Wyoming needs repairs, not reassurance, against Northern Colorado

Braylon Jenkins lined up illegally, wiping out a 21-yard third-down completion after Wyoming had pulled within one. Oumar Diomande intercepted Tyler Hughes on the next snap, and Hauss Hejny hit RJ Vick for a 57-yard Colorado State touchdown two plays later. The Rams scored on their next two possessions, too, and Wyoming lost 35-13 in Fort Collins.

Colorado State reclaimed the Bronze Boot, one season after Wyoming had shut out the Rams. That turns Saturday’s home opener against Northern Colorado into something more useful than a ceremonial rebound by offering a chance to see whether the Cowboys can correct the exact failures that broke open the Border War.

Wyoming vs. Northern Colorado

Saturday, Sept. 12, 2 p.m. MT · MW+
Fan Watch forecast has Wyoming at 96%

A win is the baseline. The better question is whether Christian Taylor’s offense can stay on the field without giving the ball away.

In his Wyoming debut, Hughes completed 12 of 19 passes for 130 yards, threw three interceptions and went without a passing touchdown. His 52 net rushing yards and the Cowboys’ only touchdown showed that the mobility in Taylor’s design can translate, but an 0-for-8 third-down line and 273 total yards left the new offense with a very specific repair list.

Taylor is Wyoming’s new offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach, while Jay Sawvel is in his third season and Aaron Bohl remains in charge of the defense. The change in offensive leadership was supposed to produce a different identity; this week, progress should look less like novelty and more like Hughes making sound decisions on third down.

Watch the five-man front of Rex Johnsen, Giovanni Panozzo, Jason Maciejczak, Kalvin Janssen and Jenkins, which started against Colorado State. Samuel Harris managed 63 net yards on 16 carries behind that line, and Northern Colorado now offers a plausible place to establish something steadier because the Bears have allowed 175.5 rushing yards per game, while all eight opponent trips into their red zone have produced points.

That opportunity matters because Northern Colorado’s 0-2 record disguises the part of this matchup that could become uncomfortable. The Bears average 431 yards, convert 53.1% of their third downs and have not thrown an interception. Kenny Lueth has supplied both dimensions of that efficiency, passing for 427 yards and two touchdowns without an interception while adding 122 rushing yards and two more scores in his first two starts.

Those numbers run directly at Wyoming’s freshest defensive problem. Ethan Stuhlsatz, Jones Thomas, Desman Hearns and Jayden Williams all started at Colorado State, but the Cowboys finished without a sack or takeaway and allowed five touchdown passes. The returning spine was active, and Stuhlsatz made 15 tackles, but activity after the ball moves is different from ending a drive. Against Lueth, fans should be looking for pressure that produces a sack, a hurried mistake or Wyoming’s first takeaway.

There is also one especially familiar target to locate. Former Wyoming player Trey Olsen has caught a touchdown in each of Northern Colorado’s first two games, including a 54-yard score against South Dakota after moving back from safety to receiver this season. Keeping him from creating the emotional highlight of his return to Laramie belongs on the afternoon’s short checklist.

The depth question cannot stay theoretical forever

Hughes was the only Wyoming quarterback who participated in the opener. Landon Sims did not appear among the starters or participating players, and the available record does not explain whether health, competition or a coaching choice kept him out.

That does not require Wyoming to manufacture a quarterback rotation. It does mean a comfortable game could provide the first chance to establish who can actually run the offense behind Hughes. After three interceptions in the opener, dependable depth is no longer an abstract preseason concern.

Wyoming’s history says the afternoon should allow room for that kind of evaluation. The Cowboys are 53-12-1 in nonconference home openers, and Saturday also brings the Stripe Out, Band Day and Hall of Fame Weekend to War Memorial Stadium. A 96% win forecast fits that setting. If the fourth quarter remains tense, the Cowboys will have missed the chance to show that Fort Collins exposed correctable mistakes rather than recurring ones.

The wider perspective still matters. Wyoming followed a 9-4 season and Arizona Bowl victory in 2023 with records of 3-9 in 2024 and 4-8 in 2025. One rivalry loss cannot settle whether Sawvel’s third team will reverse that slide, and one expected home win cannot prove it has. What Saturday can do is provide clean, observable progress in Hughes protecting possession, the offense converting third downs, another quarterback showing usable depth, and the defense creating disruption instead of merely accumulating tackles.

The interactive guide has the complete Week 2 view, and the forecast process is explained in the methodology. Against Northern Colorado, the score should become comfortable. The reason to keep watching is to see whether the football does, too.