Off to their best start since 2013, the Wyoming Cowboys return to action from a bye with a game at Nevada Saturday night.

The Cowboys are 4-2 on the season and 2-0 in the Mountain West. One part of the improvement for Wyoming has been on the defensive side. Not necessarily in total yards and points allowed per game, but in their ability to force turnovers.

That has been evident to Wyoming head coach Craig Bohl, who says their play-making ability on defense stems from different factors. Bohl also likes the young nucleus they have to build around that’s paired well with their veterans.

Entering Saturday, the Pokes lead the Mountain West and ranked No. 17 in the country in takeaways. They’ve snagged 10 interceptions and recovered four fumbles. By comparison, UW forced only 10 turnovers all of last season. The 10 picks rank second in the MW to San Diego State (11) and are tied for 10th in the nation.

The Cowboys are also tied for second in the country with Ohio State in defensive TD’s scored with four. Only top-ranked Alabama has more, as the Crimson Tide have scored eight times on defense. Wyoming shares a mark with Alabama, as the only teams in the nation to have scored a defensive TD in each of its last three games. The Pokes have accomplished that with interception returns against Eastern Michigan and Colorado State, while they returned a fumble versus Air Force.

Saturday’s game at Nevada will start at 8:30 p.m., Mountain Time.

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