Depth chart prediction

University of Wyoming football coach Dave Christensen will release an updated depth chart early next week.

By now Christensen and his staff know who is starting and who are the backups. But since he is keeping it quiet for the time being I thought I would take a stab at who the starters will be for the Sept. 5 opener against Weber State.

Offense

QB: Junior-college transfer Robert Benjamin. No. 2 is true freshman Austyn Carta-Samuels and No. 3 is senior Karsten Sween

RB: Junior Darius Terry. No. 2 is either true freshman Alvester Alexander or redshirt freshman James Caraway.

WR: The starting three will be redshirt junior Zach Bolger and juniors David Leonard and Travis Burkhalter. Sophomore Brandon Stewart, true freshman Chris McNeill ajnd senior T.J. Atwater, who was a cornerback last week, also play a lot.

TE: Senior Orlando Arnold. True freshman David Tooley and senior Jesson Salyards also will rotate in there.

C: Senior Russ Arnold

RG: True freshman Nick Carlson. Junior Jack Tennant is the backup.

RT: John Hutchins. Sophomore Clayton Kirven is the backup.

LG: Sam Sterner

LT: Ryan Otterson

Defense

DT: John Fletcher (Mike Neuhaus will play a lot, too)

NG: Alex Stover. Senior Fred Givens and sophomore Marcus Felker will rotate in and see time as well.

DE: Mitch Unrein

ILB: Gabe Knapton and Brian Hendricks

OLB: Matt Barella, Weston Johnson

CB: Marcel and Tashaun Gipson. The backups will be true freshman Kenny Browder and redshirt freshman David James

SS: Shamiel Gary. Redshirt junior Jamichael Hall and junior Keith Lewis are backups and will play in nickel and dime packages.

FS: Chris Prosinski

P: Austin McCoy

K: Austin McCoy or Jake Scott. Whoever is hot will kick. Anything past 45 yards and UW will probably go for it on fourth down.

With some positions I didn’t list backups because they are either unknown and/or unproven.

In Sunday’s WTE for a position-by-position break down of the 2009 Cowboys, and I also will predict how many wins the team will have. I thought they would get seven wins in each of the last two seasons. I wasn’t that optimistic this season.