Wyoming Cowboys Suffer Late-Night Loss to No. 19 BYU in Last Non-Conference Game of 2022 Season 

By Kaycee Clark-Mellott

Special to the Wyoming Truth

PROVO, Utah—In a game where the Cowboys were 22-point underdogs to the 19th ranked team in the nation, Brigham Young University (BYU), they battled toe-to-toe. The late kickoff led to the game ending close to midnight with BYU on top 38-24. 

Wyoming kicked off the game by forcing BYU to punt after three plays, after which they drove 57 yards to kick a field goal for a 3-0 lead. The Cowboys forced another three and out for the Cougars before BYU responded with a quick four-play drive that went 91 yards for a touchdown, taking a 7-3 lead. 

Two minutes into the second quarter, Wyoming answered BYU with a four-yard touchdown run on a sweep by wide receiver Wyatt Wieland, making the score 10-7. On the final drive of the first half, and with four seconds left, BYU’s Brayden Cosper threw a three-yard touchdown pass to give BYU a 14-10 halftime lead.  

The Cowboys looked flat when they received the second-half kickoff. They had back-to-back three and outs, resulting in punts that the Cougars converted into points. First came a Koby Epps three-yard receiving touchdown, followed by a Keanu Hill nine-yard reception for the touchdown, to make the score 28-10. 

On the first play of the fourth quarter, Wyoming returned to the scoring column with a 19-yard touchdown pass to tight end Treyton Welch, who was wide open in the end zone, closing the gap to 28-17. This drive was helped by penalties from BYU, putting the Cowboys at the 50-yard line and another unnecessary roughness penalty, giving Wyoming a free 44 yards. 

The Cougars gave Wyoming several chances to get back into the game, punting after a three-and-out and turning it over on downs on Wyoming’s 41-yard line. But the Pokes couldn’t take advantage. BYU scored another touchdown with Hill carrying a Wyoming defensive back into end zone to complete a 68-yard touchdown extending the Cougars’ lead to 35-17. 

Wyoming battled back with a four-yard touchdown to wide receiver Joshua Cobbs, making it 35-24. BYU tacked on a field goal with 1:24 left in the game—and that sealed the win for the Cougars with a final score of 38-24.  

The Cougars nearly doubled the Cowboys’ yardage, 525 compared to 278 yards, respectively. BYU quarterback Jaren Hall exploded for 337 yards, four touchdowns and an 81.3 completion percentage. Running back Miles Davis, the third-string back, also posted a career high of 131 yards. 

Wyoming’s Andrew Peasley threw for 154 yards and two touchdowns. Cobbs led the way, receiving with 64 yards and a touchdown with Wieland having 27 yards. 

Cole Godbout and Jordan Bertagnole were standouts on the interior defensive line.  The two combined to shut down most of BYU’s run game in the middle of the field. Both had seven tackles, with Godbout adding two-and-a-half tackles for loss, and each had a quarterback hurry.  

In unfortunate circumstances, wide receiver Will Pelissier went down with an injury to his shoulder while trying to snag a touchdown catch in the fourth quarter. No updates were provided on his status.   

A big factor that could have kept Wyoming in the game was the number of penalties called on BYU: 11 penalties for 109 yards. Cougar fans expressed their anger, booing the officials as they ran off the field after the game.  

Wyoming now looks forward to only Mountain West Conference games for the rest of the regular season. The Cowboys will host San Jose State on Saturday, Oct. 1, with a 5:30 p.m. kickoff. The game will be broadcast on CBS Sports Network.