From the Northern Wyoming Daily News via The Tribune Eagle:
By Robert Gagliardi
Wyoming Tribune-Eagle
LARAMIE (AP) — Jovon Bouknight left his mark in the University of Wyoming football record books.
He’s the school’s career leader in all-purpose yards (5,921) and kickoff return yards (2,016). As a wide receiver, Bouknight is second in career receptions (250), and third in receiving yards (3,626) and touchdowns (29). From 2002-05, Bouknight was the Cowboys’ go-to guy on offense and special teams.
Now he’s sharing his knowledge of the game.
Bouknight is a graduate assistant coach for UW and joined the program in January. He is getting his first real taste of coaching this week as the Pokes began spring drills Wednesday.
“He has a real knack for the game,” said UW receivers coach Ron Wisniewski, who coached Bouknight for three seasons from 2003-05.
“He’s not somebody who was blessed with great speed, but he was the most instinctive receiver I’ve ever worked with. As a result, he had to know how to get open, and he knows so much about that stuff that he’s going to be immeasurable help to these young guys we have.”
After his playing career at UW, Bouknight gave professional football a shot. He was among the final cuts by the Carolina Panthers in 2005. He later was picked up and signed by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and was allocated to NFL Europe last year, but later was cut.
There were offers to play Arena League Football, but Bouknight turned those down.
“It’s something that’s behind me,” he said. “I had a good run. I’m definitely happy with everything I accomplished. I walked away from the game with a smile on my face, even though it was hard.”
Bouknight’s decision to go into coaching wasn’t hard. In fact, it was something he started doing as a player. “It’s one of those things I kind of started to adapt into my system my senior year, helping young guys like Mike Ford,” he said. “That made me feel good inside. I kept in contact with a lot of the coaches (at UW) while I was playing ball. I kept a good relationship with them, and they got me back here.”
Ford was UW’s leading receiver last season as a senior with 48 catches for 559 yards and three touchdowns. The Cowboys have only four receivers on the roster this spring who played last season, and they combined for 33 catches for 316 yards and two touchdowns.
Only one, senior Kyle Jacobo, was in the program when Bouknight was a player. But Bouknight’s reputation precedes him.
“His presence is just special,” UW coach Joe Glenn said. “The kids look up to him, and they know who he was.”
Bouknight likes what he sees from the Cowboys’ receivers.
“There’s a lot of great talent,” he said. “I was just one type of receiver, and you have so many different types here right now. The receivers we have now are really fast. hey can stretch the field to get open, and those are some things I couldn’t do.
“You can see the natural ability. It’s just going to take time to coach them up and teach them some of the things they need to know, and some of the things I learned.”
One of those things is patience.
“They’re all so worried that (the offense) is coming to them right now,” Bouknight added. “I am teaching them to be patient. You can’t really dictate what’s going to happen after the first day (of spring practice). We haven’t even put on pads yet. These guys are eager to learn and want it bad, and I’m happy to work with them.”
Bouknight said he would like to see where coaching takes him as a profession, and he hopes to land a full-time job once he gets some experience under his belt. His experience as a player certainly helps.
“He’s one of the best ever to play in this league, and that brings instant credibility, having a guy like that walk in,” Wisniewski said.
By Robert Gagliardi
Wyoming Tribune-Eagle
LARAMIE (AP) — Jovon Bouknight left his mark in the University of Wyoming football record books.
He’s the school’s career leader in all-purpose yards (5,921) and kickoff return yards (2,016). As a wide receiver, Bouknight is second in career receptions (250), and third in receiving yards (3,626) and touchdowns (29). From 2002-05, Bouknight was the Cowboys’ go-to guy on offense and special teams.
Now he’s sharing his knowledge of the game.
Bouknight is a graduate assistant coach for UW and joined the program in January. He is getting his first real taste of coaching this week as the Pokes began spring drills Wednesday.
“He has a real knack for the game,” said UW receivers coach Ron Wisniewski, who coached Bouknight for three seasons from 2003-05.
“He’s not somebody who was blessed with great speed, but he was the most instinctive receiver I’ve ever worked with. As a result, he had to know how to get open, and he knows so much about that stuff that he’s going to be immeasurable help to these young guys we have.”
After his playing career at UW, Bouknight gave professional football a shot. He was among the final cuts by the Carolina Panthers in 2005. He later was picked up and signed by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and was allocated to NFL Europe last year, but later was cut.
There were offers to play Arena League Football, but Bouknight turned those down.
“It’s something that’s behind me,” he said. “I had a good run. I’m definitely happy with everything I accomplished. I walked away from the game with a smile on my face, even though it was hard.”
Bouknight’s decision to go into coaching wasn’t hard. In fact, it was something he started doing as a player. “It’s one of those things I kind of started to adapt into my system my senior year, helping young guys like Mike Ford,” he said. “That made me feel good inside. I kept in contact with a lot of the coaches (at UW) while I was playing ball. I kept a good relationship with them, and they got me back here.”
Ford was UW’s leading receiver last season as a senior with 48 catches for 559 yards and three touchdowns. The Cowboys have only four receivers on the roster this spring who played last season, and they combined for 33 catches for 316 yards and two touchdowns.
Only one, senior Kyle Jacobo, was in the program when Bouknight was a player. But Bouknight’s reputation precedes him.
“His presence is just special,” UW coach Joe Glenn said. “The kids look up to him, and they know who he was.”
Bouknight likes what he sees from the Cowboys’ receivers.
“There’s a lot of great talent,” he said. “I was just one type of receiver, and you have so many different types here right now. The receivers we have now are really fast. hey can stretch the field to get open, and those are some things I couldn’t do.
“You can see the natural ability. It’s just going to take time to coach them up and teach them some of the things they need to know, and some of the things I learned.”
One of those things is patience.
“They’re all so worried that (the offense) is coming to them right now,” Bouknight added. “I am teaching them to be patient. You can’t really dictate what’s going to happen after the first day (of spring practice). We haven’t even put on pads yet. These guys are eager to learn and want it bad, and I’m happy to work with them.”
Bouknight said he would like to see where coaching takes him as a profession, and he hopes to land a full-time job once he gets some experience under his belt. His experience as a player certainly helps.
“He’s one of the best ever to play in this league, and that brings instant credibility, having a guy like that walk in,” Wisniewski said.
