Recruiting state if Wyoming.

[Slow Hand]

Funny thing is....the Wyoming Walk-Ons hang in there for the most part.

 

[kdwrightuwyo]

Going out and visiting all the HS is state is smart. Not only is the coach looking for the few hidden gems that the state produces, but most importantly it puts UW back into Wyoming. Maybe after a few years you'll have the state more invested in UW. Walking down the high school halls, you'll see more UW shirts and hats and less Nebraska and other power schools. This recruiting promise is all about rekindling or starting to develop relationships with UW within Wyoming. We will never be big time without building this relationship. I mean, in Cheyenne at JC Penny's the Nebraska fan apparel section was just as large as the UW section! That is a horrible thing to see. All over Nebraska you see nothing but Nebraska crap. All over Louisiana you don't see anything but LSU crap. The fact that Wyoming hasn't embraced UW in that way is the reason why UW has not and may not ever reach the big time. But getting into every school in state is a great start, as it will build the relationship among the young and impressionable. If Coach Bohl follows through with his promise, he will do more for UW than almost any of our previous coaches...even if the wins and losses don't add up. (Winning will help too, obviously)

 

[wisconsinpokefan]

Visiting all the high schools in the state might even help keep some of the LDS kids here. Think of the guys that go to byu from Wyoming that are in the NFL now or have been. Keisel from Greybul and Poppinga from Evanston just I name a couple. Not sure if Wyo ever tried to recruit them or they just new they never had a chance because they were going to go to byu the whole time.

 

[JimmyDimes]

Going out and visiting all the HS is state is smart. Not only is the coach looking for the few hidden gems that the state produces, but most importantly it puts UW back into Wyoming. Maybe after a few years you'll have the state more invested in UW. Walking down the high school halls, you'll see more UW shirts and hats and less Nebraska and other power schools. This recruiting promise is all about rekindling or starting to develop relationships with UW within Wyoming. We will never be big time without building this relationship. I mean, in Cheyenne at JC Penny's the Nebraska fan apparel section was just as large as the UW section! That is a horrible thing to see. All over Nebraska you see nothing but Nebraska crap. All over Louisiana you don't see anything but LSU crap. The fact that Wyoming hasn't embraced UW in that way is the reason why UW has not and may not ever reach the big time. But getting into every school in state is a great start, as it will build the relationship among the young and impressionable. If Coach Bohl follows through with his promise, he will do more for UW than almost any of our previous coaches...even if the wins and losses don't add up. (Winning will help too, obviously)

There is Wyoming apparel all over the state. Cheyenne might be the exception. But, I see Wyoming fans all throughout Wyoming wearing their gear all the time...and I live in Denver. I was recently in the Cozumel airport and I wasn't the only one wearing a Wyoming hat. When in Jackson a few years ago, I was impressed with the amount of UW gear a person could buy.

Wyoming fans embrace the university...but winning will get them to Laramie.

Definitely agree on your points however. Get out to the Wyoming high schools and let the players know they have a chance to play at UW if they commit themselves.

 

[kansasCowboy]

Going out and visiting all the HS is state is smart. Not only is the coach looking for the few hidden gems that the state produces, but most importantly it puts UW back into Wyoming. Maybe after a few years you'll have the state more invested in UW. Walking down the high school halls, you'll see more UW shirts and hats and less Nebraska and other power schools. This recruiting promise is all about rekindling or starting to develop relationships with UW within Wyoming. We will never be big time without building this relationship. I mean, in Cheyenne at JC Penny's the Nebraska fan apparel section was just as large as the UW section! That is a horrible thing to see. All over Nebraska you see nothing but Nebraska crap. All over Louisiana you don't see anything but LSU crap. The fact that Wyoming hasn't embraced UW in that way is the reason why UW has not and may not ever reach the big time. But getting into every school in state is a great start, as it will build the relationship among the young and impressionable. If Coach Bohl follows through with his promise, he will do more for UW than almost any of our previous coaches...even if the wins and losses don't add up. (Winning will help too, obviously)

There is Wyoming apparel all over the state. Cheyenne might be the exception. But, I see Wyoming fans all throughout Wyoming wearing their gear all the time...and I live in Denver. I was recently in the Cozumel airport and I wasn't the only one wearing a Wyoming hat. When in Jackson a few years ago, I was impressed with the amount of UW gear a person could buy.

Wyoming fans embrace the university...but winning will get them to Laramie.

Definitely agree on your points however. Get out to the Wyoming high schools and let the players know they have a chance to play at UW if they commit themselves.

It's actually the same way in western Kansas. I wear brown and gold almost all the time. It's always recognized and generally walking around Garden city, Dodge, Hays, Larned, Pratt and Colby, I have always seen others sporting the Brown and Gold!

 

[Pokes Forever]

Going out and visiting all the HS is state is smart. Not only is the coach looking for the few hidden gems that the state produces, but most importantly it puts UW back into Wyoming. Maybe after a few years you'll have the state more invested in UW. Walking down the high school halls, you'll see more UW shirts and hats and less Nebraska and other power schools. This recruiting promise is all about rekindling or starting to develop relationships with UW within Wyoming. We will never be big time without building this relationship. I mean, in Cheyenne at JC Penny's the Nebraska fan apparel section was just as large as the UW section! That is a horrible thing to see. All over Nebraska you see nothing but Nebraska crap. All over Louisiana you don't see anything but LSU crap. The fact that Wyoming hasn't embraced UW in that way is the reason why UW has not and may not ever reach the big time. But getting into every school in state is a great start, as it will build the relationship among the young and impressionable. If Coach Bohl follows through with his promise, he will do more for UW than almost any of our previous coaches...even if the wins and losses don't add up. (Winning will help too, obviously)

Keep in mind that the mall I cheyenne is where western Neb comes to shop....thus an equal amount of UW and NU apparel available....one block to the east is a Brown and Gold outlet that does pretty good as well as the marts, Wal, K and Target.....I was recently at Dicks Sporting goods at Centerra by Loveland and the UW section was every bit as large as the CU and CSU.....Fridays are wear your school colors and the few that wear anything other than Brown and Gold are dwarfed.......the support is there we just need something to justify spending the dollars to put the cheeks in the seats......I hate to keep bringing up the Homecoming game but that killed the season and I hope that Bohl can do a Joe Glenn and inspire the fan base and then put a competive team on the field.

 

[Hayduke]

Going out and visiting all the HS is state is smart. Not only is the coach looking for the few hidden gems that the state produces, but most importantly it puts UW back into Wyoming. Maybe after a few years you'll have the state more invested in UW. Walking down the high school halls, you'll see more UW shirts and hats and less Nebraska and other power schools. This recruiting promise is all about rekindling or starting to develop relationships with UW within Wyoming. We will never be big time without building this relationship. I mean, in Cheyenne at JC Penny's the Nebraska fan apparel section was just as large as the UW section! That is a horrible thing to see. All over Nebraska you see nothing but Nebraska crap. All over Louisiana you don't see anything but LSU crap. The fact that Wyoming hasn't embraced UW in that way is the reason why UW has not and may not ever reach the big time. But getting into every school in state is a great start, as it will build the relationship among the young and impressionable. If Coach Bohl follows through with his promise, he will do more for UW than almost any of our previous coaches...even if the wins and losses don't add up. (Winning will help too, obviously)

Keep in mind that the mall I cheyenne is where western Neb comes to shop....thus an equal amount of UW and NU apparel available....one block to the east is a Brown and Gold outlet that does pretty good as well as the marts, Wal, K and Target.....I was recently at Dicks Sporting goods at Centerra by Loveland and the UW section was every bit as large as the CU and CSU.....Fridays are wear your school colors and the few that wear anything other than Brown and Gold are dwarfed.......the support is there we just need something to justify spending the dollars to put the cheeks in the seats......I hate to keep bringing up the Homecoming game but that killed the season and I hope that Bohl can do a Joe Glenn and inspire the fan base and then put a competive team on the field.

Dicks/Centerra in Loveland? Crap! I live about two miles from there...never go. NOW I will! Thanks for the info!

 

[stymeman]

Wyoming's high school football system needs to extend it's season to 10 games, but we have to focus on those potential players that may be able to help us out from Wyo, but it's slim pickings year in and year out, diamonds in the rough are to be had especially if they're true Wyoming natives and want it to mean something to be a Cowboy.

 

[KansasPoke]

Yes you can spot Wyoming gear all throughout Western Kansas. With that said some could be Garden City CC gear but I do know there are Poke fans throughout Western Kansas. It is a area that should be easier to recruit due to personal environment.

 

[Cheywypoke]

I know this is basketball but Brandenburg always had a Wyoming kid on scholarship and most of them saw playing time. The only one that I believe didn't was a kid from Yoder (Garrellts?) that didn't. But I remember a guy from Story, Wyo. that played and another from Laramie, I believe (Rodecher or something like that).

 

[WyoExpat]

I know a lot of fans would like to see more kids from our state on ther roster. I realize this is a complaint against both Glenn and Christensen. Both did recruit Wy kids but the players quit because they were not D1 caliber. I would like to point out that The only Wyoming hs player during the DC era who has/will accepted another D1 offer is Bryan to florida. Can Bohl really build a team with a significant number of Wyoming recruits?

For the historians out there ( Wyokie?)how many Wyoming hs players were on the roach teams? Tiller teams in 95, 96?

I have heard that the 68 sugar bowl team was or nearly void of any Wyoming players, is this true?

I hope Bohl finds some hidden gems in Wyoming, and there has been a handful of Quality players( wendling, Prosinski, Finn, Kirven, bramlets, & Hall) but there is a longer list of Wy hs scholarship and walk ons who never came close to panning out.

My fear is that Bohl will recruit inferior talent if he makes Wyoming a key recruiting base, but I have hope that he will continue the pipeline in Colorado, and pick up some snow belt players. Also, Kaligis staying keeps the pnw connection which seems to work.

There were a few Wyoming players on those teams. Not sure about the years but the Talich boys were from Pine Bluffs I think one I them played for Roach. There was a WR from Natrona that played Justin Byleveld. I'm pretty sure Je'Ney Jackson from Guernsey was on some of Tiller's teams but not the 96 team.

Jim Talich (Pine Bluffs), Je'Nay Jackson (Guernsey), and Lee Vaughn (Cheyenne East) all started on that 1996 team to the best of my memory. Both Ne'Nay and Lee got scholarships right out of high school. That was also the year that Casey Poppinga played as a true freshman TE before going on his mission. I thought I saw him even score a touchdown once (pass on the west sideline and running into the north end-zone), but this USU bio says otherwise (http://www.utahstateaggies.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/poppinga_casey00.html). Kirby Drube (Gillette) was also a scholarship TE that saw ample time (He arrived as a two-sport player because he was also a pitcher on the last baseball team at UW.) What years did John Burrough (Pinedale) play? Had he moved on to the Atlanta Falcons by then?

I distinguish between "talent" which is natural and "skill development" which is a product of effort added to talent. This difference is were coaches get their potential upside projections from. The Barnes basketball signee out of Colorado is an example of talent that has not had much skill development added to his raw talent yet.

Talent should be distributed fairly evenly across a population--more or less. Of course there are differences in body types that predominate in different world regions. For example, we know that the Dutch are the tallest Europeans on average. The Dutch also settled southwestern Michigan. Therefore, I would expect to see a higher concentration of unusually tall people in southwest Michigan than I might find is some other regions around the country. That type of settlement pattern might affect recruiting in Wyoming.

If I were a football coach trying to evaluate Wyoming kids who have had less football skill development added to their natural talent than comparable kids from other states, I would look more closely at their multi-sport performances. For example, I would want to see what kind of impact the state sprint champions had on their football team, if they played at all. Another example is Burns's biggest and best lineman has a good frame and (I think) was a Super 25 pick. He was also an All-State basketball player as a junior, which suggests that he has some agility, quickness, body control, and ability to use his hands. Not all big guys do. How many other Super 25 linemen also excel in other sports such as basketball, wrestling, or track that do not depend on size and brawn alone?

Finally, Wyoming's Gatorade Player of the Year was only a Junior and is big, strong, and has played multiple positions. Gatorade helps identify potential recruits each year. From what I hear, he is academic enough that he might end up going to a more academically prestigious school that offers more career upside that U.W. Hopefully the new staff makes sure to at least look at kids like this and not neglect them simply because the WHSAA season is significantly shorter than other states so that we can duck too much snow and roll into basketball sooner.

 

[JimmyDimes]

I was in school from the late 80's through the early 90's. Some very good Wyoming teams in 1987 and 1988. Those teams were loaded with Wyoming high school players. Willie Wright, Dave Edeen, Kilpatrick, Rudolph, etc. There is talent in the state...it just needs to be developed.

 

[WyoExpat]

I was in school from the late 80's through the early 90's. Some very good Wyoming teams in 1987 and 1988. Those teams were loaded with Wyoming high school players. Willie Wright, Dave Edeen, Kilpatrick, Rudolph, etc. There is talent in the state...it just needs to be developed.

And John Godina decided to be a thrower at UCLA while Nebraska and Colorado picked up some players out of Wyoming during that same time frame.

The entire collegiate experience is supposed to be about development. That is true in terms of developing as a person, as a student, and as a player.

 

[WYCowboy]

It seems to me that there was very little developing of players going on under DC.

 

[joshvanklomp]

A number of good points being brought up in this thread.

First of all, I want to point out that Coach did not say that a majority of recruits would come from Wyoming. He did not say that his best players would come from Wyoming. He said that Wyomingites (is that right?) would be the "backbone" of the program. As Bohl put it, "Guys who are invested in your program." He said he plans to visit every high school "whether they have a player or not." This is something that Jerry Kill of my home state of Minnesota does, its something Tim Miles of Nebraska does on the basketball side. A lot of coaching and recruiting in your home state has to do with relationship-building. If you come into a new program with the thought that you can't recruit in-state because of inferior talent, guess what, you're not going to get great talent coming to your program.

Another point on people wanting in-state players to walk-on, remember that Bohl spent 5 years under Tom Osborne at Nebraska. Bohl was a walk-on himself for his home-state Nebraska (had an offer from Air Force), so he knows the importance of good walk-on programs.

Here's a great quote from a NY Times piece on him from November:

“A lot of our guys come from the farm or hard-working backgrounds, and we’ve leveraged that as we’ve developed our football team,” Bohl said in his office last month. “It goes a little counterculture to the way college football is now, with spreads, up-tempo offenses and all those other things. We’ve taken a blue-collar approach on playing hard-nosed, physical, disciplined football, great defense, controlling the football. That’s how we’ve won.”

Thats the type of culture he will bring to Wyoming. Oh, here's another great snippet from the NYT article:

Though Bohl initiated talks for an eight-year contract extension through 2020, everyone from his boss to his tailor fears a major B.C.S. school may lure him away. Bohl said he last interviewed for a job after the 2006 season, with Minnesota, which hired Tim Brewster. The Bison beat the Gophers in Minneapolis in 2007 and 2011, victories Bohl and his players cherished.

“I think you’d be naïve to think people haven’t had him on the phone,” said Pat Simmers, who coached with Bohl at N.D.S.U., Tulsa and Wisconsin and oversees the university’s Team Makers booster group as senior associate athletic director. “Not that he won’t be gone someday, but it would take a pretty good job to get him out of here.”