LARAMIE – Ther journey from the Midnight Sun to the FBS spotlight was a long one of Malique Singleton.
 
Wyoming's redshirt sophomore nickel back grew up in East Anchorage, Alaska, before moving to the Denver area for high school to boost his recruiting profile.
 
Singleton was a standout in the Grandview High School program that also produced notable Cowboys like Eddie Yarbrough and Tanner and Gunner Gentry.
 
After racking up 100 tackles, six interceptions, four pass breakups, one fumble recovery and a blocked field goal during his senior season, Singleton signed with UW. He also held offers from rivals Air Force and Colorado State.
 
Singleton played limited snaps with five appearances through his first two seasons while developing. All the work paid off last Saturday when he made his first career start at North Texas filling in for Wrook Brown, who had to sit out the first half after being called for a targeting penalty against BYU.
 
"I waited a while and developed a while. I'm still very much in that process, but it was exciting to prep the whole week knowing I was going to be able to go out there," said Singleton, who had four tackles against the Mean Green. "I had general butterflies that you get but I felt very calm. I knew I was prepared. I felt more calm than anything else, but there were some normal nerves."
 
Singleton is listed as the starting nickel on the latest depth chart with Brown at free safety and Andrew Johnson at strong safety due to injuries to veterans Isaac White and Wyett Ekeler.
 
UW hosts Air Force for homecoming on Saturday at War Memorial Stadium (6 p.m., CBS Sports Network).
 
"Every game is important, but the games that are rivalry games and conference games are always way more important," Singleton said.
 
Singleton caught Craig Bohl's eye during the 2022 camp when he learned the playbook at a much faster pace than is typical for true freshmen.
But when Keonte Glinton was injured that season, Brown was thrown into the lineup and made 10 tackles during a win at New Mexico. The redshirt junior has been a fixture in the starting lineup and one of the defense's most dependable players since.
 
"I see Malique make a ton of plays during the week in practice, and it was exciting to see him go out there and play," Brown said. "He was a cool cat; he wasn't nervous, and he was in all the right spots. I was excited to see him out there."
 
Singleton will remain a key member of the rotation. His impressive football I.Q. will come in handy for the shorthanded Pokes against the Falcons' option attack.

"For a defense getting to play an offense like this, I feel some teams might not enjoy it but a lot of dudes on this team really enjoy getting to play an offense like that because it's so different," Singleton said. "For a lot of guys, you get to play a much different style and it's a lot of fun."
 
Brown and Singleton can both help fill the void at the safety positions on Saturday. Ekeler will be out against Air Force after having surgery on two broken thumbs, White is questionable with a foot injury and Johnson plans to play with a broken thumb.
 
UW typically takes the nickel position off the field against and uses an extra linebacker against the Falcons.
 
"It doesn't seem that crazy," Singleton said of the Cowboys' depth getting tested this season after Brown, Ekeler and White logged almost every defensive snap together in 2023. "If you've paid attention to football long enough you know injuries are part of it. It happens every year whether it's at the college level or the NFL level or the high school level. Teams will have sets of injuries at spots, and you have to use your depth the right way and put your guys in the right spots.
 
"That's part of the nature of football which makes it so cool. Those things happen every so often and as a team and a group of players you have to figure out how to adjust to that."
 
UW head coach Jay Sawvel said the team is looking to "redefine" its season this week in the Mountain West opener after an unsatisfying 0-4 start.
 
If the Pokes can pull off a win, they would enter an open date with momentum and time to get healthier before San Diego State visits the War on Oct. 12.
 
"I thought there were some things he did solidly the other night," Sawvel said of Singleton. "There were some things to build on (with his performance) that we're obviously going to need to have. The situation we're in isn't going to (be) fixed in a week. It's going to be longer term."
 
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