Head coaches Jay Sawvel of Wyoming and Ken Niumatalolo of SJSU are preaching from the same hymnal this week, but only one tean is currently hitting the notes.
After North Dakota State shut out Wyoming 28-0 in the Fargodome last Saturday, Sawvel’s fix for his Cowboy offense boiled down to three words recognized anywhere: “Do. Your. Job.”
Do your 1/11th — basically, each player masters and executes their specific assignment.
In San Jose Tuesday, Niumatalolo described the San Jose State identity in nearly
the same language.
The words match but the production doesn’t for the Cowboys (2-3, 1-1 MW) who head to CEFCU Stadium for Friday night’s game. The question hovering over Laramie outlasted Jay Johnson and Jovon Bouknight and now it belongs to OC Christian Taylor: Why can’t Wyoming throw the football?
The 1/11th gap in Laramie
The numbers are blunt. Wyoming averages 14 points per game and only three FBS teams score fewer. Its 293.6 yards per game rank 131st of 138 programs. The passing attack produces 143 yards per game at 10.7 yards per completion and the Cowboys have converted just 19 of 56 third downs.
This isn’t new.
Last fall the Cowboys ranked 131st in scoring at 16 points per game and found the end zone twice offensively over their final four games. Sawvel’s frustration then sounds familiar now. “You should never lose a game 13-7 in today’s modern football,” said Sawvel during last November’s skid.
The cure was supposed to be Christian Taylor; the 2023 AFCA FCS assistant coach of the year at William & Mary who spent the past two seasons with the Buffalo Bills. Taylor brought along Tyler Hughes, the William & Mary quarterback he originally recruited, fresh off 2,330 yards, 20 touchdowns and three interceptions.
So far, the familiarity hasn’t translated.
Hughes has six interceptions through five games and Wyoming sits at minus-6 in turnover margin. In Fargo, Hughes went 5-of-12 for 52 yards; his first throw was intercepted and the Cowboys went 2-of-11 on third down.
“When you don’t get anything done offensively, you just torpedo the whole boat,” said Sawvel postgame.
Peel back the box score and the problems compound.
Hughes is making the FCS-to-FBS jump and Taylor hadn’t called plays in college since 2023. His motion-heavy, position-less scheme loses some of its bite on the road, where a silent count limits the shifts, as Wyoming has now dropped eight straight away from Laramie.
Up front, a young line gave up three first-half sacks in Fargo. On the perimeter, sophomore receiver Deion DeBlanc is sidelined with a toe injury. Then there’s the weight between the ears. One example; Sawvel said tight end Jake Wilson admitted he was “trying to do everything perfect.”
Taylor’s own diagnosis cut to the bone.
“Football is a simple game. We all make it too complicated at times,” said Taylor, adding that his offense has played too much eight- and nine-man football.
And when the pass isn’t a threat, the box fills up. Samuel Harris and Markell Holman piled up 181 rushing yards and all three touchdowns in a 27-10 win over Hawaii, then managed 60 yards on 18 carries against the Bison.
For added irony, the man who shut them out, Bison head coach Tim Polasek, once ran Wyoming’s offense under Bohl.
Don’t chase: How SJSU sticks to the script
San Jose State’s 20-16 win at Hawaii last Saturday wasn’t a stat-sheet masterpiece either. The Spartans ran 34 times for 78 yards, but OC Craig Stutzmann kept calling the runs anyway.
“We’ve got to remember that it’s all about winning the football game and whatever it takes to win the game,” said Stutzmann.
He also cited a stat his receiver coach brother Billy Ray passed along, one he admitted he hadn’t verified: When Jabari Bates touches the ball 20-plus times, SJSU wins. Verified or not, Bates kept slicing and dicing, while the run commitment still kept Luke Weaver in rhythm at 19-of-28 for 246 yards, two touchdowns and zero interceptions.
“We threw the ball 28 times and seven of them were explosive plays,” said Stutzmann.
You need discipline to stick to the run when your eyes and guts scream to do otherwise, especially in what’s supposed to be a pass-heavy offense. When Hawaii trimmed a 14-0 lead to 14-13 in the third quarter, Stutzmann had a conversation with himself.
“Craig. Don’t chase. They have to go ahead for us to chase. We’re still winning the game.”
With deep gratitude, Stutzmann credits Niumatalolo for that restraint. Also, a lost championship game from his days as a high school head coach still rides on his mental note card.
“Don’t outsmart yourself. Keep it simple. Let the players play,” said Stutzmann. “Coaches don’t win football games. It’s the players, of course.”
That trust runs downhill.
On a roster with 48 newcomers and 10 new offensive players by Stutzmann’s count, Niumatalolo said each coordinator carries his own version of the same message. Stutzmann’s offense: Do what your coaches coach you to do. Defensive coordinator Bojay Filimoeatu’s: Do your 1/11th. And special teams coordinator Fred Guidici’s simplest and most endearing term: We need you.
It shows in the small things. Receivers blocking downfield. Relentless defensive line effort bearing interceptions. Constant support, encouragement and belief through all the ebbs and flows of a game.
Niumatalolo knows Friday brings a different puzzle. He called Wyoming’s blend of outside zone and triple-option “a really good scheme” and said stopping the run comes first.
“Then we’ve got to find a way to have our eyes ‘right’ when they play pass,” added Niumatalolo on simplicity and execution.
Both staffs preach the 1/11th. SJSU’s fresh roster is already living it. Wyoming’s passing game is still looking for its part.
Friday kickoff is 6 p.m. PDT on CBS Sports Network.
