When: Saturday, September 14 @ 3:00 PM MST
Where: Laramie, WY – War Memorial Stadium (CAP. 29,181)
TV: ESPN3
Radio: Cowboy Sports Network
Spread: Wyoming -25 O/U: 55 via OddsShark.com
The Cowboys went down to San Marcos, TX last weekend and got the job done. It was not the prettiest of wins, but it was a road win and that’s always a good win. This week they come home to host the Idaho Vandals, who are a part of the FCS’ Big Sky Conference. Idaho, who dropped down to FCS from FBS in 2018, is 1-1. They lost to Penn State 79-7 and beat D2 Central Washington 41-31.
The Cowboys were 6 point favorites last week on the road and covered the spread, the O/U was 48 and the 23-14 final made for a total of 37, well under. This week, according to OddsShark.com, the Cowboys are 25-point favorites and the O/U is set at 55.
After losing Robert Gagliardi, the panel has added Jesse Tachiquin. Jesse is a contributor over at MWWire.com and a Cowboy alum. He will take over Gag’s spot in the panel and inherit his record in the standings.
The Standings:
|
|
Straight Up | Against the Spread | O/U |
|
Robert Gagliardi/Jesse Tachiquin |
1-1 | 2-0 | 1-1 |
|
Cody Tucker |
1-1 | 2-0 | 1-1 |
|
Brad Reed |
1-1 | 2-0 |
1-1 |
| Chad Smith | 1-1 | 1-1 |
2-0 |
| Connor Cunningham | 1-1 | 2-0 |
2-0 |
| Wyoming Cowboys | 2-0 | 2-0 |
Over: 1 Under: 1 |
Quick thoughts on Wyoming’s win at Texas State last week?
Survive and advance. I wasn’t expecting Texas State to be a pushover, but I also thought the Cowboys would show more on offense. At the end of the day, it’s just one game. With the Cowboys being a young team on the road for the first time, maybe the staff just wanted to win and is waiting until this week’s game against the Vandals to test some new things out.
Who was your offensive and defensive MVP from last week’s game? Offense: QB Sean Chambers Defense: DT Mario Mora
Aside from the interception in the end zone as the first half ended, Chambers has avoided turning the ball over. It would be easy to start forcing things as the passing game continues to fail but that hasn’t happened yet.
The easy pick on defense is Tyler Hall but I’m going to take Mario Mora as my pick this week. As an undersized defensive tackle, Mora has filled a huge gap created from Ravontae Holt’s injury. He’s not only holding up in the running game against bigger guys, but he added 1.5 sacks against the Bobcats. Depth on the line will be an issue for Wyoming as the season progresses but what Mora has done as a freshman has been very impressive.
Who is your poke pick this week? OC Brent Vigen
After watching Craig Bohl’s press conference on Monday afternoon, I wasn’t impressed with him attributing the passing problems this season on Chambers and the receivers. If the passing game isn’t working this early in the season, there has to be some blame on the coaching staff. Maybe they aren’t preparing the quarterback and receivers for success? Or maybe they don’t have a game plan to highlight the strengths of their quarterback and receivers? This is unlikely but still possible, perhaps the coaching staff hasn’t recruited and/or developed the quarterback and receivers to be successful. I’m fine with calling out players when it’s appropriate but I think there are bigger issues right now than the players.
Wyoming wins if…
The Cowboys probably win just by showing up and not turning the ball over. The Vandals are outmatched across the board but won’t be surprised by anything Wyoming has for them after taking a 79-7 beatdown in Happy Valley to Penn State in Week 1.
Game Prediction and one bold prediction…
Pokes Twitter will continue to be frustrated with the predicable, ugly passing game but Wyoming will finish with over 300 yards rushing and a comfortable win. The Cowboys will be 3 wins away from bowl eligibility with 9 games remaining, who really saw that coming? Wyoming 34, Idaho 13 (Total Points: 47, under)
Quick thoughts on Wyoming’s win at Texas State last week?
I was disappointed with the way the Cowboys played during the first 30 minutes. Once again, zero pass rush, no passing attack and the Bobcats moved the ball at will, taking an early lead. Sound familiar? However, in the second half, the defense really flexed its muscles and quit screwing around. First-year DC, Jake Dickert, told me this week that his guys played too conservative in the first half, which he took full responsibility for. He said they didn’t know what Texas State would do offensively, so they played soft. Five sacks and a pick-six later and the Cowboys got the road win in the scorching heat of central Texas. It was a solid win on the road. Just imagine if they put two halves together.
Who was your offensive and defensive MVP from last week’s game? Offense TE Jackson Marcotte Defense: DT Mario Mora
This isn’t an easy pick on the offensive side of the ball. It was all pretty blah. So, I am going to go with Marcotte. Not only was he a beast in the run game, he saved Sean Chambers a sure red-zone interception late in the third quarter when he used his 6-foot, 7-inch reach to snag a ball from a Texas State defender at the goal line.
Defensively, I’m going with Mora and the rest of the interior defensive linemen. I was fingertips to keyboard in the press box, ready to give them a big fat “F” for effort. Then, the second half rolled around. Mora picked up 1.5 sacks in the victory. Of course, an easy choice would be Tyler Hall, but if it wasn’t for the pressure from the guys up front, I don’t know if that pass ever sails into the hands of Hall for the interception.
Who is your poke pick this week? QB Sean Chambers and his receivers
Stop me if you’ve heard this before — Chambers and the receiving corps needs to be way more efficient this Saturday against Idaho. Will it take that to beat the Vandals? No, probably not. But this group needs to start clicking and quick. Against a good opponent, the clock will strike midnight on these guys. This is a game to get in rhythm. It’s hard to get too crazy about this. Chambers is 5-0 as a starter, after all. But I don’t think fans will be very happy about another single-digit completion game. And they shouldn’t be.
Wyoming wins if…
The Cowboys should win this game in their sleep, truth. Idaho doesn’t have the horses to stick with Wyoming. They have seen a mass exodus of players leaving since dropping down a division and their best players are an offensive lineman and a punter. If we want to get technical, Wyoming’s defense needs to be way more aggressive early on and continue to take the ball away. Chambers has to get the passing offense going early, too. It will really help if there aren’t 10 straight run plays to start the game. Don’t spot the opponent a double-digit lead and things should be all good in Laramie.
Game Prediction and one bold prediction…
Wyoming should win this one easily. That, of course, depends on when the Pokes decide to show up. If they play all 60 minutes in San Marcos, the score could’ve been 42-14, but they didn’t and haven’t so far through two games this season. Last week, I made the bold prediction that Chambers would throw for 250 yards and Raghib Ismail would crack the century mark. Boy, was I wrong. This week, I am going to the other side of the ball. I think the Cowboys pick up at least five sacks and score twice on that side of the ball. And, I do believe this is the week Chambers cracks 200. Wyoming 42, Idaho 10 (Total Points: 52, under)
Quick thoughts on Wyoming’s win at Texas State last week?
Good win for the Cowboys on the road. Getting a road win is always a good thing. Wyoming had to come back from another deficit and win the hard way. The Cowboys totaled almost 200 yards rushing and held the ball for ten more minutes than the Bobcats, but the lack of vertical attack kept this game from being possibly more out of hand.
Who was your offensive and defensive MVP from last week’s game? Offense: QB Sean Chambers Defense: CB Tyler Hall
Offensively, not a lot of standout offensive performances, but Sean Chambers legs were needed for a second week in a row and it paid off!
On defense, Tyler Hall’s 72-yard interception return for a touchdown is just what the Cowboys needed to get on the right side of the scoreboard.
Who is your poke pick this week? LB Logan Wilson
I think this will be a good week for him to absolutely dominate a team single-handedly. Idaho’s not a good football team, Wilson has a hay-day against the Vandals.
Wyoming wins if…
I hate to be so brash in saying, “Wyoming wins if they show up to the War on Saturday.” But Idaho is a bad football team. Pokes will need to do the usual to get the win in this game. They need to control the offensive line of scrimmage and keep the rushing attack eating the clock and getting out of this game without any injuries. This might also be a good time for Sean Chambers to find his confidence in the passing attack and put some big numbers on the board. That’s going to be important heading into a game against Tulsa where the scoreboard may get a workout.
Game Prediction and one bold prediction…
Sean Chambers throws for more than 200 yards in this game. Wyoming, 37, Idaho 6 (Total points: 42, under)
Quick thoughts on Wyoming’s win at Texas State last week?
The Pokes fell behind early but stuck with their game plan and made some nice defensive adjustments in the second half to get the victory. Winning on the road anywhere isn’t easy so this victory should not be taken for granted especially in the Texas heat. The running game was strong but the struggles in the passing game need to be figured out.
Who was your offensive and defensive MVP from last week’s game? Offense: Offensive Line Defense: CB Tyler Hall
Offensively no individual player sticks out from a stats perspective. So, let’s hand out last week’s MVP award to the entire offensive line who has a chance to be a real good group this year.
Defensively, that honor goes to Tyler Hall who had what was the game-winning score with his 72-yard pick-six.
Who is your poke pick this week? Wyoming’s backfield
Idaho has allowed a 100-yard rusher in each of their first 2 games. In their opening game, Penn State had 6 players who rushed for 20 yards or more so look for the Wyoming running backs to have a big day.
Wyoming wins if…
The Pokes are 14-2 against FCS schools and the in these games the key is to take the lead early and not turn the ball over. If the Pokes do these two things it should be an enjoyable afternoon in Laramie for all.
Game Prediction and one bold prediction…
Wyoming will move to 3-0 for the first time since 2011 and the Pokes will have three players eclipse the 50-yard rushing mark including QB Sean Chambers. Wyoming 37, Idaho 10 (Total Points: 47, under)
Connor Cunningham, Wyonation.com
Quick thoughts on Wyoming’s win at Texas State last week?
A road win is always a good win. I understand it wasn’t what we might’ve expected, but the Cowboys were coming off an emotional upset and it looked like they had to take some time to shake the hangover from that win. They settled in after giving up 14 points early in the second quarter and the defense dominated. They came up with timely turnovers and bailed out the offense. Red zone offense and the passing offense continue to be glaring concerns.
Who was your offensive and defensive MVP from last week’s game? Offense: K Cooper Rothe Defense: S Braden Smith
Offensively, no individuals really stand out. The running game as a whole was solid, and the offensive line did their job, but the passing game was horrid and they struggled to score touchdowns. I am going with Rothe. For the second week, he came up big. He shook off an early miss and rebounded with 3 field goals and was perfect on both of his PATs.
You could very easily go with Tyler Hall on defense, but Braden Smith had a great game filling in for Rome Weber after his concussion. Smith came in and got a big interception and return to set up the Cowboys’ first touchdown and added 5 tackles and a pass breakup.
Who is your poke pick this week? QB Sean Chambers
It has to be Chambers. I think we know what we can expect from the running backs and defense, but the biggest concern is Chambers’ ability to throw the ball and lead the offense into the end zone. He has to get that going this week because they are going to need it as they gear up for conference play.
Wyoming wins if…
They don’t give Idaho points. They can’t turn the ball over and allow Idaho to get easy points from those. They should handle the Vandals with ease, but if you turn the ball over and hurt yourself that way, you could find yourself in trouble.
Game Prediction and one bold prediction…
The Cowboys are going to roll early and often. Sean Chambers will have 4 total touchdowns, including 2 that go for more than 30 yards. Wyoming 41, Idaho 10 (Total Points: 51, under)