Coach Bohl comments after the Pokes’ Ball State blowout

September 19, 2021 — After needing to come from behind for their first two wins of the season, the Wyoming Cowboys and their fans got a break Saturday for “Cardiac Cowboys” as the Pokes cruised to a 45-12 home win over Ball State. Wyoming is now 3-0 on the year, while Ball State fell to 1-2.

Here are some post-game comments from Cowboy head coach Craig Bohl:

Bohl: “We talked to our team at halftime, and we asked them the score, and it was not a sarcastic question. It was a question, and they all said 0-0, so they answered the right way. We needed to continue to play with a hard edge, and we’ll continue to do that. Our focus is to be 1-0 (each week), and we are 1-0 (this week).”

All parts were clicking in the first half for Wyoming as they led 31-0 at the break. The Cowboy offense scored 25 of those points, with the defense contributing six of their own on a Keyon Blankenbaker 50 score on an intercepted Ball State pass.

In the third quarter, the Cowboy offense went scoreless but did put points on the board one minute into the fourth quarter on a Xazavian Valladay one-yard run. That put the Cowboy lead at 38-12 following the PAT.

The Wyoming defense would aid the scoring cause again in the fourth quarter on a Chad Muma 45 yard interception touchdown with 6:35 to play. Muma also had a pick-6 touchdown in last Saturday’s road win at Northern Illinois.

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Bohl: “I thought we looked really good, but there were times in this game we looked explosive on offense. We tackled well on defense. We were really solid in the kicking game. We are well pleased with our progress.”

Bohl: “I think more than anything else, you’ve got guys with high character and have set a high bar for themselves (on defense). 

The Cowboy defense recorded three Ball State turnovers (two interceptions and a fumble recovery) while limiting the Cardinals to less than three yards per carry rushing.

Bohl: “Inside, internally, they were disappointed on how they finished the game last week. (Wyoming led Northern Illinois 42-16 in the second half of last Saturday’s game, but then gave up 27 straight points to lose the lead, eventually winning 50-43). That was a point of emphasis, and I thought our guys responded well. Ball State is a good offense, so that was no small feat. I’m real happy with the progress we made.”

Offensively, quarterback Sean Chambers completed 61 percent of his passes on the day (14 of 23) for 201 yards and one touchdown pass. He also rushed seven times of 21 yards. Wyoming utilized eight different receivers and four different running backs in the game, concluding the day with 177 rushing yards. Xazavian Valladay led the ground attack with 61 yards on 14 carries.

Wide receiver Isaiah Neyor caught four passes for 84 yards to lead the Pokes. 

Bohl: “I was very pleased (on our ability to pressure the quarterback). We had spent some time with the Penn State coaches (last week’s Ball State opponent). Penn State said they (Ball State) were a lot bigger and stronger than they thought and they are well-coached.  We had good pressure.”

Wyoming’s defense recorded six sacks on the day for 33 yards. Defensive tackle Ravontae Holt had 2.5 sacks for 13 yards. Muma led Wyoming in tackles with 12, including ten solo tackles to go along with 1.0 tackle for loss. 

Next Up: Wyoming will travel to Connecticut Saturday. Game time is 1:30 p.m. UConn lost 52-21 to Army Saturday. They are 0-4 on the season.