UW Has Plenty of 2-Minute Scenarios to Use as Learning Tools

LARAMIE -- There was some good, some bad and some downright ugly.

When it came to two-minute execution, on either side of the football, it was always a crapshoot as Wyoming limped to a forgettable 4-8 record in 2025.

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That was a focal point for Jay Sawvel and his staff in Thursday's two-plus-hour practice inside the team's indoor practice facility.

"We've got a lot we've got to learn," the third-year head coach said. "We've got a lot that we've got to do to get better in certain scenarios."

That's an understatement.

Look no further than the home finale last November under the watchful eye of one of the best players to wear a Wyoming uniform, Josh Allen.

Trailing by six with 2:22 on the game clock, Kaden Anderson and the offense marched 81 yards to the Nevada 1-yard line with 15 ticks remaining. With an opportunity to salvage an ugly outing, the Cowboys had what Sawvel said was "at least" three shots at a game-winning touchdown despite having zero timeouts at their disposal.

After a snap and a quick spike, Anderson made his way to the home sideline. The marching orders were simple and straightforward: Throw it in the end zone or throw it away.

Neither of those things happened.

With the blitz incoming, the redshirt sophomore quarterback flung a pass out to the flat in the direction of running back Sam Scott, who hauled in the wobbler before getting planted into the turf -- in bounds.

That costly mistake cost Wyoming four yards, but more importantly, precious seconds. It didn't help matters that Scott didn't hand the ball directly to the nearest official, either. As the offense hurried back to the line, Anderson reeled in the snap and tossed a ball to the back pylon in the southwest corner of War Memorial Stadium. The throw was broken up before it ever got to Michael Fitzgerald.

Even if it did, replay might have axed the entire operation anyway.

The two-win Wolf Pack escaped with the 13-7 upset.

"The whole thing can't happen," a clearly dejected Sawvel said from behind the podium during his postgame press conference.

During a 1-3 non-conference slate, the Cowboys scored just three points in the hurry-up, late-quarter offense. That came in a 31-7 home blowout of FCS Northern Iowa. And the only reason it happened was a blocked punt that led to a three-play, 12-yard drive capped by a 40-yard field goal off the right foot of Erik Sandvik.

In the opener at Akron, the Zips moved the ball inside the visitor's 5-yard line late in the first half before Ben Finley tossed an interception into the arms of linebacker Brayden Johnson.

Crisis averted in what turned out to be a 10-0 Wyoming win.

Utah played keep away from the Cowboys' offense the following week, going on a six-play, 75-yard drive that culminated with Hunter Andrews crossing the white stripe from 11 yards out. Colorado also salted away a 37-20 victory thanks to an extended drive that led to a 35-yard Kaidon Salter jaunt to the end zone with 1:46 to go.

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Thursday, a blown assignment led to a late touchdown. Sawvel said it will serve as a learning experience, but it also likely dishes out plenty of PTSD.

"Now, all of a sudden, there'd be 28 seconds to go in the game, and now you're down," he said. "OK, well, you've got about four plays, you know what I mean? So, depending on what that score would have been, OK, maybe you got a chance to kick a field goal, but that's still hard, right? You got four total plays."

The defense, which ranked a respectable 45th in the FBS out of 134 programs, allowing just 344.2 yards per game, allowed Fresno State to rack up 58 yards on 11 snaps late in the second quarter in a rain-soaked Valley Children's Stadium in mid-November. A 40-yard field goal gave the Bulldogs a 10-3 lead at the half.

Led by quarterback Carson Conklin, the home team put a nail in the coffin with a four-play, 24-yard touchdown drive, leaving Wyoming with 56 seconds and a 21-point deficit.

Sawvel said a lapse on offense Thursday led to another in-game scenario going by the wayside. Though he praised his team for a spirited workout filled with effort -- and even a little feistiness toward the final period -- he will spend the spring and fall hammering out the details.

"We didn't get out of bounds with a receiver on an out cut," Sawvel added. "He's got to have more urgency to get out of bounds. The clock is running and we're out of time by the time that you get that ball back in, right?"

Wyoming's offense, then under the tutelage of Jay Johnson, did experience some two-minute success last fall.

In a 35-28 win over San Jose State in Laramie, one that included a defensive and special teams touchdown, an impressive 80-yard possession put that one on ice. Running back Terron Kellman, on play No. 4, dodged, weaved and bullied his way in for six from 28 yards out.

Wyoming scored just before the half in a 28-0 blanking of Border War rival Colorado State, too. Jovon Bouknight, the interim playcaller, orchestrated that five-play, 56-yard drive. Chris Durr's nine-yard touchdown grab led to a 21-0 advantage at the break.

This current team has plenty of film to refer to this offseason.

"This was a good practice today," Sawvel said. "I mean, the sound of it was good, the body movement was good. All of it I was. I was good with all of it."