Boise State faces familiar foe at Wyoming, has ‘a lot of respect.’ What will weather do?
Boise State football will face a familiar foe this weekend when it travels to the wind-swept mountains of southeastern Wyoming.
Despite the unbalanced scheduling in the Mountain West, which means you don’t play every team every year, No. 12 Boise State (9-1, 6-0 Mountain West) and Wyoming (2-8, 2-4) are more than familiar with each other. They have met every year since 2010, and the Broncos have dominated, winning all but once — the Cowboys posted a 30-28 upset in October 2016.
“I think you build respect for teams you see year in, year out, especially with who they are,” Boise State head coach Spencer Danielson said. “I’ve had multiple battles with them in Laramie and on The Blue, and so there’s a lot of respect there.”
Will that familiarity help Boise State on Saturday in Laramie? What can the Broncos expect from a Wyoming team having a very down season?
How well do the Broncos know the Cowboys?
Wyoming has a couple of unknowns that Boise State will have to deal with.
All of Wyoming’s big three coaches — head coach Jay Sawvel, offensive coordinator Jay Johnson and defensive coordinator Aaron Bohl — are in their first year in those positions. Bohl is the son of former head coach Craig Bohl, who led the Cowboys from 2014 to 2023.
“The defensive coordinator, Coach Bohl’s son, was under (former defensive coordinator) Coach Sawvel as the DC,” Danielson said. “So they’re going to stay true to a lot of the things that he did defensively.”
Danielson also expects Wyoming to stick with the running game the Cowboys have typically employed. Wyoming ranks 89th in the nation in rushing this season, but has missed its best back much of the season.
Running back Sam Scott and quarterback Evan Svoboda have led the rushing attack, but Harrison Waylee, the starter before the season, finally played his first two games earlier this month. He ran for 185 yards and a touchdown on 35 carries in those two games.
Waylee, a senior, suffered a preseason knee injury after a junior year that saw him lead the team with 947 rushing yards on 164 attempts.
Will weather be an issue?
A late-season trip to Laramie is generally never fun.
Tucked away on the eastern side of the Rocky Mountains, Laramie is at an altitude of 7,165 feet — for comparison, Boise is 2,700. That means cold wind and snow aren’t uncommon in late November.
Boise State should avoid the latter. According to the National Weather Service, wind gusts will reach 35 mph on Saturday in Laramie, and the low temperature will be 29. But snow isn’t in the forecast until Sunday.
The gusty winds could force a ground game, which would be fine with both teams. Redshirt senior receiver Latrell Caples said cold weather doesn’t bother him or his team — “it’s cold here, too” — but the wind is a different story when it comes to the passing game.
“We just have to be aware that sometimes the ball flight might be different,” Caples said. “The deeper balls might adjust in the air. We’ve just got to be able to have really good eyes in a game like this.”
Caples, who often returns punts, also noted that altitude affects how far the ball travels — that basically means they go farther in the thin air.
“On kickoffs you’ll see it the most,” Caples said. “They’ll probably have all touchbacks because the elevation is so high. Just being able to adjust, it’s not nothing we don’t practice or we’re not ready for.”
Boise State at Wyoming
When: 5 p.m. Mountain time Saturday
Where: War Memorial Stadium (29,181, turf); Laramie, Wyoming
TV: CBS Sports Network
Radio: KBOI 670 AM and KBOI 93.1 FM/Sirius XM Ch. 162 or 201 (Bob Behler, Pete Cavender)
Records: Boise State 9-1, 6-0; Wyoming 2-8, 2-4
Series: Boise State leads the series 17-1
Vegas line: Boise State by 23 points
Weather: High of 55, low of 34, humidity 40%, partly cloudy with gusty winds, 5% chance of rain or snow
This story was originally published November 21, 2024 at 4:08 PM.
