyoming football.

NAME | Diore Hubbard

YEAR | Sophomore

HT/WT | 5',10", 190

HOMETOWN | Gahanna, Ohio

POSITION | Running back

JERSEY NUMBER | 20

PREVIOUS SCHOOL | West Virginia

YEARS OF ELIGIBILITY | Three

NOTABLE | Jay Sawvel thinks he capped his offseason with a bang, inking former West Virginia running back Diore Hubbard, who led the team in rushing last fall with 335 yards and four touchdowns on just 96 attempts. The 5-foot-10, 190-pound redshirt sophomore also snagged 16 passes for 156 yards. Hubbard, who suffered a torn ACL in a Week 11 loss at Arizona State, was named the Big XII Freshman of the Week after gashing Colorado to the tune of 64 yards on 16 carries. He also added six catches for 94 yards, including a long of 69. The week prior, he eclipsed the century mark on the ground for the first time in his young career with a 108-yard performance against Houston. His fourth-quarter touchdown sealed the 45-35 victory over the No. 22 Cougars. Hubbard, a two-time All-State First-Team selection out of Gahanna Lincoln High School, was a 2022 finalist for the Mr. Ohio Award and was named the Columbus Metro Player of the Year. He rushed for 5,221 career yards and found the end zone 65 times. He also hauled in 46 passes for 601 yards and six touchdowns. In '22, Hubbard rushed for an eye-popping 2,365 yards and 25 touchdowns.

QUOTABLE | "He was (West Virginia's) leading rusher last year. He tore his ACL in November and that backed a lot of people off of him. He will be fine to be working out in the summer. He'll be here rehabbing with us all spring: in meetings, all spring practice, all that type of stuff. He'll be cleared for practice in August. He'll be ready to play when the season starts, but he also has three years of eligibility left. If he was a guy that had one season of eligibility left, I would not have been interested in his situation. But with three, I felt like there was a really -- I guess I don't want to say it this way -- but in today's world, it was a great bargain, in the fact that we were getting a good player that maybe we've got to wait a little bit for." -- Wyoming head coach Jay Sawvel on the sophomore running back

WELCOME TO WYOMING SUMMER SERIES:

* LB - Anthony Beavers Jr.

* S - Jett Vincent

* WR - Justin Popovich

* QB - Tyler Hughes

* CB - Junus McGraw

* RB - Markell Holman

* CB - Logan Mackey

* S - Travis Franklin Jr.

* WR - Jayden Williams

* LB - Karson Butts

* S - Da'Marion Brownlee