Sawvel on Devon Dampier: ‘I Wish We Were Done With Him’

* This story was originally published in July of 2025

LAS VEGAS, Nev., -- Jay Sawvel was hoping he would never have to face Devon Dampier again.

It's easy to see why, too.

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The 5-foot-10, 198-pound signal caller gashed Wyoming for 207 yards on the ground last November. The then sophomore did all of that damage on just 12 carries. He found the end zone three times, including an 85-yard jaunt late in the third quarter, giving New Mexico a 10-point advantage.

Dampier also threw for 164 yards and added a touchdown pass.

"He's a great player," Sawvel said on Thursday, the second day of Mountain West Media Days in Las Vegas. "I wish we were done with him."

Dampier, who did toss a costly pick-six to Wrook Brown, sparking a Wyoming comeback and eventual 49-45 victory, no longer calls Albuquerque home. He now lines up under center at the University of Utah, the Cowboys' Week-3 opponent.

"The problem now is he's going to be surrounded by better players," Wyoming's second-year head coach added. "He will become a major problem. They have a great system for him.

"He's in a really good program now, you know, all the way through. He will be a big challenge."

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Bronco Mendenhall, who coached Dampier last fall at New Mexico, says Dampier's move to Salt Lake City -- along with rejoining his innovative offensive coordinator, Jason Beck -- should only elevate his game.

"He's remarkable," said Mendenhall, who is now the head coach at Utah State. "He's hard to sack, he runs well and he creates."

Dampier threw for nearly 2,800 yards during his first season as a full-time starter. He tacked on a dozen touchdown tosses, too. The Arizona native also added 1,166 rushing yards and crossed the goal line 19 more times on the ground.

He was sacked just five times on 390 pass attempts.

"How he's going to be used at Utah, and how that's going to fit into the complementary nature and how they play the game, I don't know that, but it's been a strong program for a long time," Mendenhall continued. "Me, knowing Devon, (it's hard) to not see him just continue to grow and improve and be even harder to defend, which is a challenge already."

The Cowboys and Utes will meet Sept. 13 inside War Memorial Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m.

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