Inside the Wyoming Cowboys physical run game

LARAMIE, Wyo. (AP) — Even when the numbers suggest Wyoming's offense should do the opposite, the Cowboys run.

And run. And run. And then run some more.

Wyoming has run the ball 314 times this season. That's 72.5 percent of the Cowboys' offensive snaps. Last week against New Mexico, which is giving up more passing yards than anybody in the Football Bowl Subdivision, Wyoming ran it 55 times and threw it just 15. Circumstances of the game can dictate an offense's approach, but those splits aren't likely to vary much against Nevada on Saturday because, well, that's not the Cowboys' identity.

"Running the ball is what we do," offensive lineman Logan Harris said matter-of-factly.

And despite everybody knowing that, the Cowboys have been highly successful doing it. Wyoming's 236.7 rushing yards per game rank 15th nationally and trail only Air Force's option offense in the Mountain West in that category. Only twice have the Cowboys been held to less than 200 yards on the ground, and that average has increased to 263.3 yards against MW foes.

Running against seven-, eight- and sometimes even nine-man boxes, Wyoming is still ripping off 5.3 yards per carry — tied with Air Force for tops in the league.

So how have the Cowboys been able to be this effective with this much attention from defenses trying to slow them down? The answer, at least in part, is how they practice.

It's not unusual for teams to try to hone their running game between the tackles throughout the week. Wisconsin, Minnesota and Ohio practiced it when Wyoming first-year assistant Bart Miller was on staff at those programs. Offensive lineman Patrick Arnold said the Cowboys did it under former offensive line coach Scott Fuchs, whom Miller replaced after last season.

But talk to most of Wyoming's offensive linemen, and they'll say Miller brought a different mentality to the group once Bohl hired him away from Ohio in February — one that includes an increase in the speed and frequency with which the running game operates during its week of preparation.

"Inside run was something we had to do and you got through rather than something you enjoyed," Arnold said. "Now with coach Miller, it's a night-and-day difference. Nothing against coach Fuchs or anything, but coach Miller is definitely our saving grace on the offensive line."

The Cowboys devote 20 to 30 minutes of practice solely to an inside-run drill. Wyoming goes good on good with its starting offensive line going against the first-team defensive line, and the Cowboys do nothing during that time but run. As soon as one play is over, everyone hustles to get back in position in order to get the next one started as soon as possible.

There aren't many breaks. Arnold said the starters go six straight plays before the backups rotate in. After three plays, the first-teamers are back on the field.

"The pace is up, so that's where you get your conditioning in," Arnold told the Casper Star-Tribune. "Then they'll bring the starting defensive line down and we'll go against the starting defensive line for the whole time with the inside part."

And while some teams pick and choose when they want to rep a drill that physical during the week, it's part of the Cowboys' DNA at this point.

"A lot of teams do that on a Tuesday or one of their workdays, but we do it every day," Miller said. "The philosophy is pretty simple: You can't expect to go do that on Saturday if you don't live in that world every week, so that's what we do."

Said Harris, "We're used to it."

There are certain plays Wyoming works to scheme for success even as teams creep more and more defenders closer to the line of scrimmage, Miller said, but that defensive strategy has proven to be just as much of a risk as a reward against the Cowboys. Wyoming is one of just seven FBS teams to have four players rush for at least 100 yards in a game this season, and its top four rushers, which includes quarterback Sean Chambers, have each ripped off touchdown runs of at least 44 yards.

Trey Smith's 80-yarder against Idaho on Sept. 14 is still the second-longest run for any MW team this season.

"Certainly it's harder when more guys are allocated up there (near the line of scrimmage), but my mentor, (former Nebraska) coach (Tom) Osborne, always believed in running the football," Bohl said. "You have to throw it, but . no matter if they put eight or nine guys up there, you found a way to get it done because they've still got to tackle. And the safety still has got to fit in the right place."

But Bohl, Miller and the Cowboys' offensive linemen believe the biggest reason for their success on the ground is the commitment to their practice habits. They translate over to games, where Bohl and Miller said it can eventually wear down opponents the way it did against UNM even when the Cowboys aren't at full strength.

Smith may miss the rest of the season with an ankle injury he sustained against Tulsa on Sept. 21, and freshman Titus Swen (knee), Wyoming's second-leading rusher, wasn't available either. The Cowboys were also down two starting offensive linemen to knee injuries in guard Eric Abojei and tackle Alonzo Velazquez. But after rushing for just 97 yards in the first half, the Cowboys eventually hit their stride on the ground, increasing their average from 3.9 yards a carry in the first two quarters to 5.4 in the last two against a defense that's allowing just 3.8 ypc for the season.

"Everybody will talk about, 'We want to run the football. We want to play tough football. We want to be physical,'" Bohl said. "And many times, those are slogans by coaches that are put on T-shirts that really when it comes time to watch the tape, they don't do it."

Eighteen of the Cowboys' 30 second-half runs came within their final 21 offensive snaps as Wyoming used back-to-back scoring drives of 10 and 11 plays in the fourth quarter to salt the game away. Xazavian Valladay (127 yards on a career-high 33 carries) and Chambers (117) both surpassed the 100-yard mark, making for the third time this season Wyoming has had two players do that in the same game.

"I think it's critical to what we're doing," Miller said. "You watch the film, every block isn't clean. Every block isn't going to be that way. That's true everywhere. I've had first-rounders that flat-out missed the 3-technique (defensive lineman), but when you are playing physically every play and you are used to that, it can wear teams down."

When Nevada visits War Memorial Stadium this weekend, the Wolf Pack will bring with them a defense that's only allowing 134.1 yards per game on the ground. Nevada's been far more susceptible through the air with the 116-ranked pass defense in America. Another ideal time for Wyoming to take to the air more, right?

Everybody knows better than that.

"You just have to be bad guys up front. There's no prisoners taken," Arnold said. "It's just taking the ball and running it right down the middle. They know we're going to do it. We know we're going to do it. Try to stop it."

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Information from: Casper (Wyo.) Star-Tribune, http://www.trib.com