Laramie, Wyo. - Here are basic notes from Wyoming Head Coach Jay Sawvel's Monday press conference as Wyoming prepares to play the University of North Texas in Denton, Texas, on Saturday.
North Texas Preview: Coach Jay Sawvel highlighted the offensive talent of the University of North Texas as Wyoming prepares for their road game this Saturday. "North Texas is very good offensively," Sawvel said. "They have a quarterback in Chandler Morris who's playing at a high level... he gets the ball out really well. They also have a running back, Ikaika Ragsdale, who’s averaging 8.5 yards per carry." Sawvel pointed to North Texas’ versatile offensive players like Damon Ward jr., who had 12 catches in their first game, and Wyatt Young, who scored a 75-yard touchdown against Texas Tech. "Offensively, they play with a lot of tempo and create explosive plays."
Defensive Challenges: "We’ve got to play better defensively," he said. "There are a few players who need to raise their level of play to meet our expectations," Sawvel emphasized that Wyoming must play well for the full 60 minutes to succeed.
Injuries: Sawvel updated the status of several injured players. "DeVonne Harris will still be out, and I don’t expect him back until after the open date," he said. "Dawaiian McNeely had an MRI this morning, and he will be out for an extended period. Caleb Driskill also had thumb surgery and will be out indefinitely." Wyett Eckler, who has a broken thumb, will play with the injury and have a surgical procedure during the open date. "The plan is for him not to miss any games," Sawvel added.
Looking Back at the Previous Game: On the team's loss to BYU. "We didn’t do the things we needed to do to win the game," Sawvel said. "I didn’t want to lose to BYU. I wanted that game more than anyone in the state." "Nobody wanted to be 0-3 at this point, but we’ve improved over the last two weeks. We’ve got to continue to improve."
John Michael Gyllenborg’s Return: Sawvel addressed the return of offensive player John Michael Gyllenborg, who played limited snaps last week. "He played eight plays Saturday night, but he’ll be cleared for full team reps this week," Sawvel said. "His role will expand this week and continue to grow after the open date." Sawvel stated that Gyllenborg’s presence will be crucial as Wyoming looks to improve its offensive productivity.
North Texas’ Defense: Despite North Texas giving up 66 points in their last game against Texas Tech, Sawvel warned against judging them solely based on that performance. "When an avalanche hits, everything can fall apart quickly. That doesn’t define them as a team. We’re not going to judge them based on one game."
Positive Team Mentality: Sawvel stated that despite the difficult start to the season, there’s no division within the team. "There’s no finger-pointing," he said. "We’re all in this together, and we know what we have to do to get better."
Facing North Texas: "Look, I think we have a huge challenge defensively against their offense. Their defense versus our offense is going to be a big telling thing. We need to be able to establish some things...we're going to have to score points. We're not going down there and shutting out North Texas. So, we’ve got to score some points, and we know that."
Evaluation of Offensive Line Play: "We have four starters back in the offensive line...but we've had some growing pains with a redshirt freshman stepping in, and we’ve also had snap issues and running backs not hitting tracks in the right spot. We need to get better and cleaner. We've got to trust the track more at running back."
Impact on the Passing Game: "We’re not a team that’s going to function real well in third and long situations right now. We need to get a run game established at the University of Wyoming, and we haven't done that to the level we need to."
Conference Pressure: "The internal pressure to perform and win is bigger within myself and anybody else in the building than it's going to be from anybody on the outside. We’ve got a lot of work to do, but I still have 100% belief in this team."
Isaac White’s Performance: "Isaac White is our most consistent defensive player, period. He never misses an assignment, always plays disciplined football, and I love coaching him. His performance is something we can rely on."
Learning from Experience: "You learn from experience not to completely cut the tree down after three weeks. I’m not going to overreact and throw everything out offensively or make big changes. We’ve played three really good defenses, and we have growth to do, but I believe we can get the things done that we want to achieve."
Outlook for the Game: Sawvel emphasized that this is a crucial game for the Cowboys and that the team knows they need to play well to have a chance: "We’ve got to play really, really well to have a chance to win this game."
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