Wyoming played in a closer expected then expected game but in the end they were able to pull out the victory with a 9-yard touchdown pass from Brett Smith to Robert Herron with 22 seconds left. Smith was making his first career start and for being a true freshman had a fairly good performance by completing 29-41 passes for 294 yards, three passing touchdowns, one rushing touchdown and one pick.
The offense for Wyoming was their bright spot in this game, because 35 points was well above their 2010 scoring average where the Pokes only managed 19 points per game. Sophomore wide receiver Robert Herron had a big game at wide receiver with seven catches for 104 yards and two touchdowns. This single game performance was better than what Herron had in all of last year as a freshman, but that may be more toward playing time last year for Herron. Herron looks to be the main target for Smith this season.
The running game was another key position to look for, and with the game not on television it is difficult to actually see how they played. I might be wrong on saying Alvester Alexander is the clear starter at running back since he was third on the team in rushing in Saturday's game. Alexander had eight carries for 30 yards, but he did have six receptions for 62 yards. The most productive running back was Brad Miller rushed for 59 yards on 10 carries, but overall the running backs were essentially the same and I assume that the same game plan will be to use all running backs equally next week against Texas State.
The defense will need to show improvement because giving up over 300 yards passing, 100 yard rusher and a 100 yard receiver will not fly when Wyoming takes on Nebraska nor most of the Mountain West.
Instead of dwelling on the defensive performance from last night because they should get better, the offense executed an excellent game-winning drive. The game came down to a late fourth quarter drive that was executed and shows promise with a young offense for the rest of the season.
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