Wow!
Can’t say I saw that coming.
Wyoming was down 27-6 after three quarters and it looked like another loss where the offense didn’t get the job done.
But the Cowboys found that spark and turned in one of their most memorable games in a 30-27 victory.
Take your pick of the big plays in the fourth quarter:
–A touchdown run and a touchdown pass by true freshman quarterback Austyn Carta-Samuels.
–A 33-yard touchdown run by true freshman running back Alvester Alexander. This coming after he lost a fumble on the SDSU 1 in the first half.
–A blocked field goal by senior defensive tackle John Fletcher.
–A recovered kickoff return on a pooch kick by true freshman cornerback Kenny Browder.
–A 43-yard game-winning field goal by true freshman kicker Ian Watts.
–A couple of big catches by true freshman tight end David Tooley.
See a theme here: true freshmen.
“We got outwilled by a team,” San Diego State coach Brady Hoke said. “They played harder, they executed and that’s pretty much how the game went.”
This game and comeback is similar to the 2004 game at UNLV when UW rallied and won 53-45 in triple overtime in 2004 — the last time the Cowboys went to a bowl game.
But for this team to do it, thanks in large part to true freshmen and a smattering of seniors. Quite the team dynamic, don’t you think?
How big was this win? Carta-Samuels was crying as he ran into the locker room and gave offensive coordinator Marcus Arroyo a hug. He was overwhelmed by what had happened.
One win in its final two games and UW probably goes to a bowl game.
Whew! That was an exciting one and not an easy one to write on deadline.
Sunday’s paper will have the bare-bones on the game. Monday’s wrap will include more details, including a lead on perhaps a new offensive weapon found for this young offense.
No. 4 TCU is coming to Laramie this coming week.
Thanks again to all those who were on the live blog and sent comments. Let’s do it again next week.
Loading ...
RG,
Wow what a game…
I sure like the 4 man front on the D tonight.. I don”t think we had much pressure and they had a hard time stopping the run for some reason. But our 2 best LB were out of the line up… forgot that. Great heart from all the kids not to give up and continue to fight for 4 qrts. I think when SDSU stopped the clock was a big plus, we may not have settled down enough to get the kick off, what do you think… Brady called TO and we were able to settle in for the kick. It showed Dave talking to Ian before the try… the announcers were saying to leave him alone.. great win and on to the next one.
Steve
Hi Steve,
That’s a good point about the Watts kick and the timeout. Watts said after the game he practices rushing out on the field and kicking, but he didn’t seem too comfortable with that phase just yet. I think the timeout helped calm him down. Christensen said he told him to just go out there and approach it like an extra point, and that even if he missed there still was overtime.
The 4-3 wasn’t bad but I would have liked to have seen more pressure on the QB as well. I know Christensen likes the 4-3. The Cowboys don’t have a lot of linemen to rotate in and out to run the 4-3 right now, but I expect them to keep running it even when Hendricks is back and Knapton is back to full strength.
Thanks for the comment and have a good day. — RG