Pokes Football: Best of Wyoming

LARAMIE -- It's officially "series season."

This summer, with the help of some longtime Wyoming football followers, we will count down the Top 25 homegrown products in program history.

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As always, what these guys did in professional football doesn't matter. This is all about production in Laramie. A couple of the guys on this final list may not have been born here, but they grew up in Wyoming and graduated from an in-state high school.

Once we put a bow on these selections, we'll move on to other states like Colorado, Nebraska, Texas, etc. You get the picture:

Allyn Griffin/ UW courtesy photo

No. 24 - Allyn Griffin

Wide receiver, 1981-85, Casper, Wyo.

Résumé in Laramie

A multiple-sport athlete at Casper's Kelly Walsh High School, Allyn Griffin turned down offers to play basketball in college and instead went to Laramie on a football scholarship. The former Trojan racked up record numbers on the high plains, snagging 105 passes for 1,912 yards and 13 touchdowns at the wide receiver position. During his junior year, Griffin caught 38 balls for 835 yards and six touchdowns. That was the most by any UW receiver in school history at the time. His 88-yard touchdown reception against Air Force in 1984 aided in a 26-20 upset inside War Memorial Stadium. He also finished that season with 87 yards on the ground. He averaged an eye-popping 22 yards per catch that season as the Cowboys finished 6-6 overall under Al Kincaid. Griffin accounted for 2,036 yards from scrimmage during his time in Laramie, including 13 touchdowns. That production is even more impressive when you consider the Cowboys ran a wishbone-style offense. Griffin was the team's leading receiver in 1984-85, hauling in passes from Scott Runyan. Before there was Shawn Wiggins, Ryan Yarborough, Marcus Harris, Jovon Bouknight and others, there was Allyn Griffin. The Detroit Lions selected Griffin in the eight round of the 1986 NFL Draft. Injuries derailed his professional career.

About Casper

The second-largest city in Wyoming -- population wise -- Casper is home to nearly 60,000 residents, as of the last census. The "Oil City" is located near the center of the state in Natrona County. Some notable people from Casper are: Tom Browning (MLB), Dick Cheney (former vice president), Mike Devereaux (MLB) and Logan Wilson (NFL).

Pokes Football: Best of Wyoming series

* No. 25

(Cody Tucker and Jared Newland both work for Townsquare Media, which owns 7220sports.com. Kevin McKinney has been a color commentator of Cowboy football for five decades. Ryan Thorburn now works for the University of Wyoming in a sports information role after spending decades in the newspaper industry, most recently at the Casper Star-Tribune. Sally Ann Shurmur, the daughter of former UW football coach Fritz Shurmur, is also a veteran of the newspaper industry, working as a journalist, columnist at the CST for 43 years. She currently writes for Cowboy State Daily.)

University of Wyoming’s Top 50 Football Players

During the summer of 2021, 7220Sports.com counted down the Top 50 football players in University of Wyoming history, presented by Premier Bone & Joint Centers, Worthy of Wyoming.

The rules are simple: What was the player's impact while in Laramie? That means NFL stats, draft status or any other accolade earned outside of UW is irrelevant when it comes to this list.

This isn't a one-man job. This task called for a panel of experts. Joining 7220's Cody Tucker are Robert Gagliardi, Jared Newland, Ryan Thorburn, and Kevin McKinney.

We all compiled our own list of 50 and let computer averages do the work. Think BCS -- only we hope this catalog is fairer.

Don't agree with a selection? Feel free to sound off on our Twitter: @7220sports - #Top50UWFB

Gallery Credit: 7220Sports.com

- University of Wyoming’s Top 50 Football Players