Pokes Practice Report: Fatigue Leads to Follies

LARAMIE -- Admittedly, Christian Taylor doesn't raise his voice very often.

That changed Thursday after the third fumble of the afternoon.

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Wyoming's new soft-spoken, mild-mannered offensive coordinator briefly lit into his unit, which was also on the hook for a pair of interceptions and two poor snaps that skipped across the scalding turf inside War Memorial Stadium.

"I usually don't yell," Taylor said with a smile after the Cowboys' second practice of fall camp. "When I do, it means something is pretty wrong."

A day after his offense made numerous plays down field in the passing game, it was slim pickings for all the signal callers in this two-hour workout.

Mason Drube, rolling to his left, heaved a throw toward the east sideline that was easily intercepted by safety Travis Franklin. The Jacksonville State transfer nearly got him again two drives later.

Tyler Hughes nearly connected on a pretty looking pass to Jett Vincent for the second straight day. The issue? He's also a safety.

Hughes was eventually picked off by Tyson Shamsid-Deen after tight end Jake Wilson was unable to corral an on-target throw. The ball bounced off his hands and into the awaiting arms of the sophomore cornerback, who, if not for a cramp, would've cruised into the end zone for an easy touchdown. It was a rough day at the office for Wilson, among others.

"Bad snaps, ball on the ground, drops -- that is 100% lack of focus," Taylor added. "This is stuff they've done all spring and all summer. So, from a coach's point of view, I'm glad it happened today."

The real feel on the high plains Thursday hovered around 83 degrees.

Jay Sawvel said you can tack on at least 15 more on the synthetic turf. That's one of the many reasons the third-year head coach wanted to move fall camp from the North 40 natural grass to Jonah Field.

Sawvel, a defensive coach by trade, tipped his cap to that side of the ball, saying they played with "more energy." If there was a blemish for that unit, it was allowing home runs on the ground, one each from Samuel "Tote" Harris, Markell Holman and Nico Hamilton.

Because the team is still wearing shorts, limited shoulder padding and helmets, Sawvel said he's not going to overreact to any aspect of Thursday's showing. What he did see, though, has plagued this program over the previous two seasons: wearing down late.

"In the fourth quarter, we haven't risen to the occasion," he added.

In 2024, Sawvel's first at the helm, Wyoming dropped five games by 10 points or less, including a heartbreaking walk-off field goal in a 27-25 loss to Utah State. Last fall, the Cowboys lost a three-point affair at Air Force and suffered a 13-7 setback at home against Nevada.

Yes, Sawvel will be the first to tell you the previous offense stunk. While that's true -- and he says he's taken the steps to fix that in 2026 -- good teams find a way to win, he added.

"That's a challenge right now," he said. "As the practice gets deeper, we better get better."

Taylor will be the first one to tell you the defense flexed its collective muscles and took Round 2 via TKO. He's also realistic: Overhauling an entire offensive scheme doesn't happen overnight.

"You always forget what it's like to start from ground zero, and you're like, 'Oh, crap, we got a lot of work to do,'" he said. "But the guys had a hell of an offseason. Yesterday was a good practice, I think, for both sides. Then, today, you could tell when the guys got tired, they lost the focus, and that's when bad things happen."

EXTRA POINTS:

* The turf wasn't the only thing that got heated Thursday afternoon in Laramie. Johnathan Bush and Jayden Williams, who weigh a combined 600 pounds, got into a shoving match after an inside-run play. Bush is a redshirt freshman, vying for a spot in the Cowboys' front five. The other has 23 games under his belt. The duo from Texas again locked horns on the ensuing snap, but it wasn't long before the veteran tackle shucked the youngster to the side and met running back Jaden Lawrence in the backfield. That drew an audible cheer from the defense on the far sideline.

* Landon Sims ran the second offense on Wednesday. Today, it was Drube's time to climb under center. Passing windows were limited in the secondary all afternoon, forcing plenty of dump-offs and short throws. The Gillette product looked comfortable in the pocket and, at times, showed off his elusiveness. That was a necessity with edge rushers like Esaia Bogar and Kevin Sjogren often crashing the party.

* Tegen Seeds went from a neat little local story, a young player was forced into action because the defensive tackle spot was decimated by injury, to a legitimate threat in the trenches, Sawvel said on Tuesday. "He's made himself into that," he said, adding the Douglas native has had a great summer in the weight room. The 302-pound sophomore blew through the front on Day 2 and was in Hughes' kitchen before he could find a man downfield. The graduate transfer chucked the high throw near the sideline and out of harm's way.

* The highlights in the passing game were far and few between. Hughes did fire a picture-perfect strike to Jackson Holman on a deep slant. That may have been good for a 60-plus yard touchdown in a real game. Jayden Williams, a rookie wideout from Las Vegas, also made an impressive one-handed snag on an over-thrown long ball in warmups.

* Senior left guard Chandler Donaway, for a second straight day, was MIA. He is still back home in Texas dealing with personal matters. Tight end Kyle Frendt was in street clothes Thursday. That's a scary sight, considering he suffered a scary looking knee injury during spring ball. Sawvel said the sophomore is dealing with a soft-tissue issue and it was purely precautionary to keep him out of the action.

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