Wyoming Football Since 1999: A Breakdown

[BringBackStutzriem]

Sort of a compendium to my previous thread. Been putting this together the past week-or-so in spare time. It's a pretty bleak outlook, but numbers are numbers, folks. Trash me if you will - this is simply the reality of the situation.

Wyoming Football since 1999: A breakdown

Cumulative record: 73-120 (.378)
Record vs. teams that finished season with winning records (non-FCS): 14-73 (4 wins came in 1999 season)
Conference record: 38-83 (.314)
Wins over teams that finished the season ranked: 0
Losses by 30-or-more points: 29
Losses by 20-or-more points: 55
Bowl wins: 2
Bowl losses: 1
Winning seasons: 3 (2004, 2009, 2011)
Best finish in conference standings: 3rd (2011)
Seasons finishing in bottom-3 of conference standings: 9 (counting 2014)
Record vs. teams that currently play in Power-5 conferences (plus BYU/Boise State): 10-56 (.151)
Record vs. FCS/D-1AA: 12-2
Record vs. FBS/D-1: 61-118 (.341)

Best five wins:
#1: 23-3 vs. Virginia (9/1/2007) – Virginia finished 9-4, Wyoming held UVA to 97 yards total offense
#2: 24-21 vs. UCLA (12/23/2004) – First bowl win in 38 years; UCLA boasted several future NFL players, including Maurice Jones-Drew
#3: 31-17 vs. BYU (11/13/1999) – BYU had one loss, was ranked #12; finished season 8-4, unranked
#4: 31-15 vs. Utah (10/14/2006) – Utes finished season 8-5, Wyoming led 31-0 at one point in game
#5: 35-28 (2OT) vs. Fresno State (12/19/2009) – Bulldogs finished season 8-5, boasted future NFL star Ryan Matthews
Honorable mentions: 24-21 vs. TCU (2007), 13-7 at Tennessee (2008), 34-26 vs. Air Force (2002), 24-14 at Ole Miss (2005)

Worst five losses:
#1: 29-48 vs. Eastern Michigan (9/12/2015): Wyoming trailed 38-7 midway through second quarter vs. MAC bottom-dweller.
#2: 13-24 vs. North Dakota (9/5/2015): North Dakota won by 3 vs. non-scholarship Drake following weekend.
#3: 22-24 vs. Cal Poly (9/15/2012): Only 13,558 attended game in Laramie; that was 13,558 too many.
#4: 31-34 at New Mexico (11/6/2010): Lobos finished 1-11.
#5: 16-45 vs. Bowling Green (9/27/2008): Falcons finished 6-6.
Honorable mention: at Utah State (10/8/2011): 19-63, Utah State finished 7-6.

Best cumulative season:
2006 (four losses by a touchdown or fewer, easily could have been a 9-3 team with three-or-four different plays)

Closest major upset: 10-17 vs. Boise State (9/16/2006): Cowboys had final possession, chance to tie vs. eventual undefeated Fiesta Bowl champions.
Honorable mention #1: 34-41 vs. BYU (11/10/2001): Cowboys had undefeated, #9-ranked Cougars on the ropes in Laramie before late loss.
Honorable mention #2: 20-31 vs. TCU (11/5/2011): Wyoming contended late in game until Brett Smith was injured in fourth quarter; TCU finished 11-2.
Honorable mention #3: 31-34 at Nebraska (8/31/2013): Wyoming had final possession with chance to win; Nebraska finished 9-4, ranked #25.

Most damaging loss: 14-28 vs. TCU (10/8/05): Despite 8 turnovers (-6 margin), Wyoming (4-1 entering game) still had chances to win game; TCU finished 11-1, Wyoming finished 4-7.
Honorable mention: 3-20 vs. New Mexico (10/13/2007): Wyoming had 4-1 start to season, game was tied at 3 before 2-hour weather delay postponed; Cowboys lost all momentum in game and season, finished 5-7.

 

[BringBackStutzriem]

And, if you want to check the year-by-year, here it is:

Three years prior to MWC:
25-11 record; finished 1996 10-2, ranked #22 nationally (peak of #16); started 8-1 in 1998 (with 7-point loss at Georgia), cracked rankings at #25 but lost final two games.

1999: Record 7-4 (finished 4th out of 8 in MWC)
Non-conference opponents: #2 Tennessee, Weber State, Idaho, Louisiana Monroe
Conference record: 4-3
Losses by 30-or-more: 1
Losses by 20-or-more: 2
Wins over teams with winning records (non-FCS): 4
Losses to teams with winning records: 2
Wins over ranked teams: 1 (#12 BYU – final record of 8-4, unranked)

2000: Record 1-10 (finished 8th out of 8 in MWC)
Non-conference opponents: Auburn, Texas A&M, Central Michigan, Nevada
Conference record: 0-7
Losses by 30-or-more: 4
Losses by 20-or-more: 5
Wins over teams with winning records (non-FCS): 0
Losses to teams with winning records: 5 (only three teams in MWC had winning records)

2001: Record 2-9 (finished 8th out of 8 in MWC)
Non-conference opponents: Furman, Texas A&M, Utah State, Kansas
Conference record: 0-7
Losses by 30-or-more: 1
Losses by 20-or-more: 4
Wins over teams with winning records (non-FCS): 0
Losses to teams with winning records: 5

2002: Record 2-10 (finished 8th out of 8 in MWC)
Non-conference opponents: Tennessee, Central Michigan, Boise State, Washington, Citadel
Conference record: 1-6
Losses by 30-or-more: 2
Losses by 20-or-more: 4
Wins over teams with winning records (non-FCS): 1
Losses to teams with winning records: 4 (only two teams in MWC had winning records)
Wins over ranked teams: 1 (#22 Air Force – final record of 8-5, unranked)


2003: Record 4-8 (finished tied 8th out of 8 in MWC)
Non-conference opponents: Montana State, Oklahoma State, Kansas, Boise State
Conference record: 2-5
Losses by 30-or-more: 1
Losses by 20-or-more: 3
Wins over teams with winning records (non-FCS): 1
Losses to teams with winning records: 5

2004: Record 7-5 (finished #4 out of 8 in MWC)
Non-conference opponents: Appalachian State, Texas A&M, Ole Miss, Louisiana-Monroe, UCLA (Las Vegas Bowl)
Conference record: 3-4
BOWL WIN: 24-21 over UCLA
Losses by 30-or-more: 1
Losses by 20-or-more: 2
Wins over teams with winning records (non-FCS): 0 (UCLA finished 6-6)
Losses to teams with winning records: 3 (only three teams in MWC, including Wyoming, had winning records)


2005: Record 4-7 (finished #8 out of 9 in MWC)
Non-conference opponents: Florida, Louisiana-Monroe, Ole Miss
Conference record: 2-6
Losses by 30-or-more: 1
Losses by 20-or-more: 1
Wins over teams with winning records (non-FCS): 0
Losses to teams with winning records: 3 (only two teams in MWC had winning records)

2006: Record 6-6 (finished #4 out of 9 in MWC)
Non-conference opponents: Utah State, Virginia, Boise State, Syracuse
Conference record: 5-3
Losses by 30-or-more: 1
Losses by 20-or-more: 2
Wins over teams with winning records (non-FCS): 1
Losses to teams with winning records: 3
Note: Four losses by 7 points or less, including 7-point loss on final drive of the game vs. Boise State, who finished 13-0, ranked #6

2007: Record 5-7 (finished tied #8 out of 9 in MWC)
Non-conference opponents: Virginia (finished season 9-4), Utah State, Boise State, Ohio
Conference record: 2-6
Losses by 30-or-more: 1
Losses by 20-or-more: 2
Wins over teams with winning records (non-FCS): 2
Losses to teams with winning records: 5

2008: Record 4-8 (finished tied #9 out of 9 in MWC)
Non-conference opponents: Ohio, North Dakota State, Bowling Green, Tennessee
Conference record: 1-7
Losses by 30-or-more: 3
Losses by 20-or-more: 6
Wins over teams with winning records (non-FCS): 0
Losses to teams with winning records: 5

2009: Record 7-6 (finished #5 out of 9 in MWC)
Non-conference opponents: Weber State, Texas, Colorado, Florida Atlantic, Fresno State
Conference record: 4-4
BOWL WIN: 35-28 (2OT) vs. Fresno State
Losses by 30-or-more: 3
Losses by 20-or-more: 4
Wins over teams with winning records (non-FCS): 1
Losses to teams with winning records: 5

2010: Record 3-9 (finished tied #9 out of 9 in MWC)
Non-conference opponents: Southern Utah, Texas, Boise State, Toledo
Conference record: 1-7
Losses by 30-or-more: 2
Losses by 20-or-more: 5
Wins over teams with winning records (non-FCS): 1
Losses to teams with winning records: 7



2011: Record 8-5 (finished #3 out of 8 in MWC)
Non-conference opponents: Weber State, Texas State, Bowling Green, Nebraska, Utah State, Temple
Conference record: 5-2
BOWL LOSS: 37-15 vs. Temple
Losses by 30-or-more: 1
Losses by 20-or-more: 4
Wins over teams with winning records (non-FCS): 2
Losses to teams with winning records: 5

2012: Record 4-8 (finished tied #6 out of 10 in MWC)
Non-conference opponents: Texas, Toledo, Cal Poly, Idaho
Conference record: 3-5
Losses by 30-or-more: 1
Losses by 20-or-more: 3
Wins over teams with winning records (non-FCS): 0
Losses to teams with winning records: 6
Losses to FCS teams: 1

2013: Record 5-7 (finished #4 out of 6 in Mountain Division)
Non-conference opponents: Nebraska, Idaho, Northern Colorado, Texas State
Conference record: 3-5
Losses by 30-or-more: 3
Losses by 20-or-more: 5
Wins over teams with winning records (non-FCS): 0
Losses to teams with winning records: 5

2014: Record 4-8 (finished #6 out of 6 in Mountain Division)
Non-conference opponents: Montana, Oregon, Florida Atlantic, Michigan State
Conference Record: 2-6
Losses by 30-or-more: 3
Losses by 20-or-more: 3
Wins over teams with winning records (non-FCS): 1
Losses to teams with winning records: 5

2015: Record 0-3
Losses to FCS teams: 1

 

[kansasCowboy]

Oh good! Your still here. I told you I'd get back with you and even explain something to a few others.
We were questioning why we should/n't be excited about Wyo's best year in 17 years (8-5BL)
It was brought up that we really weren't that good and it was just a product of how soft the schedule was.
I brought up that this had been done before by dynasty coaches such as Snyder at KSU and that is what eventually gained him success. I was scoffed at, at this point.
Snyder understood he needed to get wins. Not to keep his job, to gain players and fans confidence. The more the confidence, the better you play. The better you play the more you win, even over a better talented team.
Let's delve a little deeper into the numbers, shall we.
89: was Snyders first year. He inherited a team that was 1-30-1 the previous 3 years...(can you say WORSE than the VK years?!) His schedule was already set and he had no control of changing it at that point. Back then like basketball coaches, football coaches also had a say in scheduling... Not anymore (will get into that later). The Big 8 was already strong, consisting of OU, Colorada, Nebraska and so forth. Snyder knew he would struggle for a time in conference play and he needed those wins. After his first season he scheduled "powderpuff" OOC games.
Excuse?
Exaggerating?
HARDLY!
Let's do a year to year, shall we:
89: (schedule in place) ASU 6-4-1; UNI (FCS); NIU (9-2); North Texas (FCS) 5-6-- also only win of the year.

90: (Snyder has more control of schedule)
West Illin. (Weak FCS) (W)
NMSU (weakFBS); 1-10; (W)
NIU (Mediocre MAC); 6-5 (L)
UNM (bottom dweller WAC); 2-10; (W)
3-1+ they managed two more wins against teams in the conf who were equally as bad.
Overall: 5-6!!! That's a significant turnaround from 1-10, right? Not when you look at who they played.

91: (Breakout Winning year!... Really?)
Indiana State (weak FCS) (W)
Idaho State (Weaker FCS) (W)
NIU (fell apart MAC team); 2-9 (W)
--after having that bad of a schedule you better put some comp in there...
Washington (PAC top team); 12-0 (L)
3-1 + 4 conf wins! That's deserving of a bowl,isn't it? Not when you see that who they beat: KU 6-5; ISU 3-7-1; Missou 3-7-1; and OK St. 0-10-1 were their wins.

So far we are 1-10; 5-6; 7-4! Wow! KSU has really improved!... Not really, infact if that 7-4 squad would face the same level of comp as the 1-10 squad did, the records would not be so widespread. Why? Because KSU was not a 7-4 team. Just like maybe we weren't an 8-5 team, perhaps if we played a schedule more credible to year one or two of DC's stint we wouldn't see that many wins.

92: (another losing season. Might just show where they really were talent wise.)
Montana (FCS) (W)
Temple (FBS); 1-10; (W)
NMSU (still playing them); 6-5; (W)
Utah St. (FBS); 5-6; (L)
3-1 again! + two more conf wins against ISU (4-7) and OSU (4-6-1)

Welp, were four years into this now and we have: 1-10, 5-6, 7-4, 5-6... But you can see that in 92 even though they beat one winning team they at least started beating teams with a little bit of a pulse. You know, beating 4 win teams instead of 1 and 2 win teams.

93: (five years and they still manage crappy scheduling, but they turn the corner and get their first bowl in years!)
NMSU (FBS); 5-6; (W)
WKU (FCS); (W)
Minn (B-10... Lower in the league, at least it's not beating up on crappy Independents); 4-7; (W)
UNLV (FBS); 3-8; (W) (to the an above statement... Never mind)
4-0! Woohoo! + conf wins against KU 5-7, Missou 3-7-1, Ok St 3-8, and one big conf win over OU 9-3.
Finally! After 5 years they get a bowl. They go bowling against an also building 8-3 WYO squad and beat them.

In five years their best wins were: KU 6-5; NMSU 6-5; WYO 8-4 and OU 9-3. Four wins against teams with a winning record. Two of those were pretty mediocre and the other two were in the last of five years.

Now, Bohl has NO control of our schedule. And Burman has said he likes his layout for Two common opponents; one smaller or FCS opponent and a challenging opponent.
Because we have a layout like this you will see more struggle to win than Snyder and KSU had. I doubt Burman is going to take this road and start taking on only Bottom feeders to our schedule.
Snyder was able, and it still took him 5 years to turn a program around. So maybe we should at least give Bohl five or six years? Don't you think?

 

[Wyovanian]

Sort of a compendium to my previous thread. Been putting this together the past week-or-so in spare time. It's a pretty bleak outlook, but numbers are numbers, folks. Trash me if you will - this is simply the reality of the situation.

Wyoming Football since 1999: A breakdown

Cumulative record: 73-120 (.378)
Record vs. teams that finished season with winning records (non-FCS): 14-73 (4 wins came in 1999 season)
Conference record: 38-83 (.314)
Wins over teams that finished the season ranked: 0
Losses by 30-or-more points: 29
Losses by 20-or-more points: 55
Bowl wins: 2
Bowl losses: 1
Winning seasons: 3 (2004, 2009, 2011)
Best finish in conference standings: 3rd (2011)
Seasons finishing in bottom-3 of conference standings: 9 (counting 2014)
Record vs. teams that currently play in Power-5 conferences (plus BYU/Boise State): 10-56 (.151)
Record vs. FCS/D-1AA: 12-2
Record vs. FBS/D-1: 61-118 (.341)

Best five wins:
#1: 23-3 vs. Virginia (9/1/2007) – Virginia finished 9-4, Wyoming held UVA to 97 yards total offense
#2: 24-21 vs. UCLA (12/23/2004) – First bowl win in 38 years; UCLA boasted several future NFL players, including Maurice Jones-Drew
#3: 31-17 vs. BYU (11/13/1999) – BYU had one loss, was ranked #12; finished season 8-4, unranked
#4: 31-15 vs. Utah (10/14/2006) – Utes finished season 8-5, Wyoming led 31-0 at one point in game
#5: 35-28 (2OT) vs. Fresno State (12/19/2009) – Bulldogs finished season 8-5, boasted future NFL star Ryan Matthews
Honorable mentions: 24-21 vs. TCU (2007), 13-7 at Tennessee (2008), 34-26 vs. Air Force (2002), 24-14 at Ole Miss (2005)

Worst five losses:
#1: 29-48 vs. Eastern Michigan (9/12/2015): Wyoming trailed 38-7 midway through second quarter vs. MAC bottom-dweller.
#2: 13-24 vs. North Dakota (9/5/2015): North Dakota won by 3 vs. non-scholarship Drake following weekend.
#3: 22-24 vs. Cal Poly (9/15/2012): Only 13,558 attended game in Laramie; that was 13,558 too many.
#4: 31-34 at New Mexico (11/6/2010): Lobos finished 1-11.
#5: 16-45 vs. Bowling Green (9/27/2008): Falcons finished 6-6.
Honorable mention: at Utah State (10/8/2011): 19-63, Utah State finished 7-6.

Best cumulative season:
2006 (four losses by a touchdown or fewer, easily could have been a 9-3 team with three-or-four different plays)

Closest major upset: 10-17 vs. Boise State (9/16/2006): Cowboys had final possession, chance to tie vs. eventual undefeated Fiesta Bowl champions.
Honorable mention #1: 34-41 vs. BYU (11/10/2001): Cowboys had undefeated, #9-ranked Cougars on the ropes in Laramie before late loss.
Honorable mention #2: 20-31 vs. TCU (11/5/2011): Wyoming contended late in game until Brett Smith was injured in fourth quarter; TCU finished 11-2.
Honorable mention #3: 31-34 at Nebraska (8/31/2013): Wyoming had final possession with chance to win; Nebraska finished 9-4, ranked #25.

Most damaging loss: 14-28 vs. TCU (10/8/05): Despite 8 turnovers (-6 margin), Wyoming (4-1 entering game) still had chances to win game; TCU finished 11-1, Wyoming finished 4-7.
Honorable mention: 3-20 vs. New Mexico (10/13/2015): Wyoming had 4-1 start to season, game was tied at 3 before 2-hour weather delay postponed; Cowboys lost all momentum in game and season, finished 5-7.

In all seriousness- what's your reason for being here? Are you trying to argue that we should drop football?

 

[BringBackStutzriem]

Oh good! Your still here. I told you I'd get back with you and even explain something to a few others.

Now, Bohl has NO control of our schedule. And Burman has said he likes his layout for Two common opponents; one smaller or FCS opponent and a challenging opponent.
Because we have a layout like this you will see more struggle to win than Snyder and KSU had. I doubt Burman is going to take this road and start taking on only Bottom feeders to our schedule.
Snyder was able, and it still took him 5 years to turn a program around. So maybe we should at least give Bohl five or six years? Don't you think?

I do appreciate the sentiment and the research that went into your response. Trust me, I want to see Wyoming become Kansas State as much as you do. I just don't know that I see it happening. K-State's attachment to a major conference helped with its ascent (also, see Baylor circa 2011-present), but also the proximity of regional talent (whether it was high school or JuCo) was vital. Finally, Snyder turned things around in 1988 - a significantly different climate in college football than we're looking at right now. Again, the haves vs. the have-nots have only escalated immensely over the last 10 years. The two statistics - vs. teams with winning records and vs. teams in Big 5 conferences - illustrate just how massive that gap is between Wyoming and relevant college football.

I'm not calling for Bohl's head. Not in the slightest. I like Bohl. He takes accountability. He's sincere. He's hard working. I just am not certain he has what it takes to win in Laramie. I believe he absolutely deserves 5+ years to get something going - I think we cut ties with Glenn far too soon, and Glenn would've been back in a bowl in 2009. What I'm trying to illustrate is that you could conceivably pull Bear Bryant out of the crypt, bring him to the year 2015, and I'm not certain he would find a way to win with frequency in Laramie.

In all seriousness- what's your reason for being here? Are you trying to argue that we should drop football?

It's not that, man. I just don't know what to do. I'm speaking for a contingent of Wyoming fans who have steadily lost all interest in Wyoming football and are now beginning to lose all hope. All I'm doing is painting precisely what the last 16 seasons have indicated and asking whether we are really competing in FBS football. I don't know what the solution is. I want Wyoming to win a MWC title as badly as all of you guys do. The TCU loss in 2005 was absolutely crushing for me. I thought that was our time to turn the corner and become a program that competes a bit regionally.

But I'm just trying to look at this under a realistic lens and ask whether or not we're ever going to be consistently competitive in FBS.

 

[SDPokeFan]

Oh good! Your still here. I told you I'd get back with you and even explain something to a few others.

Now, Bohl has NO control of our schedule. And Burman has said he likes his layout for Two common opponents; one smaller or FCS opponent and a challenging opponent.
Because we have a layout like this you will see more struggle to win than Snyder and KSU had. I doubt Burman is going to take this road and start taking on only Bottom feeders to our schedule.
Snyder was able, and it still took him 5 years to turn a program around. So maybe we should at least give Bohl five or six years? Don't you think?

I do appreciate the sentiment and the research that went into your response. Trust me, I want to see Wyoming become Kansas State as much as you do. I just don't know that I see it happening. K-State's attachment to a major conference helped with its ascent (also, see Baylor circa 2011-present), but also the proximity of regional talent (whether it was high school or JuCo) was vital. Finally, Snyder turned things around in 1988 - a significantly different climate in college football than we're looking at right now. Again, the haves vs. the have-nots have only escalated immensely over the last 10 years. The two statistics - vs. teams with winning records and vs. teams in Big 5 conferences - illustrate just how massive that gap is between Wyoming and relevant college football.

I'm not calling for Bohl's head. Not in the slightest. I like Bohl. He takes accountability. He's sincere. He's hard working. I just am not certain he has what it takes to win in Laramie. I believe he absolutely deserves 5+ years to get something going - I think we cut ties with Glenn far too soon, and Glenn would've been back in a bowl in 2009. What I'm trying to illustrate is that you could conceivably pull Bear Bryant out of the crypt, bring him to the year 2015, and I'm not certain he would find a way to win with frequency in Laramie.

In all seriousness- what's your reason for being here? Are you trying to argue that we should drop football?

It's not that, man. I just don't know what to do. I'm speaking for a contingent of Wyoming fans who have steadily lost all interest in Wyoming football and are now beginning to lose all hope. All I'm doing is painting precisely what the last 16 seasons have indicated and asking whether we are really competing in FBS football. I don't know what the solution is. I want Wyoming to win a MWC title as badly as all of you guys do. The TCU loss in 2005 was absolutely crushing for me. I thought that was our time to turn the corner and become a program that competes a bit regionally.

But I'm just trying to look at this under a realistic lens and ask whether or not we're ever going to be consistently competitive in FBS.

The answer is no, we won't. But these guys will just keep whistling through the graveyard.

 

[WYCowboy]

Sort of a compendium to my previous thread. Been putting this together the past week-or-so in spare time. It's a pretty bleak outlook, but numbers are numbers, folks. Trash me if you will - this is simply the reality of the situation.

Wyoming Football since 1999: A breakdown

Cumulative record: 73-120 (.378)
Record vs. teams that finished season with winning records (non-FCS): 14-73 (4 wins came in 1999 season)
Conference record: 38-83 (.314)
Wins over teams that finished the season ranked: 0
Losses by 30-or-more points: 29
Losses by 20-or-more points: 55
Bowl wins: 2
Bowl losses: 1
Winning seasons: 3 (2004, 2009, 2011)
Best finish in conference standings: 3rd (2011)
Seasons finishing in bottom-3 of conference standings: 9 (counting 2014)
Record vs. teams that currently play in Power-5 conferences (plus BYU/Boise State): 10-56 (.151)
Record vs. FCS/D-1AA: 12-2
Record vs. FBS/D-1: 61-118 (.341)

Best five wins:
#1: 23-3 vs. Virginia (9/1/2007) – Virginia finished 9-4, Wyoming held UVA to 97 yards total offense
#2: 24-21 vs. UCLA (12/23/2004) – First bowl win in 38 years; UCLA boasted several future NFL players, including Maurice Jones-Drew
#3: 31-17 vs. BYU (11/13/1999) – BYU had one loss, was ranked #12; finished season 8-4, unranked
#4: 31-15 vs. Utah (10/14/2006) – Utes finished season 8-5, Wyoming led 31-0 at one point in game
#5: 35-28 (2OT) vs. Fresno State (12/19/2009) – Bulldogs finished season 8-5, boasted future NFL star Ryan Matthews
Honorable mentions: 24-21 vs. TCU (2007), 13-7 at Tennessee (2008), 34-26 vs. Air Force (2002), 24-14 at Ole Miss (2005)

Worst five losses:
#1: 29-48 vs. Eastern Michigan (9/12/2015): Wyoming trailed 38-7 midway through second quarter vs. MAC bottom-dweller.
#2: 13-24 vs. North Dakota (9/5/2015): North Dakota won by 3 vs. non-scholarship Drake following weekend.
#3: 22-24 vs. Cal Poly (9/15/2012): Only 13,558 attended game in Laramie; that was 13,558 too many.
#4: 31-34 at New Mexico (11/6/2010): Lobos finished 1-11.
#5: 16-45 vs. Bowling Green (9/27/2008): Falcons finished 6-6.
Honorable mention: at Utah State (10/8/2011): 19-63, Utah State finished 7-6.

Best cumulative season:
2006 (four losses by a touchdown or fewer, easily could have been a 9-3 team with three-or-four different plays)

Closest major upset: 10-17 vs. Boise State (9/16/2006): Cowboys had final possession, chance to tie vs. eventual undefeated Fiesta Bowl champions.
Honorable mention #1: 34-41 vs. BYU (11/10/2001): Cowboys had undefeated, #9-ranked Cougars on the ropes in Laramie before late loss.
Honorable mention #2: 20-31 vs. TCU (11/5/2011): Wyoming contended late in game until Brett Smith was injured in fourth quarter; TCU finished 11-2.
Honorable mention #3: 31-34 at Nebraska (8/31/2013): Wyoming had final possession with chance to win; Nebraska finished 9-4, ranked #25.

Most damaging loss: 14-28 vs. TCU (10/8/05): Despite 8 turnovers (-6 margin), Wyoming (4-1 entering game) still had chances to win game; TCU finished 11-1, Wyoming finished 4-7.
Honorable mention: 3-20 vs. New Mexico (10/13/2007): Wyoming had 4-1 start to season, game was tied at 3 before 2-hour weather delay postponed; Cowboys lost all momentum in game and season, finished 5-7.

It's not an outlook - it's all in the past!

 

[BringBackStutzriem]

Sort of a compendium to my previous thread. Been putting this together the past week-or-so in spare time. It's a pretty bleak outlook, but numbers are numbers, folks. Trash me if you will - this is simply the reality of the situation.

Wyoming Football since 1999: A breakdown

Cumulative record: 73-120 (.378)
Record vs. teams that finished season with winning records (non-FCS): 14-73 (4 wins came in 1999 season)
Conference record: 38-83 (.314)
Wins over teams that finished the season ranked: 0
Losses by 30-or-more points: 29
Losses by 20-or-more points: 55
Bowl wins: 2
Bowl losses: 1
Winning seasons: 3 (2004, 2009, 2011)
Best finish in conference standings: 3rd (2011)
Seasons finishing in bottom-3 of conference standings: 9 (counting 2014)
Record vs. teams that currently play in Power-5 conferences (plus BYU/Boise State): 10-56 (.151)
Record vs. FCS/D-1AA: 12-2
Record vs. FBS/D-1: 61-118 (.341)

Best five wins:
#1: 23-3 vs. Virginia (9/1/2007) – Virginia finished 9-4, Wyoming held UVA to 97 yards total offense
#2: 24-21 vs. UCLA (12/23/2004) – First bowl win in 38 years; UCLA boasted several future NFL players, including Maurice Jones-Drew
#3: 31-17 vs. BYU (11/13/1999) – BYU had one loss, was ranked #12; finished season 8-4, unranked
#4: 31-15 vs. Utah (10/14/2006) – Utes finished season 8-5, Wyoming led 31-0 at one point in game
#5: 35-28 (2OT) vs. Fresno State (12/19/2009) – Bulldogs finished season 8-5, boasted future NFL star Ryan Matthews
Honorable mentions: 24-21 vs. TCU (2007), 13-7 at Tennessee (2008), 34-26 vs. Air Force (2002), 24-14 at Ole Miss (2005)

Worst five losses:
#1: 29-48 vs. Eastern Michigan (9/12/2015): Wyoming trailed 38-7 midway through second quarter vs. MAC bottom-dweller.
#2: 13-24 vs. North Dakota (9/5/2015): North Dakota won by 3 vs. non-scholarship Drake following weekend.
#3: 22-24 vs. Cal Poly (9/15/2012): Only 13,558 attended game in Laramie; that was 13,558 too many.
#4: 31-34 at New Mexico (11/6/2010): Lobos finished 1-11.
#5: 16-45 vs. Bowling Green (9/27/2008): Falcons finished 6-6.
Honorable mention: at Utah State (10/8/2011): 19-63, Utah State finished 7-6.

Best cumulative season:
2006 (four losses by a touchdown or fewer, easily could have been a 9-3 team with three-or-four different plays)

Closest major upset: 10-17 vs. Boise State (9/16/2006): Cowboys had final possession, chance to tie vs. eventual undefeated Fiesta Bowl champions.
Honorable mention #1: 34-41 vs. BYU (11/10/2001): Cowboys had undefeated, #9-ranked Cougars on the ropes in Laramie before late loss.
Honorable mention #2: 20-31 vs. TCU (11/5/2011): Wyoming contended late in game until Brett Smith was injured in fourth quarter; TCU finished 11-2.
Honorable mention #3: 31-34 at Nebraska (8/31/2013): Wyoming had final possession with chance to win; Nebraska finished 9-4, ranked #25.

Most damaging loss: 14-28 vs. TCU (10/8/05): Despite 8 turnovers (-6 margin), Wyoming (4-1 entering game) still had chances to win game; TCU finished 11-1, Wyoming finished 4-7.
Honorable mention: 3-20 vs. New Mexico (10/13/2007): Wyoming had 4-1 start to season, game was tied at 3 before 2-hour weather delay postponed; Cowboys lost all momentum in game and season, finished 5-7.

It's not an outlook - it's all in the past!

It's an ongoing narrative. Take a look at 2015 at the bottom of the second post. It's a (justifiably posed) question of a program's overall capacity to succeed. It's illustrative of where Wyoming football sits today. Y'all are welcome to continue the bright and sunshiny outlook, but I'm speaking for the rest of us that we're losing hope and losing it quickly when we're finding moral victories in a 17-point loss to a program that lost its home opener to Portland State and barely scraped by the most turmoil-embroiled program in the country in Week 2.

 

[WYCowboy]

Sort of a compendium to my previous thread. Been putting this together the past week-or-so in spare time. It's a pretty bleak outlook, but numbers are numbers, folks. Trash me if you will - this is simply the reality of the situation.

Wyoming Football since 1999: A breakdown

Cumulative record: 73-120 (.378)
Record vs. teams that finished season with winning records (non-FCS): 14-73 (4 wins came in 1999 season)
Conference record: 38-83 (.314)
Wins over teams that finished the season ranked: 0
Losses by 30-or-more points: 29
Losses by 20-or-more points: 55
Bowl wins: 2
Bowl losses: 1
Winning seasons: 3 (2004, 2009, 2011)
Best finish in conference standings: 3rd (2011)
Seasons finishing in bottom-3 of conference standings: 9 (counting 2014)
Record vs. teams that currently play in Power-5 conferences (plus BYU/Boise State): 10-56 (.151)
Record vs. FCS/D-1AA: 12-2
Record vs. FBS/D-1: 61-118 (.341)

Best five wins:
#1: 23-3 vs. Virginia (9/1/2007) – Virginia finished 9-4, Wyoming held UVA to 97 yards total offense
#2: 24-21 vs. UCLA (12/23/2004) – First bowl win in 38 years; UCLA boasted several future NFL players, including Maurice Jones-Drew
#3: 31-17 vs. BYU (11/13/1999) – BYU had one loss, was ranked #12; finished season 8-4, unranked
#4: 31-15 vs. Utah (10/14/2006) – Utes finished season 8-5, Wyoming led 31-0 at one point in game
#5: 35-28 (2OT) vs. Fresno State (12/19/2009) – Bulldogs finished season 8-5, boasted future NFL star Ryan Matthews
Honorable mentions: 24-21 vs. TCU (2007), 13-7 at Tennessee (2008), 34-26 vs. Air Force (2002), 24-14 at Ole Miss (2005)

Worst five losses:
#1: 29-48 vs. Eastern Michigan (9/12/2015): Wyoming trailed 38-7 midway through second quarter vs. MAC bottom-dweller.
#2: 13-24 vs. North Dakota (9/5/2015): North Dakota won by 3 vs. non-scholarship Drake following weekend.
#3: 22-24 vs. Cal Poly (9/15/2012): Only 13,558 attended game in Laramie; that was 13,558 too many.
#4: 31-34 at New Mexico (11/6/2010): Lobos finished 1-11.
#5: 16-45 vs. Bowling Green (9/27/2008): Falcons finished 6-6.
Honorable mention: at Utah State (10/8/2011): 19-63, Utah State finished 7-6.

Best cumulative season:
2006 (four losses by a touchdown or fewer, easily could have been a 9-3 team with three-or-four different plays)

Closest major upset: 10-17 vs. Boise State (9/16/2006): Cowboys had final possession, chance to tie vs. eventual undefeated Fiesta Bowl champions.
Honorable mention #1: 34-41 vs. BYU (11/10/2001): Cowboys had undefeated, #9-ranked Cougars on the ropes in Laramie before late loss.
Honorable mention #2: 20-31 vs. TCU (11/5/2011): Wyoming contended late in game until Brett Smith was injured in fourth quarter; TCU finished 11-2.
Honorable mention #3: 31-34 at Nebraska (8/31/2013): Wyoming had final possession with chance to win; Nebraska finished 9-4, ranked #25.

Most damaging loss: 14-28 vs. TCU (10/8/05): Despite 8 turnovers (-6 margin), Wyoming (4-1 entering game) still had chances to win game; TCU finished 11-1, Wyoming finished 4-7.
Honorable mention: 3-20 vs. New Mexico (10/13/2007): Wyoming had 4-1 start to season, game was tied at 3 before 2-hour weather delay postponed; Cowboys lost all momentum in game and season, finished 5-7.

It's not an outlook - it's all in the past!

It's an ongoing narrative. Take a look at 2015 at the bottom of the second post. It's a (justifiably posed) question of a program's overall capacity to succeed. It's illustrative of where Wyoming football sits today. Y'all are welcome to continue the bright and sunshiny outlook, but I'm speaking for the rest of us that we're losing hope and losing it quickly when we're finding moral victories in a 17-point loss to a program that lost its home opener to Portland State and barely scraped by the most turmoil-embroiled program in the country in Week 2.

Do you see anything "bright and sunshiny" in my post? Reading comprehension?

 

[ELKMT]

Bringbackstutz=theman=eastpopcornstate

 

[OrediggerPoke]

Bringbackstutz=theman=eastpopcornstate

No not the same person.

 

[ragtimejoe1]

Hey Klutz, GTFOH. You have no idea what you are talking about. First, FCS is essentially FBS but with one letter different. That is the only difference. WYO and WSU losing to a FCS team isn't any different than losing to a B1G team. Really, the FCS champ should go to a NY6 Bowl. I see you point out the club guys at Drake. Do you know how many football recruits are in...wait, where is Drake? Nevermind, do you know how many football players are around Drake? All they have to do is ask if anyone wants to play football. We have to recruit and give them scholarships and shit. Way harder. Besides, where will they be in 5 years? They might be more experienced and beat UND, but they won't be Cowboy tough. Hell, their QB will probably slide. Pansies.

 

[BringBackStutzriem]

Hey Klutz, GTFOH. You have no idea what you are talking about. First, FCS is essentially FBS but with one letter different. That is the only difference. WYO and WSU losing to a FCS team isn't any different than losing to a B1G team. Really, the FCS champ should go to a NY6 Bowl. I see you point out the club guys at Drake. Do you know how many football recruits are in...wait, where is Drake? Nevermind, do you know how many football players are around Drake? All they have to do is ask if anyone wants to play football. We have to recruit and give them scholarships and shit. Way harder. Besides, where will they be in 5 years? They might be more experienced and beat UND, but they won't be Cowboy tough. Hell, their QB will probably slide. Pansies.

:lol: :lol: :lol: This was amazing. Thank you.

 

[theanimalyears]

Sort of a compendium to my previous thread. Been putting this together the past week-or-so in spare time. It's a pretty bleak outlook, but numbers are numbers, folks. Trash me if you will - this is simply the reality of the situation.

Wyoming Football since 1999: A breakdown

Cumulative record: 73-120 (.378)
Record vs. teams that finished season with winning records (non-FCS): 14-73 (4 wins came in 1999 season)
Conference record: 38-83 (.314)
Wins over teams that finished the season ranked: 0
Losses by 30-or-more points: 29
Losses by 20-or-more points: 55
Bowl wins: 2
Bowl losses: 1
Winning seasons: 3 (2004, 2009, 2011)
Best finish in conference standings: 3rd (2011)
Seasons finishing in bottom-3 of conference standings: 9 (counting 2014)
Record vs. teams that currently play in Power-5 conferences (plus BYU/Boise State): 10-56 (.151)
Record vs. FCS/D-1AA: 12-2
Record vs. FBS/D-1: 61-118 (.341)

Best five wins:
#1: 23-3 vs. Virginia (9/1/2007) – Virginia finished 9-4, Wyoming held UVA to 97 yards total offense
#2: 24-21 vs. UCLA (12/23/2004) – First bowl win in 38 years; UCLA boasted several future NFL players, including Maurice Jones-Drew
#3: 31-17 vs. BYU (11/13/1999) – BYU had one loss, was ranked #12; finished season 8-4, unranked
#4: 31-15 vs. Utah (10/14/2006) – Utes finished season 8-5, Wyoming led 31-0 at one point in game
#5: 35-28 (2OT) vs. Fresno State (12/19/2009) – Bulldogs finished season 8-5, boasted future NFL star Ryan Matthews
Honorable mentions: 24-21 vs. TCU (2007), 13-7 at Tennessee (2008), 34-26 vs. Air Force (2002), 24-14 at Ole Miss (2005)

Worst five losses:
#1: 29-48 vs. Eastern Michigan (9/12/2015): Wyoming trailed 38-7 midway through second quarter vs. MAC bottom-dweller.
#2: 13-24 vs. North Dakota (9/5/2015): North Dakota won by 3 vs. non-scholarship Drake following weekend.
#3: 22-24 vs. Cal Poly (9/15/2012): Only 13,558 attended game in Laramie; that was 13,558 too many.
#4: 31-34 at New Mexico (11/6/2010): Lobos finished 1-11.
#5: 16-45 vs. Bowling Green (9/27/2008): Falcons finished 6-6.
Honorable mention: at Utah State (10/8/2011): 19-63, Utah State finished 7-6.

Best cumulative season:
2006 (four losses by a touchdown or fewer, easily could have been a 9-3 team with three-or-four different plays)

Closest major upset: 10-17 vs. Boise State (9/16/2006): Cowboys had final possession, chance to tie vs. eventual undefeated Fiesta Bowl champions.
Honorable mention #1: 34-41 vs. BYU (11/10/2001): Cowboys had undefeated, #9-ranked Cougars on the ropes in Laramie before late loss.
Honorable mention #2: 20-31 vs. TCU (11/5/2011): Wyoming contended late in game until Brett Smith was injured in fourth quarter; TCU finished 11-2.
Honorable mention #3: 31-34 at Nebraska (8/31/2013): Wyoming had final possession with chance to win; Nebraska finished 9-4, ranked #25.

Most damaging loss: 14-28 vs. TCU (10/8/05): Despite 8 turnovers (-6 margin), Wyoming (4-1 entering game) still had chances to win game; TCU finished 11-1, Wyoming finished 4-7.
Honorable mention: 3-20 vs. New Mexico (10/13/2007): Wyoming had 4-1 start to season, game was tied at 3 before 2-hour weather delay postponed; Cowboys lost all momentum in game and season, finished 5-7.

It's not an outlook - it's all in the past!

It's an ongoing narrative. Take a look at 2015 at the bottom of the second post. It's a (justifiably posed) question of a program's overall capacity to succeed. It's illustrative of where Wyoming football sits today. Y'all are welcome to continue the bright and sunshiny outlook, but I'm speaking for the rest of us that we're losing hope and losing it quickly when we're finding moral victories in a 17-point loss to a program that lost its home opener to Portland State and barely scraped by the most turmoil-embroiled program in the country in Week 2.

Ha, I feel sorry for people such as yourself, that are so stubborn they can't appreciate something good when its right in front of them. All caught up in analytics and statistics. Sometimes you just have to go with the eye test. The team I saw play last night was a team heading in the right direction. If we played like that we would have steam rolled more than half the teams in the country, including the teams we lost to earlier in the season as well as our conference foes. Mark my words Eastern Washington will push for the PAC-12 title. And you know what, the great thing is these games don't even count. All loses so far are just PRESEASON. They don't count towards our conference record and are means fix the little things we do wrong. Yea the mountain west is having a bit of a down year, but that just means more conference titles for us. We're coming back strong, and even though I think the conference title game may be a coin flip, no way do we miss out on making it. My prediction is we finish out strong only losing to Boise State. Does that sound like a team that should go FCS or quit football all together?

 

[J-Rod]

My prediction is we finish out strong only losing to Boise State. Does that sound like a team that should go FCS or quit football all together?

Whoa...8-4? I thought the team improved this week, but that's an entire bucket of kool aid right there. Let's not forget that WSU lost to an FCS team themselves. They're P5, but via brand and bank account only.

I think this team will win a few games, but there are still frustrating games ahead. In fact, the Pokes are a home underdog to an awful UNM team this week.

 

[SDPokeFan]

Sort of a compendium to my previous thread. Been putting this together the past week-or-so in spare time. It's a pretty bleak outlook, but numbers are numbers, folks. Trash me if you will - this is simply the reality of the situation.

Wyoming Football since 1999: A breakdown

Cumulative record: 73-120 (.378)
Record vs. teams that finished season with winning records (non-FCS): 14-73 (4 wins came in 1999 season)
Conference record: 38-83 (.314)
Wins over teams that finished the season ranked: 0
Losses by 30-or-more points: 29
Losses by 20-or-more points: 55
Bowl wins: 2
Bowl losses: 1
Winning seasons: 3 (2004, 2009, 2011)
Best finish in conference standings: 3rd (2011)
Seasons finishing in bottom-3 of conference standings: 9 (counting 2014)
Record vs. teams that currently play in Power-5 conferences (plus BYU/Boise State): 10-56 (.151)
Record vs. FCS/D-1AA: 12-2
Record vs. FBS/D-1: 61-118 (.341)

Best five wins:
#1: 23-3 vs. Virginia (9/1/2007) – Virginia finished 9-4, Wyoming held UVA to 97 yards total offense
#2: 24-21 vs. UCLA (12/23/2004) – First bowl win in 38 years; UCLA boasted several future NFL players, including Maurice Jones-Drew
#3: 31-17 vs. BYU (11/13/1999) – BYU had one loss, was ranked #12; finished season 8-4, unranked
#4: 31-15 vs. Utah (10/14/2006) – Utes finished season 8-5, Wyoming led 31-0 at one point in game
#5: 35-28 (2OT) vs. Fresno State (12/19/2009) – Bulldogs finished season 8-5, boasted future NFL star Ryan Matthews
Honorable mentions: 24-21 vs. TCU (2007), 13-7 at Tennessee (2008), 34-26 vs. Air Force (2002), 24-14 at Ole Miss (2005)

Worst five losses:
#1: 29-48 vs. Eastern Michigan (9/12/2015): Wyoming trailed 38-7 midway through second quarter vs. MAC bottom-dweller.
#2: 13-24 vs. North Dakota (9/5/2015): North Dakota won by 3 vs. non-scholarship Drake following weekend.
#3: 22-24 vs. Cal Poly (9/15/2012): Only 13,558 attended game in Laramie; that was 13,558 too many.
#4: 31-34 at New Mexico (11/6/2010): Lobos finished 1-11.
#5: 16-45 vs. Bowling Green (9/27/2008): Falcons finished 6-6.
Honorable mention: at Utah State (10/8/2011): 19-63, Utah State finished 7-6.

Best cumulative season:
2006 (four losses by a touchdown or fewer, easily could have been a 9-3 team with three-or-four different plays)

Closest major upset: 10-17 vs. Boise State (9/16/2006): Cowboys had final possession, chance to tie vs. eventual undefeated Fiesta Bowl champions.
Honorable mention #1: 34-41 vs. BYU (11/10/2001): Cowboys had undefeated, #9-ranked Cougars on the ropes in Laramie before late loss.
Honorable mention #2: 20-31 vs. TCU (11/5/2011): Wyoming contended late in game until Brett Smith was injured in fourth quarter; TCU finished 11-2.
Honorable mention #3: 31-34 at Nebraska (8/31/2013): Wyoming had final possession with chance to win; Nebraska finished 9-4, ranked #25.

Most damaging loss: 14-28 vs. TCU (10/8/05): Despite 8 turnovers (-6 margin), Wyoming (4-1 entering game) still had chances to win game; TCU finished 11-1, Wyoming finished 4-7.
Honorable mention: 3-20 vs. New Mexico (10/13/2007): Wyoming had 4-1 start to season, game was tied at 3 before 2-hour weather delay postponed; Cowboys lost all momentum in game and season, finished 5-7.

It's not an outlook - it's all in the past!

It's an ongoing narrative. Take a look at 2015 at the bottom of the second post. It's a (justifiably posed) question of a program's overall capacity to succeed. It's illustrative of where Wyoming football sits today. Y'all are welcome to continue the bright and sunshiny outlook, but I'm speaking for the rest of us that we're losing hope and losing it quickly when we're finding moral victories in a 17-point loss to a program that lost its home opener to Portland State and barely scraped by the most turmoil-embroiled program in the country in Week 2.

Ha, I feel sorry for people such as yourself, that are so stubborn they can't appreciate something good when its right in front of them. All caught up in analytics and statistics. Sometimes you just have to go with the eye test. The team I saw play last night was a team heading in the right direction. If we played like that we would have steam rolled more than half the teams in the country, including the teams we lost to earlier in the season as well as our conference foes. Mark my words Eastern Washington will push for the PAC-12 title. And you know what, the great thing is these games don't even count. All loses so far are just PRESEASON. They don't count towards our conference record and are means fix the little things we do wrong. Yea the mountain west is having a bit of a down year, but that just means more conference titles for us. We're coming back strong, and even though I think the conference title game may be a coin flip, no way do we miss out on making it. My prediction is we finish out strong only losing to Boise State. Does that sound like a team that should go FCS or quit football all together?

Eastern Washington is going to push for the PAC-12? We played Washington State, not Eastern Washington, which is an FCS school. I'm assuming your just trolling though, since you also said Wyoming would win the rest of its games except for Boise.

 

[BringBackStutzriem]

Sort of a compendium to my previous thread. Been putting this together the past week-or-so in spare time. It's a pretty bleak outlook, but numbers are numbers, folks. Trash me if you will - this is simply the reality of the situation.

Wyoming Football since 1999: A breakdown

Cumulative record: 73-120 (.378)
Record vs. teams that finished season with winning records (non-FCS): 14-73 (4 wins came in 1999 season)
Conference record: 38-83 (.314)
Wins over teams that finished the season ranked: 0
Losses by 30-or-more points: 29
Losses by 20-or-more points: 55
Bowl wins: 2
Bowl losses: 1
Winning seasons: 3 (2004, 2009, 2011)
Best finish in conference standings: 3rd (2011)
Seasons finishing in bottom-3 of conference standings: 9 (counting 2014)
Record vs. teams that currently play in Power-5 conferences (plus BYU/Boise State): 10-56 (.151)
Record vs. FCS/D-1AA: 12-2
Record vs. FBS/D-1: 61-118 (.341)

Best five wins:
#1: 23-3 vs. Virginia (9/1/2007) – Virginia finished 9-4, Wyoming held UVA to 97 yards total offense
#2: 24-21 vs. UCLA (12/23/2004) – First bowl win in 38 years; UCLA boasted several future NFL players, including Maurice Jones-Drew
#3: 31-17 vs. BYU (11/13/1999) – BYU had one loss, was ranked #12; finished season 8-4, unranked
#4: 31-15 vs. Utah (10/14/2006) – Utes finished season 8-5, Wyoming led 31-0 at one point in game
#5: 35-28 (2OT) vs. Fresno State (12/19/2009) – Bulldogs finished season 8-5, boasted future NFL star Ryan Matthews
Honorable mentions: 24-21 vs. TCU (2007), 13-7 at Tennessee (2008), 34-26 vs. Air Force (2002), 24-14 at Ole Miss (2005)

Worst five losses:
#1: 29-48 vs. Eastern Michigan (9/12/2015): Wyoming trailed 38-7 midway through second quarter vs. MAC bottom-dweller.
#2: 13-24 vs. North Dakota (9/5/2015): North Dakota won by 3 vs. non-scholarship Drake following weekend.
#3: 22-24 vs. Cal Poly (9/15/2012): Only 13,558 attended game in Laramie; that was 13,558 too many.
#4: 31-34 at New Mexico (11/6/2010): Lobos finished 1-11.
#5: 16-45 vs. Bowling Green (9/27/2008): Falcons finished 6-6.
Honorable mention: at Utah State (10/8/2011): 19-63, Utah State finished 7-6.

Best cumulative season:
2006 (four losses by a touchdown or fewer, easily could have been a 9-3 team with three-or-four different plays)

Closest major upset: 10-17 vs. Boise State (9/16/2006): Cowboys had final possession, chance to tie vs. eventual undefeated Fiesta Bowl champions.
Honorable mention #1: 34-41 vs. BYU (11/10/2001): Cowboys had undefeated, #9-ranked Cougars on the ropes in Laramie before late loss.
Honorable mention #2: 20-31 vs. TCU (11/5/2011): Wyoming contended late in game until Brett Smith was injured in fourth quarter; TCU finished 11-2.
Honorable mention #3: 31-34 at Nebraska (8/31/2013): Wyoming had final possession with chance to win; Nebraska finished 9-4, ranked #25.

Most damaging loss: 14-28 vs. TCU (10/8/05): Despite 8 turnovers (-6 margin), Wyoming (4-1 entering game) still had chances to win game; TCU finished 11-1, Wyoming finished 4-7.
Honorable mention: 3-20 vs. New Mexico (10/13/2007): Wyoming had 4-1 start to season, game was tied at 3 before 2-hour weather delay postponed; Cowboys lost all momentum in game and season, finished 5-7.

It's not an outlook - it's all in the past!

It's an ongoing narrative. Take a look at 2015 at the bottom of the second post. It's a (justifiably posed) question of a program's overall capacity to succeed. It's illustrative of where Wyoming football sits today. Y'all are welcome to continue the bright and sunshiny outlook, but I'm speaking for the rest of us that we're losing hope and losing it quickly when we're finding moral victories in a 17-point loss to a program that lost its home opener to Portland State and barely scraped by the most turmoil-embroiled program in the country in Week 2.

Ha, I feel sorry for people such as yourself, that are so stubborn they can't appreciate something good when its right in front of them. All caught up in analytics and statistics. Sometimes you just have to go with the eye test. The team I saw play last night was a team heading in the right direction. If we played like that we would have steam rolled more than half the teams in the country, including the teams we lost to earlier in the season as well as our conference foes. Mark my words Eastern Washington will push for the PAC-12 title. And you know what, the great thing is these games don't even count. All loses so far are just PRESEASON. They don't count towards our conference record and are means fix the little things we do wrong. Yea the mountain west is having a bit of a down year, but that just means more conference titles for us. We're coming back strong, and even though I think the conference title game may be a coin flip, no way do we miss out on making it. My prediction is we finish out strong only losing to Boise State. Does that sound like a team that should go FCS or quit football all together?

Beware the period blood turf of doom.

 

[Brew_Poke]

Sort of a compendium to my previous thread. Been putting this together the past week-or-so in spare time. It's a pretty bleak outlook, but numbers are numbers, folks. Trash me if you will - this is simply the reality of the situation.

Wyoming Football since 1999: A breakdown

Cumulative record: 73-120 (.378)
Record vs. teams that finished season with winning records (non-FCS): 14-73 (4 wins came in 1999 season)
Conference record: 38-83 (.314)
Wins over teams that finished the season ranked: 0
Losses by 30-or-more points: 29
Losses by 20-or-more points: 55
Bowl wins: 2
Bowl losses: 1
Winning seasons: 3 (2004, 2009, 2011)
Best finish in conference standings: 3rd (2011)
Seasons finishing in bottom-3 of conference standings: 9 (counting 2014)
Record vs. teams that currently play in Power-5 conferences (plus BYU/Boise State): 10-56 (.151)
Record vs. FCS/D-1AA: 12-2
Record vs. FBS/D-1: 61-118 (.341)

Best five wins:
#1: 23-3 vs. Virginia (9/1/2007) – Virginia finished 9-4, Wyoming held UVA to 97 yards total offense
#2: 24-21 vs. UCLA (12/23/2004) – First bowl win in 38 years; UCLA boasted several future NFL players, including Maurice Jones-Drew
#3: 31-17 vs. BYU (11/13/1999) – BYU had one loss, was ranked #12; finished season 8-4, unranked
#4: 31-15 vs. Utah (10/14/2006) – Utes finished season 8-5, Wyoming led 31-0 at one point in game
#5: 35-28 (2OT) vs. Fresno State (12/19/2009) – Bulldogs finished season 8-5, boasted future NFL star Ryan Matthews
Honorable mentions: 24-21 vs. TCU (2007), 13-7 at Tennessee (2008), 34-26 vs. Air Force (2002), 24-14 at Ole Miss (2005)

Worst five losses:
#1: 29-48 vs. Eastern Michigan (9/12/2015): Wyoming trailed 38-7 midway through second quarter vs. MAC bottom-dweller.
#2: 13-24 vs. North Dakota (9/5/2015): North Dakota won by 3 vs. non-scholarship Drake following weekend.
#3: 22-24 vs. Cal Poly (9/15/2012): Only 13,558 attended game in Laramie; that was 13,558 too many.
#4: 31-34 at New Mexico (11/6/2010): Lobos finished 1-11.
#5: 16-45 vs. Bowling Green (9/27/2008): Falcons finished 6-6.
Honorable mention: at Utah State (10/8/2011): 19-63, Utah State finished 7-6.

Best cumulative season:
2006 (four losses by a touchdown or fewer, easily could have been a 9-3 team with three-or-four different plays)

Closest major upset: 10-17 vs. Boise State (9/16/2006): Cowboys had final possession, chance to tie vs. eventual undefeated Fiesta Bowl champions.
Honorable mention #1: 34-41 vs. BYU (11/10/2001): Cowboys had undefeated, #9-ranked Cougars on the ropes in Laramie before late loss.
Honorable mention #2: 20-31 vs. TCU (11/5/2011): Wyoming contended late in game until Brett Smith was injured in fourth quarter; TCU finished 11-2.
Honorable mention #3: 31-34 at Nebraska (8/31/2013): Wyoming had final possession with chance to win; Nebraska finished 9-4, ranked #25.

Most damaging loss: 14-28 vs. TCU (10/8/05): Despite 8 turnovers (-6 margin), Wyoming (4-1 entering game) still had chances to win game; TCU finished 11-1, Wyoming finished 4-7.
Honorable mention: 3-20 vs. New Mexico (10/13/2007): Wyoming had 4-1 start to season, game was tied at 3 before 2-hour weather delay postponed; Cowboys lost all momentum in game and season, finished 5-7.

Thanks for doing the homework! This is why, avidly watching the shitshow that is Pokes football, I am where I am. And to think, we're recruiting kids born in '97 or '98 now? We're fucked. Get ready for the big rivalry games vs. Northern Colorado and Montana State!

 

[BringBackStutzriem]

Sort of a compendium to my previous thread. Been putting this together the past week-or-so in spare time. It's a pretty bleak outlook, but numbers are numbers, folks. Trash me if you will - this is simply the reality of the situation.

Wyoming Football since 1999: A breakdown

Cumulative record: 73-120 (.378)
Record vs. teams that finished season with winning records (non-FCS): 14-73 (4 wins came in 1999 season)
Conference record: 38-83 (.314)
Wins over teams that finished the season ranked: 0
Losses by 30-or-more points: 29
Losses by 20-or-more points: 55
Bowl wins: 2
Bowl losses: 1
Winning seasons: 3 (2004, 2009, 2011)
Best finish in conference standings: 3rd (2011)
Seasons finishing in bottom-3 of conference standings: 9 (counting 2014)
Record vs. teams that currently play in Power-5 conferences (plus BYU/Boise State): 10-56 (.151)
Record vs. FCS/D-1AA: 12-2
Record vs. FBS/D-1: 61-118 (.341)

Best five wins:
#1: 23-3 vs. Virginia (9/1/2007) – Virginia finished 9-4, Wyoming held UVA to 97 yards total offense
#2: 24-21 vs. UCLA (12/23/2004) – First bowl win in 38 years; UCLA boasted several future NFL players, including Maurice Jones-Drew
#3: 31-17 vs. BYU (11/13/1999) – BYU had one loss, was ranked #12; finished season 8-4, unranked
#4: 31-15 vs. Utah (10/14/2006) – Utes finished season 8-5, Wyoming led 31-0 at one point in game
#5: 35-28 (2OT) vs. Fresno State (12/19/2009) – Bulldogs finished season 8-5, boasted future NFL star Ryan Matthews
Honorable mentions: 24-21 vs. TCU (2007), 13-7 at Tennessee (2008), 34-26 vs. Air Force (2002), 24-14 at Ole Miss (2005)

Worst five losses:
#1: 29-48 vs. Eastern Michigan (9/12/2015): Wyoming trailed 38-7 midway through second quarter vs. MAC bottom-dweller.
#2: 13-24 vs. North Dakota (9/5/2015): North Dakota won by 3 vs. non-scholarship Drake following weekend.
#3: 22-24 vs. Cal Poly (9/15/2012): Only 13,558 attended game in Laramie; that was 13,558 too many.
#4: 31-34 at New Mexico (11/6/2010): Lobos finished 1-11.
#5: 16-45 vs. Bowling Green (9/27/2008): Falcons finished 6-6.
Honorable mention: at Utah State (10/8/2011): 19-63, Utah State finished 7-6.

Best cumulative season:
2006 (four losses by a touchdown or fewer, easily could have been a 9-3 team with three-or-four different plays)

Closest major upset: 10-17 vs. Boise State (9/16/2006): Cowboys had final possession, chance to tie vs. eventual undefeated Fiesta Bowl champions.
Honorable mention #1: 34-41 vs. BYU (11/10/2001): Cowboys had undefeated, #9-ranked Cougars on the ropes in Laramie before late loss.
Honorable mention #2: 20-31 vs. TCU (11/5/2011): Wyoming contended late in game until Brett Smith was injured in fourth quarter; TCU finished 11-2.
Honorable mention #3: 31-34 at Nebraska (8/31/2013): Wyoming had final possession with chance to win; Nebraska finished 9-4, ranked #25.

Most damaging loss: 14-28 vs. TCU (10/8/05): Despite 8 turnovers (-6 margin), Wyoming (4-1 entering game) still had chances to win game; TCU finished 11-1, Wyoming finished 4-7.
Honorable mention: 3-20 vs. New Mexico (10/13/2007): Wyoming had 4-1 start to season, game was tied at 3 before 2-hour weather delay postponed; Cowboys lost all momentum in game and season, finished 5-7.

Thanks for doing the homework! This is why, avidly watching the shitshow that is Pokes football, I am where I am. And to think, we're recruiting kids born in '97 or '98 now? We're fucked. Get ready for the big rivalry games vs. Northern Colorado and Montana State!

Cheers, man! I'm glad you empathize with where I'm coming from. The last time Wyoming really put a solid product out on the field - by a regional measurement - was 1998. We started 8-1, with the sole loss coming against a Champ Bailey-led Georgia team. Champ, playing two ways, would score 5-6 touchdowns against this year's team.

The product has devalued immensely, but I'm not certain there's a remedy for it anymore. It's more the recognition that the window for Wyoming to get back to where it was in the late 90's might be closed, or is closing rapidly. And it really sucks. But when you're ranked #128 out of 128 in ESPN's metrics, it's not a pretty sign.

 

[Wyovanian]

Oh good! Your still here. I told you I'd get back with you and even explain something to a few others.

Now, Bohl has NO control of our schedule. And Burman has said he likes his layout for Two common opponents; one smaller or FCS opponent and a challenging opponent.
Because we have a layout like this you will see more struggle to win than Snyder and KSU had. I doubt Burman is going to take this road and start taking on only Bottom feeders to our schedule.
Snyder was able, and it still took him 5 years to turn a program around. So maybe we should at least give Bohl five or six years? Don't you think?

I do appreciate the sentiment and the research that went into your response. Trust me, I want to see Wyoming become Kansas State as much as you do. I just don't know that I see it happening. K-State's attachment to a major conference helped with its ascent (also, see Baylor circa 2011-present), but also the proximity of regional talent (whether it was high school or JuCo) was vital. Finally, Snyder turned things around in 1988 - a significantly different climate in college football than we're looking at right now. Again, the haves vs. the have-nots have only escalated immensely over the last 10 years. The two statistics - vs. teams with winning records and vs. teams in Big 5 conferences - illustrate just how massive that gap is between Wyoming and relevant college football.

I'm not calling for Bohl's head. Not in the slightest. I like Bohl. He takes accountability. He's sincere. He's hard working. I just am not certain he has what it takes to win in Laramie. I believe he absolutely deserves 5+ years to get something going - I think we cut ties with Glenn far too soon, and Glenn would've been back in a bowl in 2009. What I'm trying to illustrate is that you could conceivably pull Bear Bryant out of the crypt, bring him to the year 2015, and I'm not certain he would find a way to win with frequency in Laramie.

In all seriousness- what's your reason for being here? Are you trying to argue that we should drop football?

It's not that, man. I just don't know what to do. I'm speaking for a contingent of Wyoming fans who have steadily lost all interest in Wyoming football and are now beginning to lose all hope. All I'm doing is painting precisely what the last 16 seasons have indicated and asking whether we are really competing in FBS football. I don't know what the solution is. I want Wyoming to win a MWC title as badly as all of you guys do. The TCU loss in 2005 was absolutely crushing for me. I thought that was our time to turn the corner and become a program that competes a bit regionally.

But I'm just trying to look at this under a realistic lens and ask whether or not we're ever going to be consistently competitive in FBS.

For starters, how about keeping calm and not acting like a fifteen year-old girl? That'd be a good start right there.

This life, it takes place in a world of men...