Tuck’s Take: UW Title Drought Nearing 40 — It’s Time to Fix That

LARAMIE -- Not one player or coach all offseason has mentioned winning a Mountain West Championship.

I'll do the honors.

It's time.

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The last outright title claimed here came all the way back in 1988. That's nearly four decades. Sure, there have been some successes along the way -- a shared crown in 1993 and division championships in 1996 and 2016 -- but not the ultimate prize. It's long overdue.

So, how do the Cowboys achieve this? Mimicking that team would be a good start.

Jay Sawvel said this could be his best defense since he arrived in Laramie as the coordinator of that unit in 2020. That's quite a statement, considering there are technically just two returning starters from a year ago. That group ranked 45th in the nation and pitched two shutouts, including a 28-0 blanking of Border War rival Colorado State.

While the '88 team, led by the likes of Mitch Donahue, Mike Schenbeck, Pat Rabold, Eric Coleman and many others, never held an opponent scoreless, they did limit four offenses -- Louisville, Louisiana Tech, New Mexico and UTEP -- to single digits.

Defense, as you're well aware, hasn't been the issue around these parts of late. Winning just seven games over the previous two seasons lands almost entirely on the shoulders of an inept offense, one that bottomed out in a big way last fall, averaging just 16 points per game.

Sawvel, the Cowboys' third-year head coach, has said numerous times since December that he is "taking a blowtorch" to that side of the ball.

It was long overdue.

Enter Christian Taylor, who has had plenty of success as a play-caller at the college level and just spent two years in the same locker room as Wyoming's most-famous alum, Josh Allen. During his stint in Buffalo, Taylor said he received his "PHD in coaching."

Good, he'll need it.

Randy Welniak threw for 2,791 yards and 21 touchdowns during his lone season as a starter in Laramie. The "Wizard of Ord" was also one of the first dual-threat quarterbacks in program history. The mad scrambler rolled up 418 yards and 14 additional scores with his legs during that championship run.

Tyler Hughes has shown he is capable of the same.

The graduate transfer amassed 3,000 yards -- on the dot -- of total offense last season at William and Mary. More than 2,300 of those came through the air. The other 670 was courtesy of the running game. Hughes also accounted for 31 touchdowns, 20 of which originated from his right arm.

Taylor recruited Hughes to Williamsburg back in 2022. The two are sharing a brain and understand the objective.

That can't be overstated.

Dabby Dawson, a recent inductee into the school's Hall of Fame, eclipsed the 1,000-yard rushing mark and crossed the white stripe nine times.

This staff feels like Samuel Harris can be even better. The speedster they call "Tote" excels in the backfield as a running back, pass blocker and pass catcher. As a true freshman, he rushed for 558 yards on just 100 carries. Both numbers could -- and should be -- doubled, at the very least. Markell Holman, all 214 pounds of him, has also impressed since his arrival in January.

Ted Gilmore was the Cowboys' leading wideout in '88. He capped that year with 594 receiving yards and three touchdowns. Can Eric Richardson put up similar numbers? How about Charlie Coenen? Ke'lyn Washom? Jackson Holman?

That unit has plenty still to prove.

Wyoming's offensive front in those days featured bullies like Tony Kapushion, Grant Salisbury, Tyrone Fittje and others. Can Rex Johnsen, Braylon Jenkins and Jason Maciejczak put their stamp on the program this fall?

That team's leading scorer was placekicker Sean Fleming. He accounted for 110 points. Erik Sandvik struggled mightily in his first season as a starter, converting just 6-of-11 attempts. He was 0-2 from 50-plus yards.

That must change.

Sawvel has often been scrutinized for in-game decisions and failing to make personnel moves. To a degree, they are all warranted. He'll tell you it's been a process to build up depth. Wyoming, under former head coach Craig Bohl, rarely utilized the NCAA Transfer Portal, which still serves as a challenge, especially across the offensive front where there have been too many swings and misses on the recruiting trail of late.

Paul Roach, Sawvel is not. It's not for lack of effort, but this is a results-based business.

Two historically poor QB performances certainly didn't help. Even athletics director Tom Burman admitted in December that acquiring and developing signal callers has been almost nonexistent here. He also hired a first-time head coach, knowing growing pains were on the horizon.

The excuses have to stop now.

I asked Welniak Friday if his Holiday Bowl team compared to this current one. Though he agreed there are many similarities, his group had already proven themselves on the field, winning the WAC title a year prior.

One aspect he's in complete agreement on? Wyoming finally has a legit player under center. It's the most important position in sports.

Just ask UMass. Better yet, ask Rutgers.

Ronald Reagan was in the Oval Office the last time the ultimate trophy was hoisted on the high plains. The first night game was played inside Chicago's Wrigley Field that summer. Guns N' Roses was the biggest musical act in the world, the California Raisins were hearing it "through the grapevine" and Roseanne was likely on the tube every week inside your house.

I was 5 years old.

In other words, it's been too damn long.

Big bad Boise State is gone, off to the reimagined Pac-12 Conference. San Diego State, Utah State, Fresno State and CSU followed. Four of those programs have accounted for 13 of the last 14 Mountain West championships.

That team in Fort Collins isn't one of them.

Sawvel and Co. can fire the first shot and prove that things indeed are different Saturday inside Canvas Stadium. A win over the Rams cures a lot of ills. This year it can serve as a much-needed launching pad.

It's time.

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