Turning Point, Unsung Hero and What’s Next For UW Football

LARAMIE -- Kaden Anderson felt the edge protection beginning to collapse.

Wyoming's sophomore signal caller calmly stepped up in the pocket, never taking his eyes off his downfield options.

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Jaylen Sargent, lined up in the right slot, darted off the line and took a sharp left turn into the teeth of the Colorado State secondary. The senior wideout got separation from Lemondre Joe before hauling in the 22-yard pass, juking the defensive back and turning up field.

While attempting to avoid a hit from incoming linebacker Jacob Ellis, Sargent slowed up a bit and veered to his left where he was stripped from behind by the trailing Joe inside the Rams' 15-yard line.

A mad scramble ensued.

Ellis dove for the loose ball, but his momentum caused him to go right over it. If he doesn't make that attempt, cornerback Jahari Rogers might have had an opportunity to scoop and run down the east sideline with only a handful of Cowboys -- mainly offensive linemen and Anderson -- to beat. Jake Jarmolowich also had a shot at the turnover. So did Jace Bellah.

So, who eventually came out of the pile?

Sargent.

He slowly made his way to the side judge, handing him the ball before turning toward the home bench and patting himself on the chest. It was a non-verbal way of saying "my bad."

Anderson, just two plays later, reeled in the shotgun snap and coasted backward as he waited for the play to develop. Chris Durr Jr., who lined up in the left slot, blew off the line before beating Joe to the corner of the end zone and snagging a perfectly-placed nine-yard touchdown toss.

This turn of events was a back-breaker for the visitors.

Instead of a potential fumble recovery with under two minutes to go in the first half, Wyoming instead took a commanding 21-0 lead with 36 ticks remaining.

Wyoming 28, Colorado State 0

UNSUNG HERO

Offensive coordinator Jay Johnson wasn't the only member of this Wyoming football team to get demoted last week.

Bart Edmiston was removed from kickoff duties, something he has done since arriving on campus this summer. Jay Sawvel said he wasn't happy with a number of kicks and inserted Erik Sandvik into that role.

How did Edmiston respond?

By averaging 50.2 yards per punt, performing his day job. The junior from Ocean Springs, Miss., boomed a 65-yarder and pinned CSU inside its own 20-yard line five times on six attempts.

"Look, we've worked our ass off with the punt team and with Bart recognizing certain situations, launch points, (operation) time, all this other stuff," Sawvel said. "He was great tonight. He really was. They've got a good return game, and they got nothing out of their return game the whole way through."

Running back Samuel Harris gets a nod here, too.

And it had nothing to do with his seven rushing attempts for 32 yards or his 14-yard catch. The rookie they call "Tote," once again, did a masterful job tonight in pass protection. Despite tipping the scales at just 187 pounds, the Texan isn't shy about putting a hat on a hat.

MORE UW FOOTBALL NEWS VIA 7220SPORTS:

* Cowboys Dominate Rams 28-0 in 117th Edition of Border War

* Rants and Raves: CSU Edition

* Final Live File: Wyoming 28, Colorado State 0

* 2024 Failure Fuels Wyoming in Border War Blanking

* PODCAST: 1996 Rewind With Macus Harris, David Saraf

* Wyoming's Tegen Seeds Creeping Up Depth Chart

* Will Wyoming's Senior Tight End by Ready to go Against CSU?

* Know Wyoming's Foe: Colorado State Rams

* PODCAST: Bizarre Border War Up Ahead?

* What Will Wyoming's Offense Look Like Under Jovon Bouknight?

* BREAKING: Jay Johnson Out as Offensive Coordinator at Wyoming

* Colorado State Notebook: Sawvel Looking For Border War 'Jolt'

QUOTABLE

"It's a big game for the entire state, and I just appreciate being a part of it. I appreciate the way our team played tonight. I appreciate how together our team is through everything and, look, it pays off. In the end, everything pays off."

-- Wyoming head coach Jay Sawvel on his emotions following his first Border War victory as the head coach of the Cowboys.

"Considering this is my last time playing these guys, that was absolutely amazing. Having Ryan Yarborough talk to us, Marcus Harris talked to us, President Trump shout us out on the video board, I mean, this was a crazy environment tonight. You know, having the black unis, it was insane. But, you know, I'm just so thankful to play for the University of Wyoming."

-- Wyoming center Jack Walsh on winning his final contest against CSU and finishing his career 4-1 against the Rams.

"We're not shaking hands. We're running over there, because that's what they did to us last year. I still remember Henry Blackburn and Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi running over there -- running past me -- and going to grab that boot ... That is ultimately what I wanted to do to them, and that is what I did."

-- Quarterback Kaden Anderson on what "fueled" him throughout the week, leading up to the 117th meeting between Wyoming and CSU.

"It's hard to describe, but it was the best feeling ever because, you know, last year what happened. That was on my mind the whole game. I was thinking about that. And we need to get our get back, honestly, and that's what we did tonight. So, you know, running across the field was a great feeling."

-- Wyoming defensive tackle Ben Florentine describing the moment the home sideline rushed over to grab the Bronze Boot, the coveted traveling trophy between these two rivals.

WHAT'S NEXT?

Wyoming (4-4, 2-2) hits the road next week to take on San Diego State (6-1, 3-0) for the final time as members of the Mountain West Conference. The Cowboys haven't traveled to southern California since 2019 and have never played inside of SnapDragon Stadium. The Aztecs pitched their third shutout of the season Saturday, blanking Fresno State 23-0 inside the Bulldogs' building. SDSU is in the Top five in the FBS in scoring defense, allowing just 10.4 points per game.