Team Depth Grows in Fourth Year of Craig Bohl Era. Freshmen May Add to Depth in 2017
A couple of aspects of this year’s Wyoming Cowboy Football team that have been evident during fall practice have been improved depth at several positions and the influx of talent in this year’s freshman class. Head coach Craig Bohl spoke about both of those aspects of his team following Tuesday’s 14th practice of fall camp.
Tuesday’s Practice Notes
∙Junior wide receiver James Price had an extremely productive practice on Tuesday morning. Price caught several big passes during one-on-one and team periods. Price has played in every game for the Cowboys since his true freshman season of 2015. He returns this season, along with sophomores C.J. Johnson, Austin Conway and John Okwoli as part of a talented but relatively young receiving corps.
∙Sophomore cornerback Tyler Hall intercepted a pass and returned it for a touchdown in a team period on Tuesday. Hall played in seven games as a true freshman in 2016, playing primarily on special teams. Coming out of 2017 spring practice, Hall was listed No. 1 on the depth chart at cornerback for the Cowboys. He is a leading candidate to earn a starting cornerback spot this coming season in what is a deep cornerback position group. Other top contenders at cornerback are: senior Robert Priester (19 career starts), senior Rico Gafford (14 career starts) and junior Antonio Hull (20 career starts). Freshman C.J. Coldon is a young player who has been impressive in fall camp at corner.
∙One of the first topics that Bohl discussed in his opening statement to media on Tuesday was the topic of true freshmen who may play in 2017. Bohl mentioned wide receivers Avante’ Cox and Jared Scott as true freshmen likely to play this coming season, as well as defensive tackle Ravontae Holt and potentially defensive tackle Javaree Jackson. Bohl said there were other freshmen who he didn’t talk about Tuesday who might also see playing time this season. Other true freshmen who have been mentioned previously by the head coach as having good fall camps are: center Logan Harris, linebacker Ryan Gatoloai-Faupula and punter Tim Zaleski.
∙Depth was another topic that Bohl addressed in his comments to media on Tuesday. In addition to a deep cornerback position, the safety spot returns junior startersAndrew Wingard and Marcus Epps, sophomore Alijah Halliburton and senior Tim Kamana. The defensive line may be one of the deepest areas of the 2017 Cowboys as nine of 10 defensive lineman who saw playing time last season return. Offensive line returns five players with starting experience, and the quarterback position returns both starterJosh Allen and backup Nick Smith, who are both juniors. The tight-end position returns three juniors in Austin Fort, Josh Harshman and Tyree Mayfield, however Bohl announced that Fort will be out the next three to four weeks due to injury.
∙See more in Bohl’s quotes below regarding Fort’s injury and 2017 Cowboy freshmen who may see playing time in 2017.
Quoting the Coach (Quotes from Head Coach Craig Bohl)
“We’re beginning to solidify some decisions on our freshmen,” said Bohl. “Avante’ Cox (true freshman wide receiver) right now looks like he is going to play. Jared Scott (wide receiver) is another true freshman who we are looking to play, and I also think Ravontae Holt (true freshman defensive tackle) will play. We may make a decision in the near future on Javaree Jackson (true freshman) as a defensive tackle.
“We will probably be without Austin Fort (junior tight end) for three to four weeks. He has a slight PCL (posterior cruciate ligament) tear in his knee. It is going to be non-surgical, but it will be three to four weeks and we’ll see how he progresses.”
What have you seen from Avante’ Cox that has led you to plan on playing him as a true freshman?
“Out of high school, he was dynamic. He did a lot of things with the football,” said Bohl. “He’s caught the ball well in fall camp. I think he’s learning more or our passing tree. As a player becomes more comfortable with our offense, he’s going to become more comfortable with his physical abilities within our offense. He’s got great speed and good acceleration. We’re excited about playing him.”
You’ve spoken about Jared Scott a few times during fall camp. What is there about his specific abilities that has brought him to the position where he may play as a true freshman?
“First of all, he’s a tall guy that has a big presence,” said Bohl. “He’s a good 6’6” and has huge hands. Being able to match him up against certain guys will create a real size disadvantage. He has excellent hand-eye coordination and wears triple X size gloves. He made a one-hand catch the other day that was really outstanding. We were looking at playing him, and I think that play helped us make our decision. It was a big play.”
You mentioned Javaree Jackson as another true freshman who will potentially play this season. What can you tell us about his performance thus far this fall?
“Javaree (Jackson) is getting close to 280 pounds. He’s strong and provides a good presence in the middle,” said Bohl. “Defensive linemen are guys you have to roll a lot of different players in and out to keep them fresh. From that standpoint, he’s got a strong physical presence inside and we need more guys like that.”
While as a coach you like to redshirt freshmen is it exciting to see young players who step up right away to fill particular positions on your team?
“There is no doubt about that,” said Bohl. “I think this is an indication that our recruiting is continuing to improve. I also think you’re seeing that freshmen are maturing faster than what they used to. The lay of the land of college football is changing. There are a couple criteria that we look at: number one, do we have a positional need; number two, do they have the physical ability; and then the third factor, does a player have the emotional maturity. If the answer to all three of those questions is ‘Yes’, then we’re in it to win it. If they can help us win right now -- we’re going to play them.”
In addition to the three or four freshmen that you mentioned today as possibly playing this season are there potentially some others who might play as freshmen this year?
“There are probably a couple guys who I didn’t mention today,” said Bohl. “But I think it is an indication that our program is getting better. We’re not playing these guys out of desperation. We’re playing these guys because we feel like they can help us win.”
It appears in your fourth year coaching the Cowboys that depth is starting to show at a number of positions on your team. Do you see that depth growing on your team?
“As a head coach, you would always like to have more (depth),” said Bohl. “But there is no doubt at certain positions we have more players, where before we were just looking for starters. I don’t think we’re a completely mature program yet, but in our fourth year we have a recruiting model that we feel really comfortable with and so we have developed more depth than what we had. We hope our depth shows up on special teams this season, as well.”
A couple of aspects of this year’s Wyoming Cowboy Football team that have been evident during fall practice have been improved depth at several positions and the influx of talent in this year’s freshman class. Head coach Craig Bohl spoke about both of those aspects of his team following Tuesday’s 14th practice of fall camp.
Tuesday’s Practice Notes
∙Junior wide receiver James Price had an extremely productive practice on Tuesday morning. Price caught several big passes during one-on-one and team periods. Price has played in every game for the Cowboys since his true freshman season of 2015. He returns this season, along with sophomores C.J. Johnson, Austin Conway and John Okwoli as part of a talented but relatively young receiving corps.
∙Sophomore cornerback Tyler Hall intercepted a pass and returned it for a touchdown in a team period on Tuesday. Hall played in seven games as a true freshman in 2016, playing primarily on special teams. Coming out of 2017 spring practice, Hall was listed No. 1 on the depth chart at cornerback for the Cowboys. He is a leading candidate to earn a starting cornerback spot this coming season in what is a deep cornerback position group. Other top contenders at cornerback are: senior Robert Priester (19 career starts), senior Rico Gafford (14 career starts) and junior Antonio Hull (20 career starts). Freshman C.J. Coldon is a young player who has been impressive in fall camp at corner.
∙One of the first topics that Bohl discussed in his opening statement to media on Tuesday was the topic of true freshmen who may play in 2017. Bohl mentioned wide receivers Avante’ Cox and Jared Scott as true freshmen likely to play this coming season, as well as defensive tackle Ravontae Holt and potentially defensive tackle Javaree Jackson. Bohl said there were other freshmen who he didn’t talk about Tuesday who might also see playing time this season. Other true freshmen who have been mentioned previously by the head coach as having good fall camps are: center Logan Harris, linebacker Ryan Gatoloai-Faupula and punter Tim Zaleski.
∙Depth was another topic that Bohl addressed in his comments to media on Tuesday. In addition to a deep cornerback position, the safety spot returns junior startersAndrew Wingard and Marcus Epps, sophomore Alijah Halliburton and senior Tim Kamana. The defensive line may be one of the deepest areas of the 2017 Cowboys as nine of 10 defensive lineman who saw playing time last season return. Offensive line returns five players with starting experience, and the quarterback position returns both starterJosh Allen and backup Nick Smith, who are both juniors. The tight-end position returns three juniors in Austin Fort, Josh Harshman and Tyree Mayfield, however Bohl announced that Fort will be out the next three to four weeks due to injury.
∙See more in Bohl’s quotes below regarding Fort’s injury and 2017 Cowboy freshmen who may see playing time in 2017.
Quoting the Coach (Quotes from Head Coach Craig Bohl)
“We’re beginning to solidify some decisions on our freshmen,” said Bohl. “Avante’ Cox (true freshman wide receiver) right now looks like he is going to play. Jared Scott (wide receiver) is another true freshman who we are looking to play, and I also think Ravontae Holt (true freshman defensive tackle) will play. We may make a decision in the near future on Javaree Jackson (true freshman) as a defensive tackle.
“We will probably be without Austin Fort (junior tight end) for three to four weeks. He has a slight PCL (posterior cruciate ligament) tear in his knee. It is going to be non-surgical, but it will be three to four weeks and we’ll see how he progresses.”
What have you seen from Avante’ Cox that has led you to plan on playing him as a true freshman?
“Out of high school, he was dynamic. He did a lot of things with the football,” said Bohl. “He’s caught the ball well in fall camp. I think he’s learning more or our passing tree. As a player becomes more comfortable with our offense, he’s going to become more comfortable with his physical abilities within our offense. He’s got great speed and good acceleration. We’re excited about playing him.”
You’ve spoken about Jared Scott a few times during fall camp. What is there about his specific abilities that has brought him to the position where he may play as a true freshman?
“First of all, he’s a tall guy that has a big presence,” said Bohl. “He’s a good 6’6” and has huge hands. Being able to match him up against certain guys will create a real size disadvantage. He has excellent hand-eye coordination and wears triple X size gloves. He made a one-hand catch the other day that was really outstanding. We were looking at playing him, and I think that play helped us make our decision. It was a big play.”
You mentioned Javaree Jackson as another true freshman who will potentially play this season. What can you tell us about his performance thus far this fall?
“Javaree (Jackson) is getting close to 280 pounds. He’s strong and provides a good presence in the middle,” said Bohl. “Defensive linemen are guys you have to roll a lot of different players in and out to keep them fresh. From that standpoint, he’s got a strong physical presence inside and we need more guys like that.”
While as a coach you like to redshirt freshmen is it exciting to see young players who step up right away to fill particular positions on your team?
“There is no doubt about that,” said Bohl. “I think this is an indication that our recruiting is continuing to improve. I also think you’re seeing that freshmen are maturing faster than what they used to. The lay of the land of college football is changing. There are a couple criteria that we look at: number one, do we have a positional need; number two, do they have the physical ability; and then the third factor, does a player have the emotional maturity. If the answer to all three of those questions is ‘Yes’, then we’re in it to win it. If they can help us win right now -- we’re going to play them.”
In addition to the three or four freshmen that you mentioned today as possibly playing this season are there potentially some others who might play as freshmen this year?
“There are probably a couple guys who I didn’t mention today,” said Bohl. “But I think it is an indication that our program is getting better. We’re not playing these guys out of desperation. We’re playing these guys because we feel like they can help us win.”
It appears in your fourth year coaching the Cowboys that depth is starting to show at a number of positions on your team. Do you see that depth growing on your team?
“As a head coach, you would always like to have more (depth),” said Bohl. “But there is no doubt at certain positions we have more players, where before we were just looking for starters. I don’t think we’re a completely mature program yet, but in our fourth year we have a recruiting model that we feel really comfortable with and so we have developed more depth than what we had. We hope our depth shows up on special teams this season, as well.”
