For Cowboys to take next step, they must reach a bowl game

[Yabadabadoo]

Holmgren is now mashing the ball from both sides of the plate, folks.

Occasionally, Craig Bohl catches himself daydreaming the same way Wyoming fans do.

“I’ll sit out on my deck in the summertime and you start thinking, ‘Well, you’ve got this win or that win,’” he said. “I learned a long time ago the ones that you think you’re going to get you probably don’t and the ones you don’t you can get surprised.”

The thing is, Bohl's theory primarily rings true only with inconsistent programs.

When Bohl’s North Dakota State teams ran off three straight Football Championship Subdivision titles, they beat the teams they were supposed to, at least on paper. And, particularly on the road or in Frisco, Texas — the annual site of the FCS championship game — they found a way to remain standing.

When you’re ranked No. 1 in the FCS polls, beating the teams you’re supposed to is a tall task because that means running the table at home and winning a lot of games on the road.

For Wyoming, beating the teams it’s supposed to is paramount to making strides as a program in 2015.

Asked during Mountain West Media Days what constitutes making strides — does he have a certain win total in mind? — Bohl said: “I think that’s dangerous. Any coach around here would tell you that. But we dang sure need to be better.”

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[Yabadabadoo]

I don't necessarily agree that the Pokes need to make a Bowl Game this season in order for the year to be a success. The schedule based on records and opponents appears to be favorable for a season with at least 6 wins - but don't forget this is only year 2 of this regime -- and in my opinion slow and steady wins the race eventually.

In other words if the Pokes win 5 games this season - yet look the part of a team that has improved considerably from last season's foundation campaign, if they are much more competitive and show tangible signs of progress in all areas of the team, then I'll be enthused and feel like the trajectory is continuing to be positive and the arrow is pointing up.

This team is still very young (particularly in the secondary), it will need to learn how to win and to finish off games, and it will need to build its confidence week in and week out.

The Pokes are still a considerable work in progress and Coach Bohl's masterpiece is far from being the completed beast that he hopes to ultimately build.

A Bowl Game would obviously be nice - but not the final determiner in my mind of what will be judged as success and or failure in 2015.

[BeaverPoke]

I don't necessarily agree that the Pokes need to make a Bowl Game this season in order for the year to be a success. The schedule based on records and opponents appears to be favorable for a season with at least 6 wins - but don't forget this is only year 2 of this regime -- and in my opinion slow and steady wins the race eventually.

In other words if the Pokes win 5 games this season - yet look the part of a team that has improved considerably from last season's foundation campaign, if they are much more competitive and show tangible signs of progress in all areas of the team, then I'll be enthused and feel like the trajectory is continuing to be positive and the arrow is pointing up.

This team is still very young (particularly in the secondary), it will need to learn how to win and to finish off games, and it will need to build its confidence week in and week out.

The Pokes are still a considerable work in progress and Coach Bohl's masterpiece is far from being the completed beast that he hopes to ultimately build.

A Bowl Game would obviously be nice - but not the final determiner in my mind of what will be judged as success and or failure in 2015.

Dino, in another thread I posted that the 2016 schedule is remarkably similar to the 2015 schedule.
Something like the same 8 MWC teams, same EMU team, 1 P5 team, 1 FCS team, and 1 other G5 team.

Bot schedules are on the easier side. We may not have the team ready to win this season, but do you think they should be winning next season?

I think 15 over the next 2 should be the goal.
I don't want to see pretty losses. I want wins now.
I want 6 or 7 this season. Then 8 or 9 next season.

I want these two successful seasons to build into the 2017 season where we should have a senior RB in Hill and a RS-sophomore (or JR) RB in Overstreet, and returning starting QB in Nick Smith. The WR core should be strong as well. A couple Gatorade POYs should be upper classmen by then.
The young secondary should be the most experienced secondary in the MWC at that point.
Bohl's defense should be running at a high level that season.

With the 2017 season looking like we could be returning a lot of key players, I want to know that the key players that we are returning are winners, and more importantly, the new contributors will have known the winning culture ever since they arrived on campus for a visit.

The reason I want that is for a couple reasons: 1- it means we win this season. But more importantly, 2- it means that just having a winning record won't be enough. If we are a losing program, getting a winning season or 2 is a big deal. But if we are a winning program, a MWC Championship is a big deal.

Win. Win now. Win tomorrow. Then win big the day after.

[Yabadabadoo]

I don't necessarily agree that the Pokes need to make a Bowl Game this season in order for the year to be a success. The schedule based on records and opponents appears to be favorable for a season with at least 6 wins - but don't forget this is only year 2 of this regime -- and in my opinion slow and steady wins the race eventually.

In other words if the Pokes win 5 games this season - yet look the part of a team that has improved considerably from last season's foundation campaign, if they are much more competitive and show tangible signs of progress in all areas of the team, then I'll be enthused and feel like the trajectory is continuing to be positive and the arrow is pointing up.

This team is still very young (particularly in the secondary), it will need to learn how to win and to finish off games, and it will need to build its confidence week in and week out.

The Pokes are still a considerable work in progress and Coach Bohl's masterpiece is far from being the completed beast that he hopes to ultimately build.

A Bowl Game would obviously be nice - but not the final determiner in my mind of what will be judged as success and or failure in 2015.

Dino, in another thread I posted that the 2016 schedule is remarkably similar to the 2015 schedule.
Something like the same 8 MWC teams, same EMU team, 1 P5 team, 1 FCS team, and 1 other G5 team.

Bot schedules are on the easier side. We may not have the team ready to win this season, but do you think they should be winning next season?

I think 15 over the next 2 should be the goal.
I don't want to see pretty losses. I want wins now.
I want 6 or 7 this season. Then 8 or 9 next season.

I want these two successful seasons to build into the 2017 season where we should have a senior RB in Hill and a RS-sophomore (or JR) RB in Overstreet, and returning starting QB in Nick Smith. The WR core should be strong as well. A couple Gatorade POYs should be upper classmen by then.
The young secondary should be the most experienced secondary in the MWC at that point.
Bohl's defense should be running at a high level that season.

With the 2017 season looking like we could be returning a lot of key players, I want to know that the key players that we are returning are winners, and more importantly, the new contributors will have known the winning culture ever since they arrived on campus for a visit.

The reason I want that is for a couple reasons: 1- it means we win this season. But more importantly, 2- it means that just having a winning record won't be enough. If we are a losing program, getting a winning season or 2 is a big deal. But if we are a winning program, a MWC Championship is a big deal.

Win. Win now. Win tomorrow. Then win big the day after.

Do I think we should look for them to win more next season after this one? Yes, BP, I do. What I'm saying though, is that I'm really reluctant to put a win total down as what could be considered to be a benchmark of what would be a good year - or evidence that the program under Bohl is taking steps to become a better football team.

Lets say they start out 2-0 with wins over N. Dakota & E. Michigan. After that they play tough against Washington State but end up dropping their first game of the season.

Then they beat N. Mexico but lose in OT to Appy State.

Through the first 4 games the offense is considerably improved from a season ago, the tackling is noticeably better on defense, and Wick and Hill are really fun to watch.

Then they beat A. Force but lose a very competitive game against Nevada.

They go to Boise and lose 30-21, they're in the game well into the 4th quarter.

They then lose to Utah State - but win big in the Border War game against CSU.

Off of that game they head to San Diego State and give them all they can handle before losing eventually 27-23.

They cap off the season with a win at home over UNLV.

All of the above is obviously hypothetical, but what I'm trying to say is that such a season with improvements across the board with each position group on the team, and with the momentum of a more than respectable season completed and taking it into Year 3 of the Bohl era, in my mind, would be those tangible signs of progress that we should all be looking for - and serve as the fuel to expect that Year 3 will continue to see signs of further growth.

I believe that Bohl is building this team with the intention of getting better as quickly as possible, while also being realistic enough to understand that this was a total and complete tear down situation he walked into and that it will be a process of multiple years to get the Cowboys to the point of where they can reasonably be expected to contend and compete for a MWC Championship.

A few months ago when I was hosting my show in Cheyenne, I asked Bohl point blank: "If at the end of your tenure in Laramie you do not win a MWC Championship, would you feel your tenure would have been a failure?" Bohl's response took about a half second: "Yes", he said.

A seven course meal takes a long time to make great, and so does the building a a football team where the scales were showing less than zero when Chef Bohl walked into the room.

I believe he is aiming for Year 5 to be the first of many where the Pokes are playing for all the marbles in the MWC.

[Wyo2dal]

What I care about is beating teams we should. That means no FCS losses. not losing to bottom of the MWC as well. If we don't beat Boise or USU I won't be completely disappointed but if we lose to UNLV or UNM again when we should beat them I'll be somewhat disappointed.

[Yabadabadoo]

In my hypothetical I mentioned a loss at Appy State...I believe the Pokes should win that game.