Rich's sometimes disjointed rambling

A little FYI here. We reorganized Wyoming Sports.org just a bit on Monday. The home page tab is now for headlines only with a link to the story, as well as to my daily blog. The UW headlines tab is for all University of Wyoming sports and the LHS/youth sports tab is the same. To look at UW football and basketball archives, just click on one of the football or basketball stories on the front page and it will take you to it. On that page is the archives for football or basketball, dependng on the sport. Now the other UW sports, such as volleyball, cross country and etc. will be archived on the UW page instead of the home page.

Was last weekend the worst weekend ever? Maybe not, but it seemed like it. It would have been if not for the Cowboy basketball alumni event. Let's clarify that. Worst football weekend ever. On Friday night, the Plainsmen get hammered by Scottsbluff , Neb., 23-0. Head coach Bob Knapton summed it up in one word: horrible. I think disappointing is also an accurate word to describe the game. Laramie came into the game feeling pretty good, coming off the 24-16 win over Casper Kelly Walsh, doing all the things that Knapton had been waiting for his team to do: run, block, score, tackle. They did none of that against the Bearcats . "We couldn't block nobody, we couldn't tackle nobody," Knapton said after the game. The Plainsmen will return to South 5A play this week at Evanston . It will be a "something has to give game," as the Red Devils are 1-3 overall and 0-3 in league play. The Plainsmen are 1-4 and 0-1. Then, there is Saturday's Wyoming-Bowling Gre...

After only playing on the first series of the game, starting quarterback Dax Crum returned early in the fourth quarter and didn't have any better results. A tipped pass interception was returned to the UW 22-yard line and four plays later, Chris Bullock scored from 6 yards out. With 11:12 to go in the game, the Falcons led 45-10. The Cowboys got a meaningless late score on a 4-yard run by Devin Moore to make the final score 45-16.

Things have officially gone from bad to worse. Two interceptions later, the Falcons have now built a 38-10 lead. The first score came after a Cody Basala interception of Karsten Sween on a short pass. Bowling Green moved 42 yards on just two plays for the score, a 20-yard TD pass from Tyler Sheehan to Lewis Parks. The second interception came in the end zone on a well overthrown pass from quarterback Chris Stutzriem -- the Cowboys fourth quarterback of the game. Wyoming had apparently stopped the Falcons on downs, but a roughing the punter penalty gave the Falcons new life and three plays later they scored on a 6-yard run by Chris Bullock. Bowling Green is comfortably ahead 38-10 heading into the fourth quarter.

Thanks to a 39-yard run by Moore, the Cowboy offense got into position for a 49-yard field goal by Jake Scott. It was a career-long for Scott, as it capped an 11-play, 61-yard drive. The Falcons led 7-3 with 13:45 to play in the second quarter. It was a good news, bad news second quarter for the Cowboys, mostly bad news. The Wyoming defense struggled at times and gave up two scoring drives. Bowling Green took a 14-3 lead on a 28-yard run by quarterback Tyler Sheehan and a 34-yard touchdown pass f rom Sheehan to Corey Partridge on a short screen pass. The Cowboys offense finally got un-tracked and got into the end zone on a 3-yard run by Wynel Seldon . The touchdown was set up on a long pass from Karsten Sween to David Leonard. Turnovers continued to kill the Cowboys, though, as Wyoming gave the Falcons three points in the final seconds when they turned the ball over on their own 18-yard line on a mishandled handoff between Sween and running back Devin Moore. Sinisa Vrvilo...

The Cowboys came out for warm-ups with a gold top and white pants. It was the first time Wyoming was worn a gold top at the War since Oct. 9, 1990. Bowling Green won the toss and quickly moved down to inside the Wyoming 10-yard line when quarterback Tyler Sheehan found a wide open Willie G eter down the middle for a 39- yard reception to the UW 6-yard line. G eter , however, stumbled and fell down negating a sure touchdown. That proved to be costly, as the Cowboys' defense held. On 4 th and goal from the 2-yard line, the snap from center got past Sheehan and the Cowboys' John Fletcher recovered on the 17. It didn't take long, though, for the Falcons to get the score back. On third down, nose tackle Michael Ream stepped in front of a Dax Crum screen pass and ran it back to the 1-yard line, where he was hit and fumbled into the end zone. Bowling Green linebacker Cody Basler recovered near the end of the end zone for the touchdown. Wyoming head coach Joe Glenn said t...

It's Saturday morning, so before I actually wake up and make sense, here's some thoughts. It was a tough, tough night for the Plainsmen. Head coach Bob Knapton called it a horrible night. It was both and then some. Scottsbluff seemed to have the Laramie offense figured out from the start and dominated the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball. As Knapton said, the Plainsmen "couldn't block nobody and couldn't tackle nobody." That pretty much summed up the game. Laramie will have to battle back as it returns to league play next Friday at Evanston . The good news is the Red Devils are struggling as well (0-3). something will have to give. It was a crazy night in 5A football. Sheridan just hammered -- and I mean hammered rival Gillette 49-21. You might see the Broncs getting some support for No. 1 this week. The state is up in the air with no unbeatens . Natrona also blasted No. 3 East 47-7. Check out the complete state scoreboard on WyoPreps .com: ...

When Derek Deaver was a youngster, all he wanted to do was be a Laramie Plainsmen football player. He remembers those days vividly -- white helmets, yellow pants, black high top cleats. Five o’clock couldn’t come soon enough; that’s when the Plainsmen first went out on Deti Stadium to warm up. “Laramie had such a great run and growing up there, it was a big deal being a Laramie High Plainsmen,” Deaver said. “Ever since I was 6-years-old, I went to Deti Stadium and watched games and played catch in the end zone. That’s all I ever wanted to do.” Deaver said that Laramie High School football is his No. 1 fond memory of his time growing up in Laramie. “You’re totally engrossed. Just being a Laramie kid, every Friday night, you couldn’t wait for the Plainsmen to be home,” Deaver said. “I got to suit up and then I got to actually experience it.” On Friday, Deaver, a 1980 LHS graduate, along with fellow Laramie alumnus Joe Benson (1983) and Mark Moran (1980), will try to beat the Plainsmen as...

It's hump day , but here's to a fun weekend. How excited are you about Saturday's little alumni basketball event at the Arena-Auditorium? Personally, I can't wait. I hate to say it, but I'm a little more pumped for that than the Wyoming-Bowling Green football game. I wish it weren't true; not being excited about the football game. It's just the way things seem to be with the football program these days. Like a lot of fans, I want to see the Cowboys succeed. Like a lot of fans, I'm puzzled as to why it isn't happening. At 2-2, the Cowboys can still have an outstanding season. The problem is, we just haven't seen anything that would lead us to believe it is going to happen. Not yet, anyway. Let's hope the Cowboys pick it up against Bowling Green. If they do, we'll all feel a little better about things. Back to basketball. It's less than a month away from basketball practices officially beginning for both the Cowboys and Cowgirls. That ...

A belated kudos go to the Laramie Plainsmen and head coach Bob Knapton . Friday night's 24-16 win over Casper K elly Walsh was the first win for Knapton as the Plainsmen had coach, the first win for the program in eight games (dating back to last season) and the first win over a Wyoming 5A team in three years. It's no wonder thing s might have got a little emotional for some of the seniors after the win. "I think some of the seniors were crying," Knapton told David Settle and VerDon Hoopes in the KOWB postgame broadcast. I think sometimes people, including the media, get a little caught up in winning and losing. I'm sure I'm guilty as well. For the players and coaches, a lot of hard work goes into preparing for a game and when things don't go as planned, there is plenty of disappointment going around. When you are a program that hasn't had much success in the decade of the 2000s, every win is special, as it should be. There should never be ...

I think there has to be a point where, as Wyoming fans, it is all right to give your opponent a little credit. I know what you're thinking. Are you nuts? Under no circumstance will a true Wyoming fan praise BYU . Just like a true BYU fan will probably never credit Wyoming. It is what it is. Like most Wyoming fans, I think that the average BYU athlete or fan thinks they are better than the average Wyoming athlete or fan in many ways. But let's face it: BYU is better on the field and the court. The Cougars are dominating Wyoming, not only in football, but in most sports. Yes, they are older, but the facts don't lie. For a moment, though, let's take a look at Saturday's disappointing 44-0 loss to the Cougars. Take away two disastrous turnovers that turned into touchdowns and a freebie field goal and add a finished drive or two and things don't look so bad. Of course, if it is that close, then Max Hall and the first-team offense is back on the field and likely t...

Late in Tuesday's Wyoming football practice, the sound system went off. Cranked loud, the music -- hard rock and rap -- was near concert levels. The last time I heard music that loud was at a Cheap Trick concert. It took two days to get the ringing out of my ears. Tuesday wasn't quite that bad, but it was surprising. I expected to see the Wyoming coaching staff freaking out, waving at the press box to stop. As it turned out, they had requested it like a teenager calling the radio station to play his favorite Top 40 hit. The coaches wanted the Cowboys to deal with the noise level that they are going to have to deal with Saturday at Provo against BYU . Wyoming sophomore quarterback Dax Crum said it was beneficial, especially after struggling with the noise early. "The first few plays we were kind of discombobulated out there," Crum said. "Hopefully, I won't look like a chicken with my head cut off out there. I think I'll be all right." Stewart get...

Let's be honest. How many of you saw the Cowboys coming back to beat North Dakota State after their rather dismal, uninspiring performance in the first half? Go ahead, raise your hand. That's what I thought. We'll, join the club. I had Wyoming all but dead, not only in the game, but likely for the season. Saturday’s game was a pivotal contest for Wyoming. After the 23-3 drubbing it took from Air Force last week, the Cowboys needed a feel-good performance. From the Air Force game to Saturday’s kickoff, you could put most of the Wyoming disbelieving fans and maybe others in a room and it would be a pessimist-fest. You know, kind of like the Democratic National Convention. If you saw the Mel Brooks’ movie, Blazing Saddles, there was a scene where Brooks, the territory’s governor (in the Old West) had all of his staff gathered around a table. Not happy, the grumpy Brooks said, “I didn ’t get a harrumph outta that guy,” pointing to a staff member in the corner. The rest of the s...

Malcom Evans I'm going to take a brief step away from sports. Sometimes it is necessary. Today marks the seventh anniversary of one of the saddest and most difficult days in United States history. It's one of those moments where you think back and remember what were you doing when you first heard about 9/11. For me, I was sleeping on my couch as I prepared to move back to Wyoming from Washington. I had sold my bed and the couch was all I had. I fell asleep that night with the TV on and woke up to the Twin Towers collapsing under terrorist attack. Originally, I thought it was just a bad dream ... actually, I think I was dreaming about it just before I awoke. It was no bad dream; it was reality. It is something I will never forget and something I hope all Americans never forget. As we look back at the tragic day, let's remember those who died and say a prayer for them and their families. Let's also be thankful that the United States has not been attacked since and give c...

As a relative newcomer to the world of audio communications, I have found that it can be easy to get a little tongue-tied. Unfortunately, that's not good when you are on the air. Check out the link below. This poor sportscaster might have had the worst day ever. It gets to the point where you kind of feel sorry for him. It's a little long, but when he gets to the Indiana Pacers highlights, he did get one great line off with, "boom goes the dynamite." I'm going to have to remember that one. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W45DRy7M1no

Video courtesy of the Green Bay Press Gazette. Do you think there was any beer-drinking involved? http://gannett.a.mms.mavenapps.net/mms/rt/1/site/gannett-wisconsin-greenbay-014-pub01-live/current/launch.html?maven_playerId=greimmersiveplayer&maven_referralObject=848841547

The Cowgirl volleyball team says aloha from Hawaii. That's nice of them. The Cowgirls are in Honolulu competing in the Honolulu Advertiser Volleyball Challenge. The tournament gets underway for UW Thursday night when the Cowgirls face Cincinnati at 9 p.m. (MT). They'll also face Host Hawaii Friday at 11 p.m. and Minnesota on Saturday at 6 p.m. I know what you are thinking: Must be rough. The Cowgirls, however, are there to play volleyball and the quality of opposition attests to that. Hawaii is ranked 11 th in the country, with Minnesota 12 th . The other team -- Cincinnati -- just happens to be 3-0 on the season. This is far from a vacation, although if you have to spend four or five days away from Laramie in September, it might as well be in Hawaii. The very young Cowgirls, 0-3 on the season, will likely have to play above its ability and experience to come away from the tournament with a win. Yet, first-year head coach Carrie Yerty said they aren't going to back down ...

The Wyoming Cowboys went into Saturday's season opener with Ohio as an 11-point favorite. That sounded reasonable to me. In fact, I predicted on the KOWB pre -game radio show, "Pepsi and the 'Pokes," that the Cowboys would win by an even bigger margin, 34-13. The 13 points allowed by the Wyoming defense would be mis - leading because I said the the second team would give up a late score. I think my broadcast partner, David Settle, even had the Cowboys winning by more. Well, as you know, we were both wrong. In fact, we were a little off the mark. The Cowboys did win, but by a mere point, 21-20. I'd be willing to bet that anyone who predicted a score was a little off the mark as well. So, what's the deal? Are the Cowboys not as good as we all thought? Was Ohio better than we thought? I firmly believe that the Bobcats are a pretty good team. Yes, most of us didn't give them much credit or much of a chance to win against Wyoming. There are those, though, who ...