Week 4 comes a day early in Michigan, this week the Pokes will play at Eastern Michigan. Wyoming is coming off their second victory of the season after defeating UC Davis 45-22 and come into week 4 with as many wins as 2015. Eastern Michigan also comes in 2-1, which doubles their win total from 2015. Their lone win was in Laramie last September and the Pokes should be out looking for some revenge.
There wasn’t any spread on last week’s game, so we will ignore that in the standings and everyone was correct again in choosing the outcome of the game. This week Wyoming is 3-point road favorite this weekend.
The standings are as follows:
|
Straight Up |
Against the Spread |
|
|
Robert Gagliardi |
2-1 | 0-2 |
|
Brandon Foster |
2-1 |
1-1 |
|
Brad Reed |
2-1 | 0-2 |
|
Chad Smith |
2-1 | 0-2 |
| Connor Cunningham | 2-1 |
0-2 |
| Wyoming Cowboys | 2-1 |
1-1 |
Robert Gagliardi, Wyosports.net
What are your thoughts on last week’s game?
A good bounce-back win for Wyoming. The run game was outstanding, and redshirt sophomore quarterback Josh Allen responded well after a rough fourth quarter at Nebraska the week before. I also thought the telling point in the game was after Allen lost a fumble that resulted in a UC Davis touchdown early in the second quarter, he responded well. The run game helped him a lot, but Allen completed all of his passes the rest of the half and threw two touchdowns. Wyoming’s defense was solid, and very good in the run game.
Who was last week’s MVP?
Junior running back Brian Hill with his sixth 200-yard rushing game of his career. He finished with 25 carries of 207 yards and two touchdowns.
Poke Pick: QB Josh Allen
Going with Allen to see if he can take this team on the road and snap an eight-game road-losing streak dating back to 2014. Everyone needs to play well for the Cowboys, but if they get another stellar game from their quarterback, their chances seem solid to get the win.
The Cowboys win if…
Allen plays well and doesn’t turn the ball over, UW’s running game opens up its passing game and the defense continues to be good against the run and doesn’t allow a lot of big plays
Game Prediction:
Wyoming wins a close one. Wyoming 38 EMU 31
Brandon Foster, Casper Star-Tribune
What are your thoughts on last week’s game?
The Cowboys needed to come out and thoroughly beat an FCS team like UC Davis to put that Nebraska collapse behind them. That’s exactly what they did. Plus, they shored up the two biggest question marks from a week before: run offense and pass defense. Now it’s time to see if they can do the same against a MAC team on the road.
Who was last week’s MVP?
Gotta go with Brian Hill as the MVP from the Aggies game. He had exactly the kind of performance Wyoming needed from him.
Poke Pick: CB Antonio Hull
EMU has gotten decent quarterback play and with Robert Priester recovering from a concussion, Wyoming’s cornerbacking corps could be even lighter than usual.
The Cowboys win if…
Josh Allen has fewer than three interceptions. Wyoming should be able to pick on that EMU secondary and as long as they don’t turn the ball over repeatedly in trying to do so, I smell a Cowboy win.
Game Prediction:
Wyoming is eager to put the 2015 game behind it, and even though this is a road game, it’s one of the least intimidating road environments to play in. The Pokes cover the spread easily, Wyoming 42 EMU 28
Brad Reed, Wyonation.com
What are your thoughts on last week’s game?
Good win for the Cowboys. Not a great win, because this is a pretty bad UC-Davis team.. But at least the Cowboys beat their FCS opponent this year. That’s progress from last year. The defense played very well throughout the game. The offense had a great week as well. Scoring 45 points was certainly a high point. Brian Hill rushing for more than 200 yards for the sixth time in his career was also good. Josh Allen played mostly mistake free. He was stripped of the ball once and UC-Davis returned it for a touchdown. All in all, a good week for the Cowboys. They need to build on that momentum and finish up conference play strong going into the Border War.
Who was last week’s MVP?
Brian Hill. More than 200 yards rushing again with a pair of touchdowns. He’s the piston in the engine that just keeps on cranking. Honorable mention to Rico Gafford for a terrific interception and return.
Poke Pick: Wyoming Defense
Defense is really going to need to step up here. I fear that the offense might be slow going, or slow to get momentum going. Eastern Michigan is threatening the Pokes with playing multiple quarterbacks and who knows what kind of nonsense they’ll do with that. The tackling machine, Andrew Wingard, will need to be on top of his tackling game. The Pokes get DJ May back who was serving a one game suspension for violating team rules. His return should open up some opportunities for the Pokes. Everyone on the defense needs to be accountable for their man. Probably wouldn’t hurt to force a turnover or two either.
The Cowboys win if…
They play good defense. Eastern Michigan piled on a lot of points last year and this squad is looking for revenge. Both of those last sentences are pretty cliche football things to say, but it’s basically what needs to happen. Josh Allen needs to prove he can be effective on the road. Playing a very well managed, mistake free football game will help Allen and the Pokes get some offensive rhythm going. At the same time, Brian Hill needs to become the Frontier Days bull that he is and run for at least 100 yards.
Game Prediction:
Revenge time! Wyoming 34 Eastern Michigan 27
Chad Smith, Wyonation.com
What are your thoughts on last week’s game?
Wyoming was strong and did what they needed to do against a lower division opponent. This is a positive sign and now they need to use this game as a building block against better teams.
Who was last week’s MVP?
Brian Hill had a bounce back game with over 200 yards against the Aggies. We will see if he can string together a stretch of good games with conference play looming.
Poke Pick: Defensive Line
The defensive line headed by DE Carl Granderson will need to continue their solid play rushing the passer and defending the run. Eastern Michigan has a balanced attack averaging 39.7 points and 321 yards per game so the Pokes defensive line will need to make plays in both areas for Wyoming to have a shot at winning in Ypsilanti.
The Cowboys win if…
The running game clicks and they do not have more than one turnover. Offensive and defensive efficiency will be king on the road.
Game Prediction:
This is a tough game to gauge. It’s on the road and on a Friday night and there is no way to really tell how the team will deal with these factors. Like with the opening game against NIU, I can’t pick Wyoming until I see them play four good quarters of football on the road. It’s possible last year’s home loss will provide a good amount of motivation but I see the Pokes dropping a close game. EMU 31 Wyoming 28
Connor Cunningham, Wyonation.com
What are your thoughts on last week’s game?
I don’t want to say it was an impressive win, because Wyoming was supposed to win. I will say it was impressive how they won. I say that because the game was over by halftime and as we know, Wyoming came into this game 2-4 in their last 6 against FCS foes and 3 wins were within 8. Wyoming has had its troubles with FCS/Big Sky teams recently. I was happy to see them come out and get a big lead early and hold it.
Who was last week’s MVP?
Brian Hill, no question. They needed their star to come out get going early and often, and he did. Hill went over 200 yards, again and added a couple scores. I think this could really get Hill going as the Cowboys dig into the heart of their schedule.
Poke Pick: LB Lucas Wacha
Wyoming needs to change their luck on the road and it is going to start on defense. Senior Lucas Wacha has been relatively quiet this season, but he has been very good for the 3 years and I think his experiences shows up on the road and he makes some key stops.
The Cowboys win if…
They win the turnover battle and get off to a good start on offense. I think the Cowboys are favorites on the road for a reason. There is no excuse for them to lose this game. The crowd likely will not be a factor and as long as Brian Hill and the offense can find some rhythm early and give the defense to get the rest they need they should be able to get the win.
Game Prediction:
I think Wyoming gets their revenge. Wyoming 38 EMU 27