The Wyoming Cowboys have been busy this offseason, adding lots of new faces to add depth and bolster the team. On top of the signing class, Sawvel has also added a handful of transfers, but along with that is a group of Cowboys who have transferred out, so here’s a breakdown of the moves this offseason:
On the offensive side of the ball, a few notable Cowboys hit the portal and have found new homes for next season. These include RB Jamari Ferrell, WR Justin Stevenson, and WR Tyler King. Ferrell picked up a lot of the workload last season after Harrison Waylee’s injury, and provided solid support for the Cowboy’s backfield. Meanwhile, Stevenson and King were a part of the receiver rotation for the Pokes, tallying about 440 yards and 3 TDs collectively.
With running backs Harrison Waylee and Sam Scott tabbed to return, Wyoming will have two proven backs, along with the addition of Terron Kellman out of Charlotte. Kellman tallied 242 yards this season and 328 yards two years ago, and looks to provide solid support at the gap left by Ferrell. On the WR side, Jaylen Sargent and Chris Durr Jr. will return after being Wyoming’s top two wideouts for yardage, and Eric Richardson from Northwest Missouri State and Jackson Holman from Arizona will round out the group, along with new signees.
Defensively, Pokes headed out of Laramie include CB Tyrecus Davis, DT Jaden Williams, and DE Braden Siders, along with a slew of secondary players. Davis posted a team high 8 passes defended last year, along with an interception and 42 tackles. As a freshman last year, Williams secured 28 tackles on the defensive line. Siders, who has been at Wyoming for 3 years, tallied 14.5 sacks in his time for the Pokes, along with 92 tackles. With a number of secondary players also hitting the portal, the defense is an area with work needing to be done.
Sawvel was able to grab 3 safeties and a corner in the portal, as well as 4 defensive linemen and 2 linebackers. DL Dawan Martin heads to Wyoming after a 4 year stint at the FCS school Youngstown State, where he’s shown promise as being a solid boost to the defensive line.
Portland State CB Jaden DaCosta and S Justin Taylor out of Wisconsin will add depth to the shrinking secondary. Taylor was offered by the Cowboys in 2022, but he headed to the Badgers before landing in Laramie. LB Brayden Johnson will bring some college experience to a young linebacker group after a 3 year career at the DII Oklahoma Baptist where he picked up 145 tackles.
Overall, Sawvel has tried to keep and attract talent to Laramie, a large task after a rough season with a big defensive graduating class. The Pokes will play a spring game in Laramie this semester before having the summer to truly build their squad before they head to Ohio for their opener against Akron.
