Utah State gridders ready for homestand, host Wyoming
The Cowboys ride into town Saturday looking to spoil Homecoming for the Aggies and snap a 13-game road losing streak in the last place they won on the road.
Wyoming beat Utah State 43-42 in a wild finish in 2001, the last time the teams met.
The Aggies blew a nine-point, third-quarter lead but Aggie wide receiver Chris Stallworth caught a touchdown pass with 25 seconds remaining to pull within one point.
On the play, however, Utah State was called for excessive celebration and the long PAT to tie the game was blocked.
Although Wyoming holds a 1-4 record (0-1 in the Mountain West), Utah State Head Coach Mick Dennehy said the Cowboys have a potent attack.
“Wyoming is probably as powerful an offense as we have played all year long, particularly throwing the ball,” Dennehy said. “I think they are a very dangerous team.”
Utah State has a twin 1-4 record, including losses to No. 10 Nebraska and No. 28 Utah.
Between the two teams’ eight combined losses, six have been to teams receiving votes in the AP poll this week. Wyoming lost to Oklahoma State, Kansas, Air Force, and Boise State. Arizona State was a Top 25 team when they beat the Aggies but is no longer receiving votes.
The Cowboys will be Utah State’s final non-conference opponent this year.
In a losing effort against Boise State last week, Cowboy quarterback Casey Bramlet became Wyoming’s career leader in total offense and passing yards, throwing for 241 yards.
“We haven’t played against anybody with more experience [than Bramlet],” Dennehy said. “He has got a talented array of receivers in Malcom Floyd, Ryan McGuffey and Jovon Bouknight.”
Wyoming is ranked 17th in the nation in passing offense while Bramlet is 17th in total offense.
McGuffey and Bouknight are both in the top 50 nationally for yards per game, with McGuffey ranked 16th in catches per game.
Aggie defensive lineman John Chick, a Wyoming native, said the game will set the tone for the remainder of the year.
“This is a big game for momentum for the rest of the season,” Chick said. “In our minds, we need to go 8-0 from here on out, so Wyoming is an important game. Even though it doesn’t mean anything towards our conference to win this game, it will give us momentum going into the next [conference] game to be successful.”
The Aggies are looking forward to coming home for three of the next four games after having played four of their last five and seven of nine on the road dating to last year.
Dennehy said Utah State fans deserve the home stand.
“They haven’t seen much of us in the last year,” he said. “It has been a long haul. It seems like we have been on the road forever. We are a better team at home.”
Utah State struggled on the road last week against New Mexico, losing 34-7. The lone Aggie touchdown came on a 79-yard TD pass from quarterback Travis Cox to wide receiver Barry Tolli, a play that made up more than one-third of USU’s total yardage.
Running back David Fiefia managed just 37 yards on 11 carries against the Lobos after rushing for 142 against Louisiana-Monroe the previous week.
Receiver Kenny Coleman said the Aggies have something to prove at home.
“We need to step up and show what we can do,” Coleman said. “We need to get some confidence back in this game.”
The Cowboys have struggled defensively this season, giving up more than 30 points in each of their last four games.
Dennehy said Wyoming has faced tough teams.
“They have played a very good schedule, a very difficult schedule in terms of the type of teams they are playing,” he said. “They haven’t seen the same type of offense two weeks in a row.”
Wyoming linebacker Tyler Gottschalk leads the Cowboy defense. Gottschalk’s 16 tackles against Boise State and 15 against Air Force paced the team and moved him into ninth place on Wyoming’s all-time tackles list.
On the injury front, Dennehy said he is hopeful several players will be ready to go by Saturday, including wide receiver Raymond Hicks, tight end Patrick McNutt and safeties Mike Rosencrans and Ross Luna.
“We will get some guys back and that will help us in terms of our depth and being able to keep kids a little bit fresher and all of those kind of things,” Dennehy said.
On a side note, the game will feature two familiar faces on the sidelines for University of Montana fans.
Dennehy coached the Grizzlies from 1997 to 2000 before leaving to come to USU. Cowboy Head Coach Joe Glenn filled Dennehy’s position and led the Grizzlies to back-to-back Division I-AA national championships before taking the helm at Wyoming this year.
-royburton@cc.usu.edu