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Wyoming vs Hawaii: 3 Keys to a Wyoming Victory
The Wyoming Cowboys have a lot of mistakes to fix if they want to retain the Paniolo Trophy and continue their impressive winning streak in trophy games.
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Will the Cowboys offense finally show up in Hawaii against the high powered Rainbow Warriors?
WEEK 6: Wyoming Cowboys (2-3) vs. Hawaii Rainbow Warriors (5-1)
WHEN: Saturday, October 6 — 10:00 PM MT
TV: Spectrum PPV
STREAM: WatchStadium app (Outside of Hawaii) iOS | Google Play
SERIES RECORD: 14-9 Wyoming
ODDS: BYU -2.5
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The Wyoming Cowboys have hit a rough patch in their schedule and their next stop in Hawaii against the 5-1 Rainbow Warriors looks a lot harder than it did at the beginning of the season. Hawaii is led by QB Cole McDonald who has been very impressive and could cause havoc on a Wyoming defense that looks nothing like it did a season ago. The Rainbow Warriors lost a heartbreaker in Laramie last season and will certainly be looking for payback.
Get Off The Field On 3rd Down
Boise State QB Brett Rypien shredded the Pokes on third down. The Cowboys did well on 1st and 2nd down only to give up big plays on 3rd down all night. McDonald, WR John Ursua and friends will feast on the Wyoming defense if they don’t play more aggressively on those critical downs to get off the field.
Passing Game?
Does Wyoming have a passing game? In the limited amount of passes the Cowboys have attempted, QB Tyler Vander Waal has shown that he has incredible arm talent but he hasn’t been able to unleash the cannon and when he has, he’s struggled with accuracy.
For a freshman stepping into the situation he’s entered, he’s done well but if the Cowboys are going to have any success offensively, they need much better production from that position. Nico Evans has been a pleasant surprise in the running game but they need to have a passing threat for him to show his true growth.
Eliminate Special Teams Mistakes
Wyoming punter Tim Zaleski was a sitting duck in the first half last week. He spent a lot of time on the field and had a punt blocked before suffering a season-ending ACL tear covering a Boise State return. Ryan Galovich is the next man up and expect Hawaii to test the punt team to see if they have fixed their mistakes from last week. Wyoming has been struggling too much on offense and defense to overcome special teams problems.
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