Popovich: 'He fits this logo very, very perfectly'

LARAMIE -- Want to feel old?

Tell Justin Popovich his body type, coupled with his mannerisms and playing style, mimics that of legendary NFL wide receiver Ed McCaffrey.

"That's Christian McCaffrey's dad, right?" the senior asked.

Kids.

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Though he may not fully appreciate the comparison, it's the highest of compliments for a pass catcher. During spring practice, the 6-foot-3, 203-pound wideout featured the dirtiest jersey. He has visible scrapes on his arms and legs, including a rather large bruise near his kidney area.

That never deterred him from venturing to the middle of the field and getting in violent shoving matches with defensive backs, one that typically ended with the defensive sideline cat-calling the Louisville, Ky., native.

"I'm not afraid of anything," Popovich said. "I'll hit a defensive end if I need to. I'll hit a cornerback. I'll score a touchdown. Whatever needs to happen to help the team win."

His stats back up that talk, too.

During his final season at Lock Haven, a Division-II school in Pennsylvania, Popovich hauled in 55 passes for 686 yards. He also found the end zone six times. Those numbers ranked him in the Top 10 in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference for yards, touchdowns and yards per game (62.4).

Wyoming had a need at the position this offseason with the departures of Chris Durr Jr., Jaylen Sargent and Michael Fitzgerald. After extensively sifting through the NCAA Transfer Portal, the staff liked what they saw on tape. Popovich fit the bill: Good size, hands and physicality, something Jay Sawvel said has been severely lacking in this program.

UTEP, New Mexico, Buffalo, Georgia State and Cincinnati also sought out Popovich's services.

"I think, No. 1, he had really good ball skills. He's a productive player," Wyoming's third-year head coach said. "The demeanor to him is is really good. Then, I think, once we got him here you realize, OK, this is a guy that's going to play a lot for us because he's unselfish and will do everything. Like, he is a good, willing blocker. He's also really intelligent, so you can move him around in a number of different places."

Popovich, in the end, was the only receiver added in free agency. Does that bring added pressure to produce?

"I feel like they have more confidence in me," he said of the offensive staff. "I feel like I bring a lot to the table: blocking, catching. I had a lot of receptions last year, so I think it's more confidence. You know, obviously, you do need to produce, and that is something I look forward to doing for this program."

Jett Vincent has faced Popovich a number of times both in the spring and now fall camp. The junior safety agrees: don't let the physical wideout get his mitts on you. He may never let go.

"He's a lot bigger, thicker," Vincent added. "He goes really hard and he's got a big heart. That's one of the things I admire that Wyoming recruits and wants guys that care and do the right thing. So, I'm excited to see him play, too."

Jovon Bouknight used one word to describe Popovich: "Throwback."

Wyoming's wide receivers coach followed that praise with arguably the highest accolade you can receive around these parts.

"He fits this logo very, very perfectly," Bouknight continued. "He doesn't cry or complain about anything. And he's one of those guys, man, he accepts his role. And like I said, his role is going to kind of vary throughout this whole offense. We've got him doing a lot of different things, and he's accepted all of it. He's embraced it. He's a blue-collar guy, man, and you want those guys on your team."

Charlie Coenen agrees, wholeheartedly.

"Defenses are going to feel him this year," the senior receiver added. "So, it's great to have physicality in the room because even in the run game, when we're blocking the safeties and they have to worry about us, that's when their eyes start to go and then we can create those explosives."

That's not something the Cowboys featured much of last fall. The longest reception from a wideout belonged to Jackson Holman, who reeled in a 49-yard reception last September in soggy Akron. Samuel Harris topped that mark by three yards after snatching a screen pass against Colorado. He's a running back.

Popovich came here to make an immediate impact. Though he knew virtually nothing about Wyoming and said he's never even traveled close to the state, it simply felt like home. Admittedly, he daydreams about the moment he can run into War Memorial Stadium with more than 25,000 at full throat.

At his previous stop, he added, they were lucky to get 1,000 fans in the stands.

He wants to be a crucial spoke in the wheel for a new-look offense that has its sights set on scoring 30 points an outing. One bruise at a time, he's making that happen.

"He plays hard -- and does it every day and works out every day, hard," Sawvel said. "I mean, this is a tough dude. I think that's been something that we've appreciated, how that's translated here, so far."

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