Wyoming’s MVP Friday Could Be a Guy Who Won’t Even See the Field

LARAMIE -- Tyler Franklin could be the Most Valuable Player for the Cowboys Friday night without even stepping foot on the field.

Who? How?

Wyoming's scout-team quarterback, a 190-pound freshman from Fresno, has the tall task of mimicking Air Force's vaunted triple-option attack this week in practice and imitating the role of Evan Medders, a signal caller who has already rushed for 266 yards and five touchdowns in his first two career starts.

Franklin, who has never actually run the option in a real game, has even ditched his No. 34 jersey for a 5. It's blue, too.

"I'm definitely embracing it this week," he said with a smile. "It's a lot different -- obviously, it's Air Force -- but I think it's kind of fun, running different offenses."

It's not fun for a Cowboy defense that will be tasked with limiting the second-ranked rushing attack in the FBS. Medders, with the help of running backs Owen Allen and Rocco Conti, along with the all-important fullback position, Gage LaDue, is leading that unit to an eye-popping average of 343 yards per game.

With Medders under center in wins over Northern Illinois and UNLV, the Falcons have upped that number to 434.5. That damage was done on 129 carries. The sophomore only attempted four passes in those outings.

Why?

They haven't needed to, Wyoming defensive coordinator Aaron Bohl said, bluntly. He will utilize 7-on-7 drills throughout the week, he added, in an attempt to make sure his secondary doesn't "fall asleep at the wheel."

Franklin said he hasn't busted a throw on his teammates yet. He even threw in the word "unfortunately," before quickly correcting himself. The challenge this week, he said, is precision. Air Force is a machine that doesn't trip itself up.

Consider this: On 380 carries this fall, no one has put the ball on the deck.

"Just getting all the details right," Franklin said. "They're very detailed and there's a lot of technicalities with it. So, it's getting all those down. You can't take a misstep, like getting the motion and timing right, because you want to make it as game-like as possible.

"We get all that as close to how they run it as possible."

Franklin was a late addition to the 2026 recruiting class. After freshman Taylor Hasselbeck suffered a torn ACL in summer workouts, Jay Sawel and his staff scoured the country for a replacement. The lanky 6-foot-3 recruit out of Bullard High School immediately left his post at Fresno City College for the "once in a lifetime" opportunity. He arrived in Laramie three days before fall camp.

That means when the Cowboys were getting early preperation for this always highly-anticipated Front Range matchup in the spring, Franklin wasn't apart of it.

"He runs really well," Wyoming's third-year head coach said about the rookie. "So, at least from that part of it, we'll get a good look there, going into it. But it's certainly a challenge to prepare for."

Bohl said Franklin's role cannot be overstated. The importance of this game, and the scout team, as a whole, was always emphasized, Bohl added, by his father, Craig Bohl, when he roamed the sidelines for a decade in Laramie.

In fact, the old ball coach basically skipped right past the details of a 41-23 victory Saturday over Northern Illinois and was already inquiring about the plan for the Falcons.

It all starts with the look the defense receives in practice.

"This kid works his tail off," Aaron Bohl said. "You know, he deserves it. He's so thankful to be here, and he's got some good talent and skill set overall. But this week, especially, it's so different because every detail matters on the timing of the motions. Even whenever he's not running the ball, but to get people set, to get the right path of the fullback and everything like that. It's all kinds of physical work, so this is going to be big for him."

No one, Franklin said confidently, has watched more film on the Falcons than he has. He even gave the starting defense a preview in a brief practice Friday night ahead of the meeting with NIU.

This is a job he doesn't take lightly.

Two weeks ago, ahead of a road tilt with San Jose State, Franklin was named the in-house scout team player of the week. Wyoming's defense responded by limiting the Mountain West's leading rusher to just 69 yards on 16 carries. Jabari Bates wasn't the only Spartan on the struggle bus that night, either.

Luke Weaver, on nine attempts, finished with minus-3 yards on the ground. The quarterback-run game has plagued the Cowboys this fall. Not on that night.

"It's very rewarding on Saturdays when you see a play you've been running all week, and then we go make a big play on it," said Franklin, who doesn't travel with the team on the road.

He pointed to a specific play in a Week-2 win over Northern Colorado that he and the scout-team offense had practiced ad nauseam. Kenny Leuth reeled in the shotgun snap, briefly looked to his left and began to roll to the right hash. He was looking for the deep out-route with 2:38 remaining in regulation.

It didn't make it that far.

Wyoming safety Jones Thomas spied Leuth the entire way as he slowly coasted back into coverage. If the QB ran, Jones was on it. If he threw, it was likely an interception. The latter is exactly what transpired.

"We ran that play 10 times," Franklin said with a grin and a head shake. "I was getting so sick of running that play -- and then we get a pick. It's like, OK, it was worth it."

Landon Sims currently serves as the Cowboys' second-string quarterback. It was Mason Drube's job last fall to play the role of Air Force signal caller Liam Szarka. Sims joked that he can't imagine learning that offense, let alone on the fly.

He said the defense is certainly getting a great picture from Franklin.

"It's definitely a big job," Sims said. "You have to do it the right way because everybody knows who they are and what they do."

Franklin also has a trick up his sleeve as he preps for this task. His father, Louis Franklin, once mastered the spread-option during his playing days at St. Mary's College.

"I've been talking to him about it," he said. "It's been a lot of fun doing it, getting play against the (No. 1 defense) and then seeing them get rewarded."

The Cowboys (4-3, 3-1) and Falcons (5-1, 3-1) are slated to kickoff at 7 p.m. Mountain Time. The game will be televised on The CW.

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