Having lost three consecutive “winnable” games, Wyoming now needs players and staff to get away from each other during a welcome bye week.
That’s why coach Joe Glenn sent his assistant coaches out recruiting and his players off on a three-day weekend after a short practice Thursday.
“I think they need to get away from it, especially since we’re in a slump,” Glenn said. “Maybe get a little time away from the coaches, maybe go to a high school game or something, just get freshened up for the home stretch.
“The kids are probably more resilient than the coaches, but it’s a tough blow to lose to your archrivals in a game that we probably played well enough to win in a lot of areas. Maybe it’s good to get away from me, too. I’m no fun to be around right now.”
Wyoming is coming off a 39-31 loss to Colorado State on Saturday. As anyone who has watched Wyoming go from 4-1 to 4-4 knows, the one area in which the Cowboys have not played well enough to win is ball protection. Fourteen turnovers in three games, five in Saturday’s loss, have been too much to overcome. And that, Glenn said, has been the focus during a light practice schedule this week.
“How do you parent your children?” Glenn said. “You say the same thing three or four different ways. I’m going to talk about it. It’s not one of those things I’m not going to talk about and hope it goes away.”
Glenn said he doesn’t believe the rash of turnovers is an indication the players have lost confidence.
“I think they know they’re good enough to win,” he said. “Our margin for error is very, very limited.”
The three fumbles at CSU, he said, were all by good players trying to make big plays, so the ‘Pokes are not about to get more conservative.
“We are who we are,” he said. “We know how to protect the football; we’ve just got to do it.”
Wyoming is 2-3 in the Mountain West and out of the title chase but can still shoot for a bowl game.
“That’s what we’re playing for,” Glenn said. “It’s an incentive. It’s where we were a year ago. I think our kids remember what a great time it was, so there’s no lack of motivation.”
Joseph Sanchez can be reached at 303-820-5458 or jsanchez@denverpost.com.
