Pokes, Falcons Meet Saturday in Front Range Showdown

* University of Wyoming press release

LARAMIE -- The Wyoming Cowboys (5-1 Overall, 2-0 MW) hit the road for the second time this season and first time in Mountain West play heading south to take on Air Force (5-0 overall, 3-0 MW on Saturday evening at 5 p.m. in Falcon Stadium in Colorado Springs.

It is a meeting of two teams just outside the Top-25 in the nation.

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The contest will be broadcasted on CBS Sports Network with Rich Waltz on the call joined in the booth by Aaron Taylor and on the sidelines by Justin Walters. The game will also be available on the 26 stations of The Cowboy Sports Network with Keith Kelley on the call, Kevin McKinney on color and Erick Pauley on the sidelines.

Entering this week’s Wyoming at Air Force game, both the Cowboys and Falcons are receiving votes in both the Associated Press Media Poll and the AFCA Coaches’ Poll.

The Wyoming Cowboys enter this week’s game receiving 60 points in the AFCA Coaches’ Poll and 42 points in the Associated Press poll to rank No. 27 in both rankings.

Air Force is receiving 58 points in the AFCA poll and 41 points in the Associated Press poll to rank No. 28 in both rankings.

The Wyoming-Air Force rivalry has seen a series of hard-fought, close games through the years. Since Craig Bohl took over as head coach of the Cowboys in 2014, the series has been particularly close with all the games being decided by no more than 14 points and four of the eight games being decided by single digits.

Series History Since 2014 (Craig Bohl era)

Wyoming has won 5 of 8 meetings

Three games have been decided by a single score (8 points or less)

Two other games were decided by 9 and 10 points

The other three games were decided by 14 points

Final Scores and

Year and Location) Margins of Victory

Sept. 16, 2022 (Laramie) W 17-14, +3

Oct. 10, 2021 (Colorado Springs) L 14-24, -10

2020 Game cancelled due to COVID

Nov. 30, 2019 (Colorado Springs) L 6-20, -14

Nov. 17, 2018 (Laramie) W 35-27, +8

Nov. 11, 2017 (Colorado Springs) W 28-14, +14

Oct. 8, 2016 (Laramie) W 35-26, +9

Oct. 10, 2015 (Colorado Springs) L 17-31, -14

Sept. 6, 2014 (Laramie) W 17-13, +4

Overall Series History

Wyoming trails in the overall series 27-30-3

Home record in Laramie is 15-11-2

Road record at the Air Force Academy is 12-19-1

Wyoming Improves Home Winning Streak to Five Games

The Wyoming Cowboys have won each of their five home games this season. The last home game the Cowboys lost was the final home game of the 2022 season when Boise State notched a narrow 20-17 victory over the Pokes in Laramie. Two of Wyoming’s five home wins in 2023 have come against Top 25 ranked opponents. The Pokes began the season defeating then No. 24 ranked Texas Tech 35-33 in double overtime. On Oct. 7, Wyoming defeated Fresno State, who was ranked No. 24 at the time, by a score of 24-19.

Winning the Close Ones

Through the first six games of the 2023 season, Wyoming has had three of their six games decided by a touchdown or less and the Cowboys have won all of those close games. Below is a breakdown of those close finishes in 2023.

Final Scores and

Wyoming Opponents (Date and Location) Margins of Victory

Texas Tech (Sept. 2 in Laramie, Wyo.) W 35-33, +2 (2 OTs)

Appalachian State (Sept. 23 in Laramie, Wyo.) W 22-19, +3

Fresno State (Oct. 7 in Laramie, Wyo.) W 24-19, +5

Cowboys Receiving Votes in Associated Press and AFCA Coaches Poll: The Cowboys received votes in this week’s Associated Press and AFCA Coaches Poll. Wyoming is No. 27 in both polls with 42 points in the AP Poll and 60 in that the coaches poll. It is the highest ranking since being 27th during the 1999 season.

Pokes Receives Votes in football Writers Association Super 16: The Cowboys also got two votes in the Football Writers Association of America’s Super 16 Poll. It is the first time Wyoming has appeared in those rankings since the 2007 season.

Peasley Named MW Offensive Player of the Week: he Wyoming Cowboys earned a Mountain West Weekly award for the third-straight week, as quarterback Andrew Peasley was named the conference’s Offensive Player of the Week on Monday after leading the Cowboys in 24-19 a win over No. 24 Fresno State on Saturday. It is the third time that Peasley has earned the award in his career after doing so against Tulsa last season. He also garnered the honor in his time at Utah State in a win over New Mexico.

Andrew Peasley Named to Davey O’Brien Foundation Great 8 for Week 6: The Davey O’Brien Foundation has announced the eight quarterbacks named to the Davey O’Brien Great 8 for week six of the college football season. Wyoming quarterback Andrew Peasley was named to the list this week and is officially added to the Davey O’Brien Award’s Midseason Watch List. The Davey O’Brien Foundation was created in 1977, and the National Quarterback Award, the oldest and most prestigious college quarterback award, was first issued in 1981. Over its time, the Davey O’Brien Foundation has given away more than $1.3 million in scholarships and university grants to help high school and college athletes transform leadership on the field into leadership in life.

Wieland Had Career Game: Wide receiver Wyatt Wieland had a career day for the Cowboys grabbing a career best two touchdowns both coming in the second quarter of the game over the Bulldogs. He finished the day with five catches for 50 yards. He now has four touchdown receptions in his career and he leads Wyoming with 23 catches for 234 yards.

Welch Hauls in the Catches: Tight end Trey Welch hauled in a career-high six catches in the win over Fresno State. His previous high was five. He also added a touchdown reception in the game and now has one this season and right in his career to lead all Cowboy active players in touchdown receptions. He has 16 catches for 152 yards for second on the team.

Shae Was Everywhere: Linebacker Shae Suiaunoa had an outstanding contest against Fresno State. He tied a career-high with 12 tackles. He had 12 tackles against Texas Tech earlier this season. Suiaunoa had a career-high nine solo tackles against the Bulldogs. He also added a sack on third down.

Big Man Interception: Nose tackle Cole Godbout recorded his first career interception against Fresno State, which sealed the game for the Cowboys. It marked the Cowboy’s fifth interception of the season. It also marked the first by a defensive lineman to record a interception since Victor Jones did so against Hawaii in 2021.

Peasley in a Groove: Quarterback Andrew Peasley has been in a groove over the last two games. He completed 19-of-28 passing attempts for 70 percent and 183 yards against Fresno State. It was his highest completion percentage in a game since completing 78 percent against Air Force last season. In his last two games, Peasley has completed 35-of-52 passes for 67 percent and four touchdowns.

Finding Different Targets: Wyoming had eight different receivers haul in a catch against Fresno State. Five of those players had one or more catches. It marks back-to-back weeks of spreading the ball around as nine players caught a catch against New Mexico.

Another Ranked Win: The Cowboys earned another win over a ranked opponent downing No. 24 Fresno State on Saturday. It was the second of the season, as Wyoming defeated Texas Tech, who ranked No. 24 in the coaches poll in the season opener. It is the first time since 2016 that Wyoming has wins over ranked foes. That season ,Wyoming defeated No. 24/25 San Diego State and No. 13 Boise State.

Defense Against Ranked Foes: The Cowboy defense against ranked foes has been outstanding this season. Wyoming faced No. 24 Texas Tech in the season opener and allowed 431 yards in two overtimes, they added 456 the next week against ranked Oregon. The Pokes against Texas allowed 316 yards, which is 170 below their season average. In the win over Fresno State, Wyoming allowed 324 yards, which is 100 below their season average.

Taylor with Stops: Cornerback Kolbey Taylor had a big day defensively for the Cowboys. He finished the game with a career-high five tackles. All five of his tackles were solo stops, which was also a career-high.

Harris with Another Big Play in Big Moment: Defensive end DeVonne Harris recorded a sack that would force a field goal by the Bulldogs in the fourth quarter. It was his third of the season to lead the Cowboys. He had blocked kicks in each of the two previous games prior to the win over Fresno State.

Moving The Chains: The Wyoming Cowboys recorded a season-high 27 first downs in the win over Fresno State. The Pokes recorded 22 first downs in the first half, which would have been the second most in a game this season after 24 against Texas Tech.

Getting Completions: The Cowboys had 20 receptions in the contest against New Mexico. It marked the most in a game this season. It was also the most in a game since having 20 last season in a win over Tulsa.

Easton Gibbs Rising Up Wyoming’s Career Tackle Chart

Wyoming middle linebacker Easton Gibbs is making his mark on the Wyoming record book. Gibbs is only seven tackles away from moving into a tie for 14th in career tackles. See UW’s all-time leading tacklers below.

Player, Position Years Played Career Tackles

1. Galand Thaxton, lb 1984-87 467

2. Andrew Wingard, s 2015-18 454

3. Jim Talich, lb 1994-97 440

4. Logan Wilson, lb 2016-19 421

5. John Salley, s 1979-82 379

6. Chris Prosinski, s 2007-10 373

7. Gabe Knapton, lb/de 2008-11 368

8. Ken Fantetti, lb 1975-78 352

9. Lucas Wacha, lb 2013-16 344

10. Ward Dobbs, lb 2005-08 343

11. Tyler Gottschalk, lb/de 2000-03 334

12. Marcus Epps, fs 2015-18 325

13. Mike Schenbeck, lb 1985-88 324

14. Bruce Mowry, lb 1981-84 311

15. Easton Gibbs, lb 2019-Present. 304

- University of Wyoming’s Top 50 Football Players