Spring Football Opens for Wyoming Cowboys on Tuesday, March 22
Cowboys Return 18 Starters, Including 9 on Offense, 8 on Defense and 1 on Special Teams
Laramie, Wyo. (March 17, 2016) -- Spring football practice opens for the Wyoming Cowboys on Tuesday, March 22, and head coach Craig Bohl and his staff will welcome back 18 starters and 50 letterwinners when they open spring drills. Included among the key returners are junior running back Brian Hill, who was one of only 11 national semifinalists for the 2015 Doak Walker Award, and sophomore free safety Andrew Wingard, who earned First Team Freshman All-America honors from the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) in 2015. Senior left guard Chase Roullier is another key returner, having earned Second Team All-Mountain West Conference honors last season.
The makeup of the 2016 Cowboy roster, while still relatively young, is much different than the Cowboy team from a year ago that returned only 10 starters and 33 letterwinners. The 2016 Cowboy roster will feature 20 seniors, half of whom have been regular starters during their careers. The 2015 squad had only eight seniors, the second fewest of any FBS team last season, and of those eight only four were regular starters in 2015.
“We have a lot of returning players,” said Bohl. “They’ve had a good winter-conditioning period, have made good strength gains and they’re excited about starting spring football. I think we are going to have a more seasoned, more mature football team this coming season than what we had last year when we played a high number of freshmen.”
A total of 26 freshmen played for the Cowboys in 2015. That tied UW for No. 7 in the nation for most freshmen played. Of those 26 freshmen who played, 15 started at least one game and 11 started multiple games in 2015.
Wyoming will return nine starters on offense and 24 offensive lettermen. Included in that group is a full stable of running backs and fullbacks, virtually the entire corps of wide receivers and tight ends and four of the five regular starters on the offensive line.
The key position that needs filled is quarterback, where sophomores Josh Allen and Nick Smith will be the two quarterbacks in spring camp vying for the starting spot. Allen started the Eastern Michigan game in 2015 and was enjoying a very productive start before breaking his collarbone in that game, ending his season. Smith started two games in 2015 -- at Utah State and versus Colorado State. He ended the season as the team’s second leading rusher behind running back Hill.
On defense, eight starters and 23 lettermen return. The key losses on defense are defensive ends Eddie Yarbrough and Siaosi Hala’api’api, who both completed their eligibility. Senior linebackers Lucas Wacha and D.J. May along with sophomore strong safety Marcus Epps and sophomore free safety Wingard all return, giving the Cowboys there four leading tacklers from last season.
Special teams will be led by senior punter Ethan Wood and senior long snapper Brendan Turelli, who both have started every game for the Cowboys since their true freshman seasons.
“Last year was a really challenging year,” said Bohl. “A lot of our guys were baptized under fire, and we took our lumps. But I think we are going to be significantly further along the first day we come out for spring football than we were a year ago.
“Nonetheless, we need to prove it on the field. It is important that we continue to mature as a football team. There are certainly a lot of names on our roster who have played a significant amount. Many of them are still relatively young players, but they have a better understanding of what we as coaches expect from them, and we have a much better understanding of the players on our team. That puts us in a lot better position entering this season.”
The Cowboys will practice on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays over the next five weeks, with the annual Brown and Gold Spring Game planned for Saturday, April 23.
The first 30 minutes of practices will be open to media and the general public. The Spring Game on April 23 will be the one practice during spring that will be entirely open.
Following is a breakdown of the 2016 spring practice schedule, coaching staff and a breakdown of the Cowboy roster by position.
2016 University of Wyoming Football Spring Practice Schedule
Tuesday, March 22 4 or 4:30 p.m. (Practice #1)
Thursday, March 24 4 or 4:30 p.m. (Practice #2)
Saturday, March 26 TBA (Practice #3)
Tuesday, March 29 4 or 4:30 p.m. (Practice #4)
Thursday, March 31 4 or 4:30 p.m. (Practice #5)
Saturday, April 2 TBA (Practice #6)
Tuesday, April 5 4 or 4:30 p.m. (Practice #7)
Thursday, April 7 4 or 4:30 p.m. (Practice #8)
Saturday, April 9 TBA (Practice #9)
Tuesday, April 12 4 or 4:30 p.m. (Practice #10)
Thursday, April 14 4 or 4:30 p.m. (Practice #11)
Saturday, April 16 TBA (Practice #12)
Tuesday, April 19 4 or 4:30 p.m. (Practice #13)
Thursday, April 21 4 or 4:30 p.m. (Practice #14)
Saturday, April 23 2 p.m. (Spring Game, Practice #15)
2016 Wyoming Coaching and Administrative Staff
Coaching Staff
Craig Bohl (Nebraska ‘82), Head Coach
Steve Stanard (Nebraska ‘89), Defensive Coordinator/Linebackers
Brent Vigen (North Dakota State ‘98), Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks
Mike Bath (Miami of Ohio ‘01), Running Backs and Fullbacks
AJ Cooper (North Dakota State ‘06), Defensive Ends/Special Teams
Scott Fuchs (North Dakota State ‘95), Offensive Line
Mike Grant (Nebraska ‘93), Wide Receivers
Pete Kaligis (Washington ‘94), Defensive Tackles
Curt Mallory (Michigan ‘92), Defensive Pass Game Coordinator/Secondary
John Richardson (North Dakota State ‘10), Cornerbacks
Russell Dennison (Oklahoma ‘06), Director of Sports Performance/Head Football Strength and Conditioning Coach
Administrative Staff
Brent Vernon (Missouri ‘08), Director of Football Operations
Gordie Haug (Bemidji State ‘09), Director of Recruiting
Matt Gaynor (Metro State ‘12), Director of Player Personnel
Cowboys Return 18 Starters, Including 9 on Offense, 8 on Defense and 1 on Special Teams
Laramie, Wyo. (March 17, 2016) -- Spring football practice opens for the Wyoming Cowboys on Tuesday, March 22, and head coach Craig Bohl and his staff will welcome back 18 starters and 50 letterwinners when they open spring drills. Included among the key returners are junior running back Brian Hill, who was one of only 11 national semifinalists for the 2015 Doak Walker Award, and sophomore free safety Andrew Wingard, who earned First Team Freshman All-America honors from the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) in 2015. Senior left guard Chase Roullier is another key returner, having earned Second Team All-Mountain West Conference honors last season.
The makeup of the 2016 Cowboy roster, while still relatively young, is much different than the Cowboy team from a year ago that returned only 10 starters and 33 letterwinners. The 2016 Cowboy roster will feature 20 seniors, half of whom have been regular starters during their careers. The 2015 squad had only eight seniors, the second fewest of any FBS team last season, and of those eight only four were regular starters in 2015.
“We have a lot of returning players,” said Bohl. “They’ve had a good winter-conditioning period, have made good strength gains and they’re excited about starting spring football. I think we are going to have a more seasoned, more mature football team this coming season than what we had last year when we played a high number of freshmen.”
A total of 26 freshmen played for the Cowboys in 2015. That tied UW for No. 7 in the nation for most freshmen played. Of those 26 freshmen who played, 15 started at least one game and 11 started multiple games in 2015.
Wyoming will return nine starters on offense and 24 offensive lettermen. Included in that group is a full stable of running backs and fullbacks, virtually the entire corps of wide receivers and tight ends and four of the five regular starters on the offensive line.
The key position that needs filled is quarterback, where sophomores Josh Allen and Nick Smith will be the two quarterbacks in spring camp vying for the starting spot. Allen started the Eastern Michigan game in 2015 and was enjoying a very productive start before breaking his collarbone in that game, ending his season. Smith started two games in 2015 -- at Utah State and versus Colorado State. He ended the season as the team’s second leading rusher behind running back Hill.
On defense, eight starters and 23 lettermen return. The key losses on defense are defensive ends Eddie Yarbrough and Siaosi Hala’api’api, who both completed their eligibility. Senior linebackers Lucas Wacha and D.J. May along with sophomore strong safety Marcus Epps and sophomore free safety Wingard all return, giving the Cowboys there four leading tacklers from last season.
Special teams will be led by senior punter Ethan Wood and senior long snapper Brendan Turelli, who both have started every game for the Cowboys since their true freshman seasons.
“Last year was a really challenging year,” said Bohl. “A lot of our guys were baptized under fire, and we took our lumps. But I think we are going to be significantly further along the first day we come out for spring football than we were a year ago.
“Nonetheless, we need to prove it on the field. It is important that we continue to mature as a football team. There are certainly a lot of names on our roster who have played a significant amount. Many of them are still relatively young players, but they have a better understanding of what we as coaches expect from them, and we have a much better understanding of the players on our team. That puts us in a lot better position entering this season.”
The Cowboys will practice on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays over the next five weeks, with the annual Brown and Gold Spring Game planned for Saturday, April 23.
The first 30 minutes of practices will be open to media and the general public. The Spring Game on April 23 will be the one practice during spring that will be entirely open.
Following is a breakdown of the 2016 spring practice schedule, coaching staff and a breakdown of the Cowboy roster by position.
2016 University of Wyoming Football Spring Practice Schedule
Tuesday, March 22 4 or 4:30 p.m. (Practice #1)
Thursday, March 24 4 or 4:30 p.m. (Practice #2)
Saturday, March 26 TBA (Practice #3)
Tuesday, March 29 4 or 4:30 p.m. (Practice #4)
Thursday, March 31 4 or 4:30 p.m. (Practice #5)
Saturday, April 2 TBA (Practice #6)
Tuesday, April 5 4 or 4:30 p.m. (Practice #7)
Thursday, April 7 4 or 4:30 p.m. (Practice #8)
Saturday, April 9 TBA (Practice #9)
Tuesday, April 12 4 or 4:30 p.m. (Practice #10)
Thursday, April 14 4 or 4:30 p.m. (Practice #11)
Saturday, April 16 TBA (Practice #12)
Tuesday, April 19 4 or 4:30 p.m. (Practice #13)
Thursday, April 21 4 or 4:30 p.m. (Practice #14)
Saturday, April 23 2 p.m. (Spring Game, Practice #15)
2016 Wyoming Coaching and Administrative Staff
Coaching Staff
Craig Bohl (Nebraska ‘82), Head Coach
Steve Stanard (Nebraska ‘89), Defensive Coordinator/Linebackers
Brent Vigen (North Dakota State ‘98), Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks
Mike Bath (Miami of Ohio ‘01), Running Backs and Fullbacks
AJ Cooper (North Dakota State ‘06), Defensive Ends/Special Teams
Scott Fuchs (North Dakota State ‘95), Offensive Line
Mike Grant (Nebraska ‘93), Wide Receivers
Pete Kaligis (Washington ‘94), Defensive Tackles
Curt Mallory (Michigan ‘92), Defensive Pass Game Coordinator/Secondary
John Richardson (North Dakota State ‘10), Cornerbacks
Russell Dennison (Oklahoma ‘06), Director of Sports Performance/Head Football Strength and Conditioning Coach
Administrative Staff
Brent Vernon (Missouri ‘08), Director of Football Operations
Gordie Haug (Bemidji State ‘09), Director of Recruiting
Matt Gaynor (Metro State ‘12), Director of Player Personnel
