JUCO players provide instant impact

NICK PUETZ IS ONE OF SIX JC COMMITS

With so many holes to fill on both sides of the ball Coach Christensen and his staff were looking at help on both sides of the ball. The offensive and defensive lines were hurt the hardest by graduation and the wide receivers were unable to stretch the field which severely impacted the offense.

By bringing in six Junior College players the Pokes are able to find players that fit their system and have had a couple of years to develop physically and mentally on the football field. They were certainly help keep the momentum going for the program that could have been decimated with the loss of three starters on the defensive line.

A dozen freshman started for Wyoming last season but you can't count 18 and 19 years old to be impact players in their first year. By bringing in JC players a number of freshman can redshirt this year and spend that time in the weight room and learning the system.

As the 2009 and 2010 classes develop I expect the Cowboys to recruit fewer and fewer players from the JUCO ranks. Hopefully the Pokes won't need to every look for a JUCO QB ever again as Dax Crum was a bust under Glenn and Robert Benjamin has already left Laramie after losing his starting job to Austyn Carta-Samuels.

2010 Player Commitments - Wyoming - Junior College/Transfers
NAME	POS	HT	WT	HOMETOWN	SCHOOL
DeJay Lester	WR	6-1	195	Layton, UT	Snow College
Mazi Ogbonna	WR	6-1	190	Westbury, NY	Snow College
Nick Puetz	OT	6-4	307	Salina, KS	Coffeyville CC
Austin Daniels	CB	5-10	180	Pasadena, CA	Mt. San Antonio College
Kurt Taufaasau	DT	6-2	290	American Samoa, SP	New Mexico Military Int.

Bernard Sumter DT 6-2 310 Roswell, NM New Mexico Military Int.

23 and 24

Wyoming received two more commitments from athletes that visited Laramie over the weekend. These are two key recruits for the Pokes who could help right away in 2010. These commits are #23 and #24 for Wyoming with less than 10 days remaining until the February 3rd signing date. The Pokes are looking sign one more recruit to make their class a NCAA maximum 25 recruits.




QB Emory Miller - Mesquite, TX (HORN HS)

At 5'10 190 pounds Miller isn't the largest QB in the land but that isn't the end of the world. As the Pokes found out with ACS last year good things can come in small packages. Miller is a dual threat QB like ACS and should fit the the offensive scheme better than CJ Bennett who had previously committed to Wyoming.

Bringing in another QB for the Pokes is vital with backup QB Robert Benjamin transferring this semester. Dax Crum would have been the backup QB to start the year and I don't think anyone really wanted that except Crum. QB Sam Stratton has also commited this year but he is coming off a major knee injury suffered in the Fall and will most likely red shirt his first year in Laramie.

Playing in Texas where high school football is life is great for building players that can handle pressure. The Pokes now have four recruits in the last two years who hail from the Lone Star State. Air Force and Navy had also offered.




DT BJ Sumter - Roswell, NM (New Mexico Military Institute)

The Defensive Line was a worry with three starts lost to graduation but things are looking up now. After visiting on Saturday Sumter committed on Sunday. Along with fellow linemen from New Mexico Military Institure Kurt Taufa'asau the D line should be in much better shape in the Fall.

Sumter is originally from Columbia, SC and will have two years of eligibility left when he arrives in Laramie.

Two more recruits on campus this weekend

With three offers left to fill and less than fourteen days DC and his staff are working on finishing up the final touches on the 2010 recruiting class. The Pokes look at sign a QB, DL and DB with their three remaining scholarships. Players that cover two of those three spots will be in Laramie this weekend. GoWyoGo had the scoop on which players were coming to Laramie.

QB Emory Miller from Horn HS out of Mesquite TX. Currently ranked two stars by Rivals.

A dual threat QB listed at 5'10 190 and can run 4.6 for the 40. The Pokes have looked at dual threat and Pro Style QB's this year and I think the former is the way to go. ACS has proven to be tough for opposing defenses to catch and his backup should have the same skill set. In the unfortunate event that an injury occurred to ACS a backup QB with similar abilities would mean the offense could use all the same plays and not have to scale back which could be crucial in a big game.

Rushing			Passing
Year	Att	Yds	TD	PA	PC	Pct	Yds	TD	Int
2009 (Sr.)	166	706	11	333	213	64.0	2,678	22	11
2008 (Jr.)	150	553	12	366	250	68.3	2,740	19	15

Here is a highlight video of Miller with no sound. The first half is mainly QB runs while second half shows off his arm.


Last weekend the Pokes signed Kurt Taufa'asau out of JC New Mexico Mility Institute. While his teammate and fellow linemen Bernard "BJ" Sumter will make the same trip seven days later. Sumter is one big fellow clocking in at 6'2 310 pounds (ding). This would be the perfect recruit to bring in and take the spot of NG Fred Givens who had been a fixture in that spot for three years. Sumter is big and strong with a 405 max bench and 505 max squat.

Here is his highlight video with fat beats included:

Football Island on 60 minutes

Great piece that aired on 60 minutes last night. The Mountain West is loaded with players from Polynesia especially BYU and Utah. The Pokes just got a commit yesterday from DT Kurt Taufa'asau who is from Pago Pago, American Samoa.

It's incredible how a small island can produce so much talent that ends up in the NFL. The Pokes Outside Linebacker Coach Mike Fanoga is American Samoan and focuses his efforts on recruiting Polynesian players.

The passion and drive of these players is incredible. Hopefully Wyoming will have continued success in recruiting Polynesian players to the program.



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Cowboys add two commits over the weekend

Evan Williams and Kurt Taufa'asau are the newest Cowboy commits

According to Rivals.com Wyoming site GoWyoGo the Wyoming Cowboys added two more verbal commits to the 2010 class.

Evan Williams is speedy RB out of De La Salle HS in Minneapolis, MN. Williams also held offers from Minnesota and Northern Iowa. At 6'0 190 Williams has played a number of positions during his high school years. After rushing for 1,700 yards and 26 touchdown as a Junior his coach moved him to QB in order get him the ball even more often. His team runs a no huddle spread offense and Williams was the catalyst. On the other side of the ball Williams played some defensive back. Rivals has Williams listed at 4.43 seconds for the 40 and his combination of speed and agility is impressive. It will be interesting to see how Williams fits into the mix with Alvester Alexander and 2010 commit Nehemie Kankolongo. Could really play a number of positions for the Pokes: running back, qb or even wide receiver.

Kurt Taufa’asau from JUCO New Mexico Military Institute is originally from Pago Pago, American Samoa. A DT listed at 6'4 285 expect Taufa'asau to compete for a starting spot in 2010. He will enroll at Laramie in the Fall. Here is an article about Taufa'asau that appeared in the Samoa News just a week ago. Oregon State was also interested. With the loss of the entire starting defense line the Pokes needed an athlete like Taua'asau who is developed and ready to play right away. He is a long ways from home but it play football for a reason and wants use his education help others when he returns to Samoa.

Here is a lengthy highlight video of Evan Williams that is quite impressive.