Laramie – If there was a book of coaching clichés, a photo of Wyoming’s Joe Glenn should be pasted under “Take ’em one game at a time.”
Glenn never wants anybody to look ahead. Not him. Not his players. Not the water boy. But during preparations for Saturday’s 27-24 victory over San Diego State, Glenn thought it was time.
He talked to his squad about bowl implications for the first time this season. Wyoming (5-5, 4-2 Mountain West) stands one victory away from being bowl-eligible. Wyoming plays Thursday night at conference leader Brigham Young and finishes the regular season Nov. 18 at struggling UNLV.
“With us, it’s been focus on the here and now; that’s our M.O.,” Glenn said after shaking hands with dozens of fans among the 14,012 at War Memorial Stadium. “But we brought up the bowls. I thought the guys needed a little motivation after the TCU game (a 26-3 loss).”
Glenn would like to say he had this one all the way, but Wyoming’s “Senior Day” almost became a day to forget. After spotting San Diego State a 17-3 lead, the Cowboys reeled off 24 unanswered points and looked to be in control with a 10-point advantage. But a 66-yard touchdown from backup Aztecs quarterback Kevin O’Connell to Brett Swain with 1:42 remaining meant San Diego State (1-7, 1-3) was just an onside kick away from pulling an upset.
Wyoming put its “good hands unit” on the field for the short kick. Glenn’s heart must have skipped a beat as he watched sophomore Kyle Jacobo, a backup wide receiver, use one hand to knock down and then grab San Diego State’s onside attempt.
“We had a chance,” first-year Aztecs coach Chuck Long said.
The victory marked the 200th for Wyoming in 57-year-old War Memorial Stadium. But moving to within a game of being considered by the bowl committees is the only statistic anybody cared about.
Although Wyoming was a 15-point favorite and San Diego State was coming off a loss to Division I-AA Cal Poly, Glenn said there was no reason for his team to feel anything but good about themselves Saturday. Wyoming overcame a two-touchdown deficit, an off-day by Cowboys quarterback Karsten Sween (15-for-25 for just 97 yards) and the absence of regular starting running back Wynel Seldon (thigh bruise).
In Seldon’s place, sophomore Devin Moore (131 yards) and senior Joseph Harris (84 yards and two touchdowns) came through.
Both gave credit to the line, which opened up holes big enough to accommodate a pickup. For Moore, it was the first 100-yard game of his career. Harris, one of 16 seniors playing their final home game, scored two touchdowns for the second time in his career and couldn’t have dreamed of a better way to finish.
“We stuck with what works,” senior offensive tackle Chase Johnson said. “We don’t always get to run block like that, but (Sween) was struggling a little bit.”
Wyoming place-kicker Aric Goodman, a freshman from Cherry Creek High School, thought he was just providing a little cushion with a career-best 52-yard field goal with 7:08 remaining for a 27-17 lead.
Goodman, whose previous long field goal as a Cowboy had been 43 yards, had no idea his 3-pointer ultimately would provide the margin of victory.
“It seemed like the ball hung in the air for an eternity,” Goodman said.
Staff writer Tom Kensler can be reached at 303-954-1280 or tkensler@denverpost.com.
