Cowboys up next

Utah (5-0, 2-0 MWC) will take a short trip northeast, taking on Wyoming (2-4, 0-2) in perhaps their last trip to Laramie. Utah has been in the same conference as the Cowboys since 1938, and the series is the third longest in Utah history. The game kicks off at 4 pm Mountain time and will be televised on the Mtn channel. The game can also be heard on radio in Utah on ESPN 700 AM (Internet streaming of the radio broadcast can be found on the ESPN 700 website). Radio pregame coverage begins two hours before kickoff.

In their last game, the Utes used a historic quarter to run away from Iowa State 68-27. No opponent in Iowa State history had scored that many points in Ames. The Utes simply dominated every phase of the game from the second quarter on, outscoring the Cyclones 31-0 in the decisive quarter and 58-13 in the final three stanzas. Utah combined to put up more than 1,000 yards between offense, kick and punt returns, and interception return yards. Utah did turn the ball over twice which led to 14 points for the Cyclones, but Utah shrugged off their mistakes and executed flawlessly for the final 45 minutes. Utah's 31 second quarter points were the most points in a quarter since quarter records started being kept in 1968.

Utah will be the fourth top 10 opponent Wyoming has played in a brutal schedule. Wyoming played then-fourth ranked Texas, hosted Boise State, and last week Wyoming was shut out by fifth-ranked TCU 45-0. Missing their starting quarterback, the Cowboys had no chance against a ferocious Horned Frogs defense. Wyoming struggled all game on offense, gaining just 191 yards, picking up just eight first downs, and failing to convert on all ten of their third downs. TCU on the other hand could not be stopped, gaining an absurd 9.3 yards per play en route to their 45 points and 578 yards of total offense. Quarterback Austyn Carta-Samuels did not play against TCU, but will play against Utah. Carta-Samuels will not be wearing his usual number, but will instead don number 12 to honor freshman linebacker Ruben Narcisse. Narcisse was killed in an automobile accident in early September, and each week a different Cowboy has worn his number 12.

Utah holds a 50-31-1 series lead, but the Cowboys hold a 20-18 edge in Laramie. Utah has won the last three games in the series, outscoring the Cowboys 112-17 in those three games. Even with their recent success, Kyle Whittingham refuses to allow his players or staff to overlook the Cowboys, especially in the hazardous conditions Laramie can have.

"There have been some great battles in Laramie," Whittingham said in his weekly media conference. "They smacked us around a few years back in 2006. There have been some right-down-to-the-wire games up there. I remember as a player going up and playing in snowstorms. In 1980, they beat us there when Jimmy Mac was our quarterback. That was a miserable experience.Laramie can be a difficult place to play and we need to have a good week of preparation."