Wyoming Cowboys football

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
Wyoming Cowboys football
2012 Wyoming Cowboys football team
UW BHR web.png
First season 1892
Athletic director Tom Burman
Head coach Dave Christensen
4th year, 21–27  (.438)
Home stadium War Memorial Stadium
Stadium capacity 32,580
Stadium surface Artificial turf (2005-present)
Location Laramie, Wyoming
Conference Mountain West
All-time record 486–520–28 (.484)
Postseason bowl record 6–7
Conference titles 15
Consensus All-Americans 412
Current uniform
MWC-Uniform-UW.png
Colors

Brown and Gold

          
Fight song Ragtime Cowboy Joe
Mascot Cowboy Joe
Marching band Western Thunder
Rivals Colorado State
Website GoWyo.com

The Wyoming Cowboys are a college football team that represents the University of Wyoming. They compete in the Mountain West Conference of the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of NCAA Division I. The team has won 15 conference titles.3 Their current head coach is Dave Christensen.

Contents

Stadium

War Memorial Stadium was built in 1950 with an original capacity of 20,000 fans; the current capacity is 32,580 after the completion of 2009-2010 stadium upgrades.4

It is the highest Division I FBS football stadium in the nation; the elevation of its playing field exceeds 7,200 feet (2195 m) above sea level. The playing surface was natural grass until 2005, when infield artificial turf was installed.

Rivalries

Bronze Boot

The Bronze Boot is awarded to the winner of the college football game between Wyoming and Colorado State, in nearby 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" one hundred 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, and the oldest west of Lawrence, Kansas. The series is the oldest rivalry for both schools and the "Border War" has been played in three different centuries.5

Notable players

  • Mike Dirks - tackle - part of one of college football's best defenses in 1966 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. 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.
  • Jim Kiick - running back - Wyoming's leading rusher for each of his three seasons, 1965-67. 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 the 1966 Sun Bowl victory over Florida State, rushing 25 times for 135 yards and two touchdowns, and catching four passes for 42 yards. He also played in the 1968 Sugar Bowl 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.
  • Jerry Hill - running back - was selected as Wyoming's Football Player of the Century during fan balloting in 1992.6 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.6 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.
  • Jay Novacek - tight end - was a two sport All-American at Wyoming, also excelling in track. He was the Wyoming record holder in the decathlon and pole vault. As a football player, he was selected to the Kodak All-American football team in 1984.6 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 on July 19, 2009 [1].

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 Award7
  • Marcus Harris, inducted into the Wyoming Athletics Hall of Fame on September 24, 2004.8
  • 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, Tailback, Most Valuable Player, 1966 Sun Bowl
  • Leonard Kucewski, Guard, Most Valuable Player, 1958 Sun Bowl
  • Jay Novacek, First Team All-Western Athletic Conference, 1984
  • Jay Novacek, Football All-American, 1984

Year by Year

Cowboys drafted into the NFL

Draft Year Player Position Round Overall NFL Team
19509 Truett Smith Fullback 7 86 Pittsburgh Steelers
195210 Dewey McConnell Defensive Back 3 37 Los Angeles Rams
195711 Jim Crawford Fullback 14 163 Pittsburgh Steelers
195912 Dale Memmelaar Guard 21 242 Chicago Cardinals
196113 Jerry Hill Running Back 3 35 Baltimore Colts
196113 Chuck Lamson Defensive Back 4 43 Minnesota Vikings
196614 Jerry Marion Wide Receiver 10 143 Pittsburgh Steelers
196715 Ron Billingsley Defensive Tackle 1 14 San Diego Chargers
196816 Jerry DePoyster Kicker 2 37 Detroit Lions
1968 Mike LaHood Guard 2 51 Los Angeles Rams
1968 Jim Kiick Running Back 5 118 Miami Dolphins
1968 Mike Dirks Tackle 5 122 Philadelphia Eagles
1968 Paul Toscano Defensive Back 7 187 Houston Oilers
196917 Gene Huey Wide Receiver 5 123 St. Louis Cardinals
1969 David Hampton Running Back 9 220 Green Bay Packers
1969 Dennis Devlin Defensive Back 10 240 New England Patriots
197018 Vic Washington Wide Receiver 4 87 San Francisco 49ers
1970 Larry Nels Defensive Lineman 12 298 New York Giants
1970 Joe Williams Back 12 309 Dallas Cowboys
197119 Tony McGee Defensive End-Tackle 3 64 Chicago Bears
197220 Conrad Dobler Guard 5 110 St. Louis Cardinals
197321 Nick Bebout Tackle 6 142 Atlanta Falcons
197522 Mike McGraw Linebacker 10 255 St. Louis Cardinals
197623 Lawrence Gaines Running Back 1 16 Detroit Lions
197623 Aaron Kyle Defensive Back 1 27 Dallas Cowboys
197824 Frank Chesley Linebacker 6 157 New Orleans Saints
1979 25 Ken Fantetti Linebacker 2 37 Detroit Lions
198026 Danny Pittman Wide Receiver 4 90 New York Giants
198127 Guy Frazier Linebacker 4 93 Cincinnati Bengals
198228 Jim Eliopulos Linebacker 3 81 Dallas Cowboys
198429 Chris Kolodziejski Tight End 2 52 Pittsburgh Steelers
1984 Jay Novacek Tight End 6 158 St. Louis Cardinals
198930 Eric Coleman Defensive Back 2 43 New England Patriots
199131 Mitch Donahue Linebacker 4 95 San Francisco 49ers
199232 Doug Rigby Defensive End 11 298 Kansas City Chiefs
199433 Ryan Yarborough Wide Receiver 2 41 New York Jets
199534 Ryan Christopherson Running Back 5 169 Jacksonville Jaguars
1995 John Burrough Defensive End 7 245 Atlanta Falcons
199735 Steve Scifres Guard 3 83 Dallas Cowboys
1997 Lee Vaughn Defensive Back 6 187 Dallas Cowboys
1997 Marcus Harris Wide Receiver 7 232 Detroit Lions
200136 Patrick Chukwurah Linebacker 5 157 Minnesota Vikings
200437 Casey Bramlet Quarterback 7 218 Cincinnati Bengals
200638 Derrick Martin Defensive Back 6 208 Baltimore Ravens
200739 John Wendling Defensive Back 6 184 Buffalo Bills
201140 Chris Prosinski Defensive Back 4 121 Jacksonville Jaguars

Cowboys drafted into the AFL

Draft Year Player Position Round Overall AFL Team
196141 Jerry Hill Running Back 2 9 Denver Broncos

Bowl history

See also: List of Wyoming Cowboys bowl games
American football on the field with spectators in the stands.
Wyoming defeated UCLA in the 2004 Las Vegas Bowl to end their six bowl game losing streak.42

The Cowboys have appeared in thirteen bowl games and have a record of six wins and seven losses (6–7).Their most recent bowl appearance came in their 35–17 loss to Temple in the 2011 New Mexico Bowl.43

Future non-conference opponents

2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018
at Nebraska vs Montana vs North Dakota vs Northern Illinois at Missouri vs Washington State
vs Idaho at Oregon at Washington State at Nebraska vs Oregon vs Missouri
vs Northern Colorado at Michigan State vs Eastern Michigan at Eastern Michigan
at Texas State vs Florida Atlantic at Northern Illinois

44

References

  1. ^ "NCAA Football Award Winners" (PDF). National Collegiate Athletic Association. 2012. pp. 13–18. Retrieved December 19, 2012.
  2. ^ "NCAA FBS Consensus All-America." ESPN. December 15, 2012. Retrieved December 19, 2012.
  3. ^ "Wyoming Cowboys at CFB Data Warehouse". 
  4. ^ "Jonah Field at War Memorial Stadium". wyomingathletics.com. 
  5. ^ Wyoming Athletics.com - Bronze Boot
  6. ^ a b c http://www.wyomingathletics.com/trads/hof-1993.html
  7. ^ http://www.biletnikoffaward.com/pastwinner.htm
  8. ^ Wyoming Athletics Hall of Fame entry
  9. ^ http://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/1950.htm
  10. ^ http://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/1952.htm
  11. ^ http://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/1957.htm
  12. ^ http://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/1959.htm
  13. ^ a b http://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/1961.htm
  14. ^ http://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/1966.htm
  15. ^ http://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/1967.htm
  16. ^ http://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/1968.htm
  17. ^ http://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/1969.htm
  18. ^ http://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/1970.htm
  19. ^ http://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/1971.htm
  20. ^ http://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/1972.htm
  21. ^ http://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/1973.htm
  22. ^ http://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/1975.htm
  23. ^ a b http://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/1976.htm
  24. ^ http://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/1978.htm
  25. ^ http://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/det/1979_draft.htm
  26. ^ http://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/1980.htm
  27. ^ http://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/1981.htm
  28. ^ http://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/1982.htm
  29. ^ http://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/1985.htm
  30. ^ http://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/1989.htm
  31. ^ http://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/1991.htm
  32. ^ http://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/1992.htm
  33. ^ http://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/1994.htm
  34. ^ http://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/1995.htm
  35. ^ http://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/1997.htm
  36. ^ http://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/2001.htm
  37. ^ http://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/2004.htm
  38. ^ http://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/2006.htm
  39. ^ http://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/2007.htm
  40. ^ http://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/2011.htm
  41. ^ http://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/1961_AFL.htm
  42. ^ "Bramlett guides fourth-quarter comeback". ESPN.com. Associated Press. December 23, 2004. Retrieved December 18, 2011. 
  43. ^ "Temple wins New Mexico Bowl with romp over Wyoming". ESPN.com. Associated Press. December 17, 2011. Retrieved December 18, 2011. 
  44. ^ "Wyoming Cowboys Football Schedules and Future Schedules". fbschedules.com. Retrieved 2012-11-26. 

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Wyoming Cowboys football
Wyoming Cowboys football
Venues
Bowls & rivalries
Culture & lore
People
Seasons
Mountain Division
West Division
Former teams
Championships & Awards
Seasons