Wyoming Head Coach ‘Not Worried’ About Outside Noise

LARAMIE -- Jay Sawvel said Monday that Jake Wilson is just going to continue to get better as he develops into his role.

Same can be said for fellow tight end Kyle Frendt. Wyoming's third-year head coach threw out a couple more names, too, all across the offensive line: Josiah Petaia, Kalvin Janssen, Giovanni Panozzo and Braylon Jenkins.

"The quarterback is going to grow with that group, and the whole offense will," Sawvel continued, referring to graduate transfer Tyler Hughes. "So, we're going to get better."

That begs the question: Will Sawvel be around to see that group, along with many others, reach that potential?

Through two full seasons and three games, the Ohio native sports an 8-19 overall record. He's won just four Mountain West games in 15 tries.

Sawvel said Monday, "where there's smoke, there's fire."

He was speaking about his offense, which has shown spurts of productivity. That unit, which he famously claims he took a "blowtorch" to in the offseason, is also averaging just 14.7 points per game. Only five FBS programs are worse in that all-important category.

The grumbling from the paying customers is also turning into a blazing flame.

"Look, if it's going to take them two more years, then probably not, right?" Sawvel said during his weekly press conference. "But I'm not worried. I don't worry about that part of it."

In this results-based business, Sawvel knows full well he needs to turn this ship around before it's too late. Though the team is 1-2, it feels more like a goose egg. That will happen when it takes a fourth-quarter comeback to topple a then-winless Northern Colorado squad in the home opener.

He said his focus is on the players, and the attitude they showed up with Sunday, just hours after a deflating 24-10 loss at Central Michigan, has him encouraged that a turnaround is on the horizon. He said many paid a visit to his office, expressing frustrations about everything from missed tackles to assignments.

The "Valleys," as Sawvel put it, have been steep and treacherous. One costly mistake has turned into a snowball effect, including last Saturday in soggy Mount Pleasant where the Cowboys failed to pick up a 4th-and-4 deep in Chippewa territory. The defense then proceeded to let Angel Flores and Co. march 90 yards on 17 plays, finding the end zone with just two ticks remaining in the first half.

It happened in the season opener at Colorado State. It happened again against UNC.

"My biggest thing is to make sure that players understand and keep their belief of growth and where they're going to get to," Sawvel added. "I'm not saying this like we're some kind of young football team. We have a lot of players that are young in certain positions. That's true, and that's undeniable, right? But we've also got some guys that are older, and we need to have a great expectation that those guys play really well, right? So, there's a combination to it, not unlike a lot of other teams around the country."

How does the noise on social media noise affect these guys?

Gary Rutherford said he understands the frustrations of a loyal, passionate fanbase. No one, the weak-side linebacker added, is harder on the team than the players inside that locker room.

He tries to avoid it, but that's easier said than done.

"I feel like for us -- or at least for me -- I don't really think about it as much just because they don't really know what is actually going on behind the closed doors," said Rutherford, who capped his third-career start with a team-best 13 tackles at CMU. "Fans are just going to be fans. They see the outside stuff, which is understandable. The team knows what's going on, and inside we just gotta prove it."

Therman Williams said part of the reason he inked with this program is the people in the seats. He came on his official visit last October against UNLV. He said "ice rocks" were flying, beer was flowing and practically no one left, despite the score.

The rookie cornerback they call "Boogie" is well aware of the mounting pressure. That's one reason he said he stays off X during the season. He wants to remain "level-headed" and stay focused on the task at hand.

Sawvel mentioned Wednesday on his weekly radio show that the team has decided it no longer wants cell phones in the locker room. Running back Markell Holman said it's an opportunity to "lock in" and block the unwanted voices.

Williams echoed Rutherford's comments.

"People are on the outside world looking in," he added. "They never really know what's going on internally."

Does he feel like Sawvel is still the man for the job?

"I love coach Sawvel," he continued. "He's a good dude, very passionate. You can tell he loves the team. He loves us. I think it has something to do with all of us in this building. A lot of people like to point the finger, but you know, I think we all need to step up. We all need to get better, whether it's the people who play, whether it's people who don't play, whether it's people who's on scout team, whether it's people who are going to suit up on Saturday. Just everybody needs to step up in here."

Rutherford said he's confident things will turn around. He mentioned there are nine games left, eight of which are conference opponents. The goal of winning a league title is still right there. That's the rallying cry coming from the High Altitude Performance Center.

He also feels like Sawvel is the guy to get them there.

"I am good with coach Sawvel and all the coaches here," Rutherford said. "They most definitely have a plan, we just have to pull it all together. The whole team, including coaches."

Wyoming and Hawaii will hook up Saturday for the 30th time. The Cowboys hold a 17-12 advantage in the overall series. Micah Alejado and that run-and-gun offense are already putting up video-game numbers in the passing game. Despite losing a pair of cornerbacks -- Tyson Shamsid-Deen and Kendall Griffin -- who will both undergo hand surgeries, Sawvel said there was a different vibe around the building since returning from Michigan.

"We're going to be better this week than what we were last week," Sawvel said from behind the podium. "That much I know. I know it based on the way everybody's attitude was when they came in here. I know based on the way we practiced last night. I know based on the way we finished the game the other day. I know based on what we're going to do through the course this week.

"Now, does that translate into us being better than Hawaii or whatever? We have to play one play at a time and not worry about anything else to it. But we're going to be a lot better."

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