Roll the highlight film

LARAMIE – Siskel & Ebert … and Cole Godbout?

“I just feel like I’m a movie critic, to be honest,” Wyoming’s
redshirt freshman defensive tackle said. “I just love movies.”

The 6-foot, 4-inch, 250-pound Wisconsin product loves a wide
variety of flicks, not just the tough guy ones filled with action, explosions
and car chases. He has a sensitive side.

And a nerdy one.

“I love all the Harry Potter movies,” he said,
straight-faced. “The Hobbit movies are great, too. I’ve seen Land of the Lost
probably a 1,000 times. I can quote the whole movie if you put it on.”

He even watches musicals with his mom.

Does he still have time to kick back and feed his habit with
the busy life of a student-athlete? You bet.

“My roommate is also big into movies,” he said. “We watch
one every night. We watch one and go to bed.”

When he’s not reciting scenes and shuffling through Netflix to find the next blockbuster hit, Godbout has been busy making a name for himself on the Cowboys’ defensive line. He knew he would play this season, but a season-ending injury to Ravontae Holt pushed him into action immediately.

He has responded with four tackles and a big sack at Texas
State.

His coach has taken notice.

“He’s a gritty guy and understands technique,” Wyoming’s first-year defensive coordinator, Jake Dickert said. “He’s a fighter, a battler. Those things held true from what we saw on tape. He’s one of those guys that each week we need to play him more. That’s good for him and good for us.”

Godbout said he took this summer extremely serious. It was a
time to get his body in tune for what he knew would be a grind this season.

“I knew I had to step up,” he said. “I need to prove myself
and get better.”

Gobout said he started the summer at 270, dropped “bad
weight” down to 263 and built himself back up to 269 of solid muscle. His speed
and quick get off have paid major dividends this season, despite being
undersized and outweighed each week.

He says he is engaging the offensive lineman before he is even touched. Said the same goes for Mario Mora and Victor Jones.

Godbout agrees with Dickert – the more he plays, the better
he will get.

“My confidence grows as I’m in the game more,” he said. “I perform
better in the game. One or two plays, I won’t get in my groove.”

He just wishes his mentor was lining up next to him.

“It was really sad,” he said of watching Holt go down with a
torn ACL in fall camp. “I love that guy. We are close friends. He was grinding
and going to have an amazing season. He was going to be All-Conference, for
sure.

“It helped me in a way. It sucks for that to happen to him,
but I knew I needed to step up. I leaned on him a lot in camp. He reads
everything so fast, his keys and what he looks for.”

Another one of Godbout’s favorite movies is Shawshank Redemption. His tale is nothing like that of Andy Dufresne, who is sent to prison for a crime he didn’t commit only to use a rock hammer and slowly chip away at the concrete wall in his cell until he made his way to freedom.

But, to go from standing on the sideline watching as a
redshirt to now being a key cog in Wyoming’s 3-0 start, is close enough for
him.

He’s proving that he belongs each week.

“He’s exceeding our expectations,” Dickert said of Godbout. “That’s
a credit to his work ethic. He will play a bigger role in this defense.”