The Wyoming Cowboys football program represents the
University of Wyoming
The University of Wyoming (UW) is a public land-grant research university in Laramie, Wyoming. It was founded in March 1886, four years before the territory was admitted as the 44th state, and opened in September 1887. The University of Wyoming ...
in
college football
College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football in the United States, American football rules first gained populari ...
. They compete in the
Mountain West Conference of the
Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of
NCAA Division I
NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major collegiate athleti ...
and have won 14 conference titles. The head coach is
Craig Bohl
Craig Philip Bohl (born July 27, 1958) is an American college football coach and former player, currently the head football coach at the University of Wyoming. He was previously the head coach at North Dakota State University in Fargo from 2003 ...
, who entered his first season in 2014.
The Cowboy football program has been among the most notable of "stepping stone" programs due to the success of its former coaches. Coaches such as
Bowden Wyatt,
Bob Devaney,
Fred Akers
Fred Akers (March 17, 1938 – December 7, 2020) was an American college football player and coach. He served as head football coach at the University of Wyoming (1975–1976), the University of Texas at Austin (1977–1986), and Purdue Universit ...
,
Pat Dye,
Dennis Erickson and
Joe Tiller were at Wyoming immediately prior to gaining notoriety at bigger football powerhouses.
History
Conference affiliations
* Independent (1893–1904)
*
Colorado Football Association (1905–1908)
*
Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (1909–1937)
*
Mountain States Conference (1938–1961)
*
Western Athletic Conference
The Western Athletic Conference (WAC) is an NCAA Division I conference. The WAC covers a broad expanse of the western United States with member institutions located in Arizona, California, New Mexico, Utah, Washington, and Texas.
Due to most of t ...
(1962–1998)
*
Mountain West Conference (1999–present)
Championships
Conference championships
Wyoming has won 14 conference championships, ten outright and four shared.
† Co-champion
Division championships
Wyoming won the Western Athletic Conference's Pacific division championship in 1996 and lost in the league's championship game. Wyoming shared the Mountain West's Mountain division championship in 2016 and lost in the league's championship game.
† Co-champion
Head coaches
Bowl games
The Cowboys have appeared in 17 bowl games and have a record of nine wins and eight losses (9–8). Their most recent bowl appearance came in their 52–38 win over
Kent State
Kent State University (KSU) is a public research university in Kent, Ohio. The university also includes seven regional campuses in Northeast Ohio and additional facilities in the region and internationally. Regional campuses are located in As ...
in the
2021 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl.
Stadiums
War Memorial Stadium was built in 1950 with an original capacity of 20,000 fans; the current capacity is 29,181 after the completion of 2009-2010 stadium upgrades.
It is the highest
Division I FBS
The NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), formerly known as Division I-A, is the highest level of college football in the United States. The FBS consists of the largest schools in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). ...
football stadium in the nation; the
elevation
The elevation of a geographic location is its height above or below a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface (see Geodetic datum § ...
of its playing field exceeds
above sea level
Height above mean sea level is a measure of the vertical distance ( height, elevation or altitude) of a location in reference to a historic mean sea level taken as a vertical datum. In geodesy, it is formalized as '' orthometric heights''.
Th ...
. The playing surface was natural grass until 2005, when
infilled artificial turf
Artificial turf is a surface of synthetic fibers made to look like natural grass. It is most often used in arenas for sports that were originally or are normally played on grass. However, it is now being used on residential lawns and commerc ...
was installed.
Prior to War Memorial Stadium, the Cowboys played at
Corbett Field, a small field located southeast of
Half Acre Gym where the Business Building and the Student Union parking lot now sit. It was named for
John J. Corbett, longtime all-sport coach and director of physical education at the school. The field was the first official stadium for the Cowboys; previously they had played on
Prexy's Pasture, the main green of the school.
Rivalry
Colorado State
The Bronze Boot is awarded to the winner of the college football game between Wyoming and Colorado State Rams football Colorado State, in nearby Fort Collins, Colorado Fort Collins. The annual game has evolved into one of the most bitterly contested rivalries in college football. The teams have waged the "Border War" over 100 times since the schools began playing in 1899, playing every year except 1901, 1902, 1906, 1907, 1918, 1924, 1926, 1927, 1928, 1943, 1944, and 1945. This is one of the oldest interstate rivalries west of the Mississippi River. The series is the oldest rivalry for both schools and the "Border War" has been played in three different centuries. CSU leads the series 59-50-5.
Hawaii
The Paniolo Trophy is awarded to the winner of the college football games played between Wyoming and Hawaii Rainbow Warriors football Hawaii. This rivalry started in 1979 when Hawaii joined the Western Athletic Conference WAC conference and was played annually until 1997, shortly before Wyoming joined the newly formed Mountain West Conference. Hawaii joined the MWC as a football–only affiliate member in 2012, renewing the rivalry. Wyoming leads the series 16–11.
Utah State
Bridger's Battle is the name for the games played between Wyoming and
Utah State
Utah State University (USU or Utah State) is a public land-grant research university in Logan, Utah. It is accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities. With nearly 20,000 students living on or near campus, USU is Utah's ...
, the winner of which is awarded the trophy of the rivalry, a .50 caliber Rocky Mountain Hawken rifle. The rivalry started in 1903, and renewed as an annual game in 2013 when Utah State joined the Mountain West Conference. USU leads the series 40-28-4.
Air Force
Air Force and Wyoming have played each other every year in the Front Range rivalry since 1980 and met an additional 18 times before that, for a total of 60 contests. Their proximity has led them to be division rivals in multiple conferences. Two-time WAC Defensive Player of the Year
Mitch Donahue once said “I hated them more than CSU. They were good, fast and little. They would bite at your heels all the time.” In 1998, #23 Air Force defeated number #25 Wyoming to win the WAC championship 10–7. In 2012 after Air Force defeated Wyoming, former Wyoming coach
Dave Christensen went on a profanity-laced tirade about Air Force coach
Troy Calhoun that drew national attention and a $50,000 fine for Christensen. As of 2022, the 2012 game is the last time that Air Force has won a game in Laramie. The teams did not meet in the COVID-19 season, and UW won the 2022 meeting 17–14. This is a closely fought contest, with the Air Force Academy leading the all-time series 30-27-3.
Notable players
*
Mike Dirks - tackle - part of one of college football's best defenses in
1966
Events January
* January 1 – In a coup, Colonel Jean-Bédel Bokassa takes over as military ruler of the Central African Republic, ousting President David Dacko.
* January 3 – 1966 Upper Voltan coup d'état: President Maurice Yaméogo ...
and
1967. He was selected as an All-American and All-Western Athletic Conference performer. He co-captained Wyoming's 1967 WAC Championship football team that finished fifth in the nation. Led the Cowboys to a 10–1 record and berth in the
1968 Sugar Bowl
The 1968 Sugar Bowl was the 34th edition of the college football bowl game, played at Tulane Stadium in New Orleans, Louisiana, on Monday, January 1. The unranked LSU Tigers of the Southeastern Conference (SEC) rallied to top the undefea ...
. He was part of the Cowboys line that was the nation's best rushing defense for two consecutive seasons. No team in the nation has since allowed fewer rushing yards than the 1966 and 1967 Wyoming defenses. Dirks produced 71 tackles, 30 unassisted tackles, and 26 tackles for a loss. He was inducted into the Wyoming Cowboys Athletic Hall of Fame on October 29, 1993.
*
Adam Goldberg (born 1980), NFL offensive tackle. He became only the third junior in University of Wyoming football history to be elected a team captain when he was voted a captain by his teammates in the spring of 2001. He was Honorable Mention
All-America
The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed upon an amateur sports person from the United States who is considered to be one of the best amateurs in their sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an All-Am ...
and two-time First-team All-
Mountain West Conference. He started 44 of 45 career games.
*
Jerry Hill (born 1939) - running back - was selected as Wyoming's Football Player of the Century during fan balloting in 1992.
He was selected as an All-Skyline Conference running back in 1959 and 1960. In those two seasons, Hill was Wyoming's leading rusher. During his career, the Cowboys posted a 25–6 record. Hill was a member of the club that won the 1958
Sun Bowl
The Sun Bowl is a college football bowl game that has been played since 1935 in the southwestern United States at El Paso, Texas. Along with the Sugar Bowl and Orange Bowl, it is the second-oldest bowl game in the country, behind the Rose ...
.
His career would finish with 1,374 rushing yards on 288 carries. He was inducted in the Wyoming Cowboys Athletic Hall of Fame on October 29, 1993.
*
Jim Kiick
James Forrest Kiick (; August 9, 1946 – June 20, 2020) was an American professional football player who was a running back. He played for the Miami Dolphins in the American Football League (AFL) from 1968 to 1969 and in the National Footb ...
(born 1946) - running back - Wyoming's leading rusher for each of his three seasons,
1965
Events January–February
* January 14 – The Prime Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years.
* January 20
** Lyndon B. Johnson is sworn in for a full term ...
-
67. He totalled 1,714 yards and ten touchdowns on 431 carries, and 561 yards and five touchdowns on 52 pass receptions. He was the first player ever to earn first-team All-Western Athletic Conference honors three times. Kiick was co-captain of the team as a senior. He was named the
Most Valuable Player
In team sports, a most valuable player award, abbreviated 'MVP award', is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a partic ...
in the 1966
Sun Bowl
The Sun Bowl is a college football bowl game that has been played since 1935 in the southwestern United States at El Paso, Texas. Along with the Sugar Bowl and Orange Bowl, it is the second-oldest bowl game in the country, behind the Rose ...
victory over
Florida State
Florida State University (FSU) is a public research university in Tallahassee, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is located on the oldest continuous site of higher education in the sta ...
, rushing 25 times for 135 yards and two touchdowns, and catching four passes for 42 yards. He also played in the
1968 Sugar Bowl
The 1968 Sugar Bowl was the 34th edition of the college football bowl game, played at Tulane Stadium in New Orleans, Louisiana, on Monday, January 1. The unranked LSU Tigers of the Southeastern Conference (SEC) rallied to top the undefea ...
against
LSU, rushing 19 times for 75 yards and a touchdown, and catching five passes for 48 yards. Kiick played in the 1968
Senior Bowl, and was selected to play in the 1968 College All-Star Game.
*
Marv Levy
Marvin Daniel Levy (; born August 3, 1925) is an American former football coach and executive who was a head coach in the National Football League (NFL) for seventeen seasons. He spent most of his head coaching career with the Buffalo Bills, le ...
(born 1925) - defensive back - Levy attended Wyoming for a single semester following his stint as a meteorologist in World War II. The coach who had originally recruited him, Bunny Oakes, had left prior to the season;
Bowden Wyatt, who succeeded Oakes, imposed a round-the-clock training regimen that did not allow Levy enough time to devote to his academic studies. Levy transferred to
Coe College and established a long coaching career that led to a
Grey Cup
The Grey Cup (french: Coupe Grey) is both the championship game of the Canadian Football League (CFL) and the trophy awarded to the victorious team playing in the namesake championship of professional Canadian football. The game is contested be ...
win with the
Montreal Alouettes
The Montreal Alouettes ( French: Les Alouettes de Montréal) are a professional Canadian football team based in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1946, the team has folded and been revived twice. The Alouettes compete in the East Division of the Cana ...
and four consecutive
AFC Championships with the
Buffalo Bills
The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division ...
; these achievements earned Levy induction into the
Canadian Football Hall of Fame
The Canadian Football Hall of Fame (CFHOF) is a not-for-profit corporation, located in Hamilton, Ontario, that celebrates great achievements in Canadian football. It is maintained by the Canadian Football League (CFL). It includes displays about ...
and
Pro Football Hall of Fame
The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for professional American football, located in Canton, Ohio. Opened on September 7, , the Hall of Fame enshrines exceptional figures in the sport of professional football, including players, coa ...
, respectively.
*
Jay Novacek
Jay McKinley Novacek (born October 24, 1962) is a former American football tight end in the National Football League who played for the St. Louis/Phoenix Cardinals (1985–1989) and the Dallas Cowboys (1990–1995). Novacek was a five-time Pr ...
(born 1962) - tight end - was a two sport All-American at Wyoming, also excelling in track. He was the Wyoming record holder in the
decathlon
The decathlon is a combined event in athletics consisting of ten track and field events. The word "decathlon" was formed, in analogy to the word "pentathlon", from Greek δέκα (''déka'', meaning "ten") and ἄθλος (''áthlos'', or ἄ ...
and
pole vault
Pole vaulting, also known as pole jumping, is a track and field event in which an athlete uses a long and flexible pole, usually made from fiberglass or carbon fiber, as an aid to jump over a bar. Pole jumping competitions were known to the M ...
. As a football player, he was selected to the Kodak All-American football team in
1984.
The selection was attributed to setting an NCAA record for receiving yards per receptions by a tight end. Novacek finished his Cowboys career with 83 career receptions for 1,536 yards and 10 touchdowns as a tight end. He was inducted in the Wyoming Cowboys Athletic Hall of Fame on October 29, 1993. He was also inducted to the
College Football Hall of Fame
The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and interactive attraction devoted to college football. The National Football Foundation (NFF) founded the Hall in 1951 to immortalize the players and coaches of college football that were vo ...
on July 19, 2009.
*
Josh Allen (born 1996) - quarterback - a late recruit in 2015, Allen led the team to its first appearance in the Mountain-West Conference championship game in
2016 and two bowl games, receiving All-Mountain West honors. He finished his Wyoming career with 5,066 passing yards, 44 passing touchdowns, and 56 overall touchdowns, which rank in the top five for Wyoming Cowboys passing statistics. He was drafted by the
Buffalo Bills
The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division ...
in 2018, becoming the
highest drafted player in Wyoming Cowboys history.
Honors and awards
*Mike Dirks, First Team All-Western Athletic Conference, 1967
*Mike Dirks, Football writers of America, Look Magazine, Newspaper Enterprise Association All-American, 1967
*Mike Dirks, Team Co-Captain on NCAA record setting defense
*
Marcus Harris, Fred Biletnikoff Award
*Marcus Harris, inducted into the Wyoming Athletics Hall of Fame on September 24, 2004.
*
Jerry Hill, First Team All-Skyline Conference, 1959, 1960
*Jerry Hill, Selected Wyoming Football Player of the Century, 1992
*Jerry Hill, Honorable Mention All-American, 1959, 1960
*Jerry Hill, Admiral Emory S. Land Award Winner
*
Jim Kiick
James Forrest Kiick (; August 9, 1946 – June 20, 2020) was an American professional football player who was a running back. He played for the Miami Dolphins in the American Football League (AFL) from 1968 to 1969 and in the National Footb ...
, Tailback, Most Valuable Player, 1966 Sun Bowl
*Leonard Kucewski, Guard, Most Valuable Player, 1958 Sun Bowl
*
Jay Novacek
Jay McKinley Novacek (born October 24, 1962) is a former American football tight end in the National Football League who played for the St. Louis/Phoenix Cardinals (1985–1989) and the Dallas Cowboys (1990–1995). Novacek was a five-time Pr ...
, First Team All-Western Athletic Conference & Football All-American, 1984
Future non-conference opponents
Announced schedules as of December 12, 2022.
Black 14
In
1969
This year is notable for Apollo 11's first landing on the moon.
Events January
* January 4 – The Government of Spain hands over Ifni to Morocco.
* January 5
**Ariana Afghan Airlines Flight 701 crashes into a house on its approach to ...
, fourteen black team members wore black armbands to a practice, intending to protest the racism they had been victims of at their last game with an upcoming opponent,
BYU. head coach Lloyd Eaton threw them off the team, "triggering an uproar that consumed the rest of the football season and much of everything else in the tiny college town of Laramie, Wyoming."
In 2018, filmmaker Darius Monroe released a documentary short about the athletes: ''Black 14''. The short "uses only archival footage to tell the story, mostly from local ABC and NBC affiliates in Wyoming, letting the principals – from the students, to the coach, to the school president and even the state’s governor – speak for themselves."
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wyoming Cowboys Football
American football teams established in 1892
1892 establishments in Wyoming