Friday Fast Facts – Wyoming Week

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Friday Fast Facts – Wyoming Week

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Leading off … 

— Your “T.I.P.S” for Colorado v. Wyoming, my weekly written preview, along with my predictions for CU’s White Out game against the Cowboys, can be found here.

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The Big Picture …

— Not much of a rivalry … First, because the teams rarely play (first game since 2009; only five games in the last 50 years. Second, because the rivalry is so lopsided, with CU holding a 24-2-1 record against Wyoming. Third, in the 27 games played between the two teams, Wyoming has scored more than 20 points only once (24 points in 1982). Average score between the the two teams in previous 27 matchups: CU 26; Wyoming 6;

— Why a White Out? … The Wyoming game is a White Out game, with the fans in the stands and the Buffs on the field wearing white. With the Buffs wearing their road uniforms, Wyoming will be wearing gold home jerseys. The only solace in this gimmick … At least the Buff Nation won’t be subjected to Wyoming’s hideous brown jerseys. Whenever home uniforms are judged best to worst, CU’s home jerseys are always in or around everyone’s top ten. Wyoming’s brown jerseys, conversely, are always voted near the bottom. So why not show off one of the best home jerseys in the game before a national television audience on ESPN? Who knows …

— No sell out love for Coach Prime … On most sites, CU’s Folsom Field is listed as having a capacity of 50,183. If that’s the case, the Buffs, home games against Georgia Tech (52,868) and Delaware (50,341) would be in the books as sellouts. In this week’s media handout for the Wyoming game, however, the CU press release lists CU’s capacity at 51,400, noting the Delaware game, with 50,341 on hand, as the “First non-sellout of the season“. The game in Houston last Friday drew 37,899. It was the 10th-largest crowd in TDECU stadium history, but still short of a 40,000 sellout. As a result, the Buffs return to Boulder for Family Weekend against Wyoming (which is already listed as a sellout) after playing behind back-to-back non sellouts for the first time in the Coach Prime era;

— Watch the scoreboard … In the Coach Prime era, when the Buffs score over 30 points in a game, CU is 12-3 (with a nine-game winning streak). When the Buffs score less than 30 points in a game, CU is 2-11;

— The ESPN Power Index … Last weekend, with the CU a 6.5-point underdog to Houston, the Buffs were given a 42.1% chance of winning by the ESPN Power Index. This Saturday, CU is a 13.5-point favorite. The ESPN Power Index has Colorado with an 85.7% chance at winning; the Pokes a with CU given a 14.3% chance at the upset;

— Broadcast info … The game will be telecast nationally by ESPN, with Dave Fleming on play-by-play, Brock Osweiller on color, and Andy Lindahl on the sidelines …  850 KOA radio will have Mark Johnson with the play-by-play, and former CU head coach Gary Barnett as the analyst. The lead in game for the Buffs v. Cowboys on ESPN will be the South Carolina at Missouri game (5:00 p.m., MT, kickoff).

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Player Notes …

— Byard may get the start … Coming off of the bench the first three games, CU safety Tawfiq Byard had a career-high 14 tackles against Houston, the highest tackle total by a CU defensive back in more than a decade;

— The Price could also be right … Another non-starter, running back Simeon Price had a 38-yard touchdown run against the Cougars, the longest rushing touchdown by a Buff since 2018;

— Thanks for the Export, Part I … One of the greatest players in CU history came to Boulder from Glenrock, Wyoming. Bill “Kayo” Lam played for the Buffs from 1933-35, and was CU’s first true national standout, leading the nation in rushing in 1935 with a then national record of 1,043 yards. Lam’s career rushing mark of 2,140 was the best in CU history for over 30 years, until Bobby Anderson came along to set the new standard at 2,729 (Lam is presently 17th on the all-time list);

— Thanks for the Export, Part II  … Boyd Dowler, from Cheyenne, was a quarterback, receiver, punter and defender for the Buffs from 1956-58, with a touchdown in CU’s 27-21 Orange Bowl win over Clemson. Dowler would go on to win five NFL championships with the Green Bay Packers, including the first two Super Bowls.

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— Colorado and Wyoming – head-to-head … 

 – Colorado v. Wyoming … The Buffs have a 24-2-1 record against the Cowboys, the best winning percentage against any opponent (90.7%) the Buffs have played at least 5 times (CU has 4-0 all-time records against San Jose State, Regis and Western State). The teams have only played six times, however, since 1947, with the Buffs holding a 5-1 advantage in those games. The last Wyoming win (in fact the only win other for the Cowboys other than a 6-0 win in 1935), was a 24-10 win in Boulder in 1982. (On some sites, the 1997 game, a 20-19 CU victory, is listed as a forfeit due to NCAA infractions during the Rick Neuheisal era. Those sites list the all-time series as 23-3-1, Colorado);

— Colorado v. Wyoming, historically … As you might expect, when it comes to the Buffs and Cowboys on the national stage, it’s no contest. Wyoming has an all-time losing record (570-609-28, .484), good enough for 106th nationally. CU is 45th). The Buffs have had 33 consensus All-Americans and 25 first-round NFL Draft picks … Wyoming has had four of each. You get the idea …

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— The last time … September 19, 2009 … Colorado 24, Wyoming 0 …

Game Story … On a day when Washington, 0-12 in 2008, took out No. 3 USC (16-13), you knew it was a day in which anything could happen.

The much-maligned Colorado defense held Wyoming to 230 yards of total offense in posting the first shutout for Colorado since the Buffs took out Miami (Ohio), 42-0, almost exactly two years earlier.

The Buffs’ offense was not overwhelming, but was much more effective than it had been the first two games of 2009. Cody Hawkins hit on 17-of-31 passes for 175 yards, and Rodney Stewart rushed for 127 yards and two touchdowns. Scotty McKnight had five catches for 77 yards, and had a timely fumble recovery for a touchdown.

Colorado, which had fallen behind by double digits in each of the first two games, turned the tables in game three.

… Continue reading Game Story here …

… My Essay for the game, “Throwbacks” (CU wore 1937 vintage uniforms – for the first and last time), can be found here …

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— Getting to Know Wyoming … Notes and Numbers … 

– Coaching Hotbed? … While Wyoming may not challenge Miami (Ohio) as the “cradle of coaches”, Laramie has been the launching pad for a number of coaches who have had success at other programs. Bob Devaney, the legendary coach at Nebraska (1962-72) was first head coach at Wyoming (1957-61). Pat Dye and Dennis Erickson both won national championships (Dye at Auburn; Erickson at Miami) after cutting their teeth at Wyoming. More recently, Joe Tiller, who had a successful career at Purdue, was the Pokes head coach from 1991-96;

– Mile High Plus … On football Saturdays, War Memorial Stadium (capacity 29,811) becomes the third-largest city in the state of Wyoming. At 7,200 feet, the Cowboys’ home field is the highest in altitude of any Division 1-A football field;

– The biggest rival for Wyoming has to be Colorado State … The rivalry, one of the oldest west of the Mississippi, has been waged since 1899 (the first CU/CSU game was played in 1893, but the CSU/Wyoming game has been played every year since the end of World War II). The winner of the Wyoming/CSU game earns possession of the Bronze Boot, a military boot originally worn by a CSU graduate in Vietnam. CSU holds the advantage in the all-time series with Wyoming, 60-51-5.

 – The Cowboy mascot is “Cowboy Joe”…  In 1950, the Farthing family and the Cheyenne Quarterback Club donated a brown-and-white Shetland pony to serve as the Cowboy mascot. Wyoming is currently cheering for a pony named Cowboy Joe V;

 – Wyoming’s Cowboy logo dates back to 1920 … When equipment manager Deane Hunton, traced a photo of rodeo cowboy Guy Holt and his ride, Steamboat, the winner of the Worst Horse award at Frontier Park in Cheyenne in 1909. The brown-and-gold coloring on the uniforms is borrowed from the indigenous brown-eyed Susans, used to decorate the first alumni banquet in 1895;

— Famous alumni – football … Conrad Dobler (St. Louis, New Orleans, Buffalo; 1972-81); Jay Novacek (St. Louis, Phoenix, Dallas; 1985-95); Marcus Harris (4,518 career receiving yards, over 1,000 more than the Buffs’ all-time leader, Nelson Spruce, with 3,347);

— Famous alumni – other … former Vice-President Dick Cheney; Curt Gowdy; Dr. Jerry Buss (former owner of the Lakers); Gary Spence (attorney).

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Big 12 Notes …

— Three Big 12 teams ranked … The Big 12 Conference is down to three football programs in the latest Associated Press Top 25, with No. 12 Arizona State falling out of the poll last week.

• Iowa State, now the Big 12 standard-bearer, is up to No. 12;

• Utah and Texas Tech are the only other Big 12 teams ranked, coming in at No. 16 and No. 17, with the Utes hosting the Red Raiders this weekend. BYU at No. 26, is just outside the poll, and will likely come Boulder as a ranked team if the Cougars defeat East Carolina this weekend (Saturday, 5:30 p.m., MT, ESPN2).

— Big 12 This-and-That …

• For the second time in three weeks, FOX’s Big Noon Kickoff will visit a Big 12 campus on Saturday for the Texas Tech-Utah match-up in Salt Lake City. The Red Raiders and Utes are part of a Big 12 tripleheader on FOX this Saturday that will also feature Arizona State at Baylor and North Carolina at UCF.

• Texas Tech has the nation’s highest scoring offense at 58.0 points per game with BYU (48.0 ppg), Utah (45.7 ppg) and TCU (45.0 ppg) giving the Big 12 four teams in the top 15.

• The Conference is home to four of the top 10 scoring defenses in the nation through Week Three. The league is led by No. 1 BYU at 1.5 points per game with Utah (8th), UCF (9th) and Arizona (10th) rounding out the quartet.

— Big 12 lines … From DraftKings …

The Big 12 Week Four schedule …

Friday, September 19th

• Tulsa at Oklahoma State … 5:30 p.m., MT, ESPN … Oklahoma State is a 11.5-point home favorite …

Saturday, September 20th

• No. 17 Texas Tech at No. 16 Utah … 10:00 a.m., MT, Fox … Utah is a 2.5-point home favorite …
• SMU at TCU … 10:00 a.m., MT, ESPN2 … TCU is a 6.5-point home favorite …
• North Carolina at UCF … 1:30 p.m., MT, Fox … UCF is a 7.5-point home favorite …
• West Virginia at Kansas … 4:00 p.m., MT, FS1 … Kansas is a 13.5-point home favorite …
• Arizona State at Baylor … 5:30 p.m., MT, Fox … Baylor is a 2.5-point home favorite …
• BYU at East Carolina … 5:30 p.m., MT, ESPN2 … BYU is a 6.5-point road favorite …
• Wyoming at Colorado … 8:15 p.m., MT, ESPN … Colorado is a 13.5-point home favorite …
• Idle … Arizona … Kansas State … Houston … Iowa State …

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This post, about the Wyoming game, from the 2025 Season, is filed under Article.
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