Cowboys licking their wounds, gearing up for the Border War
The 115th meeting has more than just bragging rights on the line
CHEYENNE, Wyo. (Wyoming News Now) - It felt like a little bit of deja vu on Saturday, Boise State for the second year in a row stifling Wyoming Football’s chance at a Mountain West Conference Championship berth.
From one highly emotional game with an emotional low to another big emotional high, the Border War is on Friday. The Colorado State Rams, the most hated rival in Wyoming, they will be in Laramie for a 6 PM kickoff on Friday.
For the Cowboys, it’s about getting ready, bucking up, and preparing for the next opponent.
“We addressed our shortcomings in the Boise game and I was real explicit with the men in this room yesterday on what I saw,” Head Coach, Craig Bohl, said. “Then we booked it and said ‘okay, now turn the page’. Colorado State doesn’t care that we got our butts kicked. I told our team, I said, ‘We just got taken to the woodshed by a team that they beat. So we better get out stingers up and stop feeling sorry for ourselves and believe in what the coaches are doing.’”
“We just have to put it in the past and keep moving forward,” Linebacker, Easton Gibbs, said. “We’re really looking forward to another opportunity this weekend. We definitely weren’t pleased with how we played last weekend, so we’re looking to bounce back for sure.”
“It’s an honor to play this game for the state of Wyoming,” Defensive Lineman, DeVonne Harris, said. “We wanna kick their butt they wanna kick out butt. To win this game for the entire state is something you can say you’re proud of.”
“I think this week, just getting back in the groove and keeping the confidence,” Tight End, John Michael Gyllenborg, said. “But, understanding that we’ve got to prove ourselves. We didn’t really play anywhere near our standard last week, that’s kind of the mentality we’re going to have going into this game.’
The Cowboys, they know how much this means. Not only to the program, but to the whole state of Wyoming.
Friday will be the 115th meeting between these two teams, the oldest rivalry in college football this side of the Mississippi. The Rams own the series record 59-55-5. The Cowboys have won 6 of the last 7 meetings, the last two in a row.
To beat the Rams, the Pokes are going to have to handle the big play making of WR Tory Horton, TE Dallin Holker, and QB Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi. They’re going to have to step up and play the best version they have of Cowboy Football. CSU averages the fifth most passing yards per game in the country.
“I think it comes down to just everybody doing their job. We definitely need to win more up front. In the back end, we need to cover up more windows as linebackers. I think doing that will make a good recipe for us to go out there and do our thing again,” Gibbs said.
“Passing games are built on rhythm, timing, and tempo. If you can run the ball, you can run the ball when there’s six inches of snow on the ground, if the turf is hard as a rock, if you’re playing out in the parking lot. When you’re passing the ball it’s about the timing and tempo and we’ve got to take them out of that rhythm. That’s going to be our secret and that’s going to prevent the explosive plays,” Coach Bohl said.
It’s the biggest week of football here in Wyoming and we at Wyoming News Now Sports are treating it as such. We’re going to have in depth and all day coverage location, from the Border War on Friday. We cannot wait to bring it to all of you at home.
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