Wyoming Football: News and Notes Ahead of Idaho

LARAMIE -- Heavyweight boxer Mike Tyson once coined the famous phrase: "Everyone has a plan: Until they get punched in the face."

Last Saturday night in the desert, Wyoming played the role of the rugged, stubble-faced tough guy, entering Tempe with the reputation and pedigree of a team that was always anxious for a brawl.

Get our free mobile app

The Cowpokes instead appeared more like the guy in the local watering hole sporting a tribal tattoo, tattered jeans and a Tapout shirt.

The glass jaw shattered quickly.

The first haymaker landed just 41 seconds in.

More than 40 hours after the Cowpokes were KO'd in a lackluster 48-7 loss at Arizona State, one that handed the program its worst opening-day loss in its 128-year history, the fighting references were just getting started.

"You lose some of your stinger. You lose some of your aggression," head coach Jay Sawvel said during his Monday press conference, referring to quarterback Evan Svoboda, who tossed a pick-six on his first pass attempt of the season and added another on the ensuing drive. "It's no different, guys, than being in a fight, right? Like, you can go into the fight and go, 'I'm going to fight as hard as I can.' But a minute into the fight, if you still haven't landed a punch, you eventually look at and go, 'I may not win this,' you know what I mean?

"We needed to land some punches the other night."

Wyoming gave up 499 yards of total offense to a Sam Leavitt-led team that was nothing short of a tomato can in 2023. The redshirt freshman completed 14-of-22 passes for 258 yards and two touchdowns during his first collegiate start.

Impressive? You bet.

Where he really jabbed the visitors, though, was with his feet. Leavitt was elusive, extending plays and turning up field, causing fits at the second level. He rushed for 47 yards, including a long of 21. He added a 15-yard jaunt on a 3rd-and-9 early in the third quarter.

Any hopes of a comeback -- heck, even respectability -- evaporated when tight end Chamon Metayer turned a harmless-looking dump pass to the perimeter into a 25-yard touchdown.

ASU scored on its first four drives of the night. It would've been five if not for a 38-yard field goal. No worries. The Devils added a pair of touchdowns on two of their next three drives.

The damage, as they say, was done.

The shortcomings on the offensive side of the ball were striking, but it's the other unit's outing that left the faithful scratching their collective head.

Sawvel said tackling was obviously an issue. So were angles, over-pursuits, field position and leaving wide-open lanes. Leavitt's nimble decision making added to the headache. So did the offense's failure to sustain a drive.

It was a flurry of strikes that left this team punch drunk.

"Defensively, we were on the field a long time," he added. "Offensively, we weren't able to establish anything. There's just a cumulative effect that happens with that. We didn't handle it well. It was pretty evident."

Here are some other takeaways from Sawvel's weekly press conference, six days ahead of Wyoming's home opener against Idaho:

* A reader described the loss to ASU perfectly. Remember when the opening snap sailed over Peyton Manning's head to start Super Bowl 48 against the Seahawks? Even with a future Hall of Famer under center, as well as a supporting cast that will forever be known as one of the best offenses in NFL history, Seattle rolled to a 43-8 laugher inside MetLife Stadium. Even Manning couldn't get his team out of that early hole. The avalanche came next.

* What this Wyoming squad should be hoping for is a turnaround similar to the one in 2022. Andrew Peasley, making his Cowboys debut, completed just 5-of-20 throws for 30 yards and an interception in a 38-6 loss at Illinois. The online vitriol was so bad after that one, the transfer quarterback logged off Twitter for the year. Remember that one? You might recall the sky was falling then, too. That is until Peasley threw for 256 yards and two touchdowns the following Saturday in Laramie. Wyoming won that one 40-37 over Tulsa in two overtimes. QB1 was named the Mountain West's Offensive Player of the Week.

* Sawvel remembers that afternoon in Champaign all too well. For one, his defense was on the field for more than 36 minutes yet held the Illini to just 24 points through three quarters. He also pointed out that Svoboda was also on the sideline that muggy afternoon.

* Illinois was picked to finish next to last in the Big Ten's West Division that season. Instead, the Fighting Illini went 8-5 and landed in second place. Three defensive backs -- Devon Witherspoon, Quan Martin and Sydney Brown -- were selected in the NFL Draft. Witherspoon was taken No. 5 overall.  ASU was picked dead last in the 16-team Big 12. "We may look at it four or five weeks from now and go, Arizona State was a lot better than what people gave them credit for," Sawvel said.

* To add insult to injury Saturday night, Wyoming players, coaches and support staff were stuck on the tarmac at Phoenix's Sky Harbor International Airport with no working air conditioning for more than an hour. Frustration followed. So did losing shirts. "We had a little bit of a delay at the airport," Svoboda said with a grin. "It was getting hot, especially with it being so hot outside."

* Sawvel mentioned Monday that he received an email this weekend that said, "They hope that I got shot." You can read that full story right HERE.

* Does this team still believe in its QB? You can also read that full story from Monday right HERE.

* Word leaked Saturday morning that starting tight end John Michael Gyllenborg would be sidelined in Tempe with an ankle injury. Sawvel said he rolled it running a route a week prior at practice. Though he is listed atop this week's depth chart, his availability for Idaho is still unknown at this time.

* Sixth-year edge rusher DeVonne Harris (elbow) and redshirt freshman left tackle Nate Gieger (knee) are expected to miss a "period of time," per Sawvel. Gieger, who made his first-career start last Saturday, was injured in the first quarter. Sawvel said he will be further evaluated this week. Senior running back Dawaiian McNeely is inching closer to a return. He will "go live" at practice on Tuesday. Depending on how his surgically-repaired knee holds up, he could see the field. "There's probably a really good chance he plays this week," Sawvel said. McNeely suffered a torn ACL during the 2023 fall camp.

* Tyrecus Davis, Tyce Westland and Isaac White also were forced to leave the game in Tempe. Sawvel said the first two will be fine. His senior safety, however, is questionable after getting "dinged." Senior running back Harrison Waylee, Sawvel added, is still at least a couple weeks away from returning after undergoing knee surgery in August.

* DJ Jones was the Cowboys featured back against the Sun Devils. He capped his UW debut with 43 yards on 17 carries. No other running back touched the ball until Jamari Ferrell rushed for no gain with 5:54 remaining in the fourth quarter. Sam Scott, who finished the night with 26 yards on five attempts, didn't handle the ball until the 2:16 mark. Why the heavy dose of Jones? "Jamari had an injury leading up to about last Monday, so he was a little bit behind where he would have been," Sawvel said. "And DJ was also our best pass protector. With what (ASU does), there was a lot of different looks and a lot of different things there. So there's a lot of DJ Jones in that regard." Jones is again the listed starter against the Vandals. There's an "or" between Ferrell and Scott for No. 2.

* Idaho is coming off a 24-14 loss at No. 3 Oregon last Saturday in Eugene. The visitors held the high-powered Ducks to just 107 yards on the ground on 37 attempts. That's an average of 2.9 yards per rush. The Vandals' defense also forced a fumble and sacked Dillon Gabriel three times. "This is a good defense," Sawvel said. "There's a reason that Oregon struggled to run the ball, because they didn't miss tackles, for one. They held the line of scrimmage very well. So, I mean, this is a huge challenge for us this week."

* Kickoff is slated for 1:30 p.m. inside War Memorial Stadium and the game will be televised on TruTV.

* Make sure to download the free 7220sports.com app to stay up to date on all the latest Wyoming football news. You can do that right HERE. Also, make sure to subscribe to our newsletter right HERE. Never miss a Roaring Repeater Podcast or a 7220 Sports Kickoff Show with Cody Tucker and Jared Newland. You can find those past episodes HERE.

* Make sure to also follow us on social media. Our Facebook page can be found HERE and our X account HERE.

* Did you miss any of our ASU coverage? Check all of that out right HERE.

- University of Wyoming’s Top 50 Football Players