LARAMIE – Aaron Bohl feels like he is herding cats right now.
 
Wyoming's second-year defensive coordinator is charged with getting a list of newcomers – two linebackers, four defensive linemen and five defensive backs have been added to the roster via the transfer portal – on the same page with the returning Pokes during spring practice.
 
Bohl and head coach Jay Sawvel are determined to get the defense to play at a high standard that slipped during last season's 3-9 finish.
 
"My hair is going to be looking like my dad's probably by the end of the spring," Bohl, the son of former UW head coach Craig Bohl, quipped after Thursday's practice in War Memorial Stadium. "It is stressful. It's good though."
 
UW only returns three starters from the defense that started the 15-14 victory at Washington State to close the 2024 campaign.
 
Defensive end Tyce Westland, nose tackles Ben Florentine and Dante Drake, defensive tackle Jayden Williams and cornerback Keany Parks were part of the unit that allowed only 44 points over the final 10 quarters last season.
 
"Looking back at last year, obviously there were a lot of struggles. I thought we kind of turned a corner over the last two and a half weeks and really got down to the nitty gritty of just attacking," Bohl said. "That's really what defense comes down to. All the fancy terms, the fancy blitzes and everything … it's about tackling, getting off blocks, using your hands.
 
"We've made a big emphasis on, I know this is going to sound cliché, but being a better football team. What I mean by that is the basics of football – by hitting people, by using your hands, by getting off blocks. Guys know the expectations; guys know the standards."
 
Injuries throughout the defensive line and at the safety spots exposed UW's lack of depth early last season when the team was facing a daunting non-conference schedule that included eventual College Football Playoff participant Arizona State and 11-win BYU.
 
Sawvel and the staff aggressively addressed the issues by signing defensive ends Esaia Bogar (Riverside City College), Dawan Martin (Youngstown State) and Brayden Wilson (Weber State), defensive tackle Aneesh Vyas (Bucknell) and safeties Desman Hearns (Southern Illinois), Justin Taylor (Wisconsin), Jaden DaCosta (Portland State) and Brooklyn Cheek (Cal).
 
Two sizable linebacker transfers, 6-foot-3, 245-pound Brayden Johnson (Oklahoma Baptist) and 6-4, 241-pound Ethan Stuhlsatz (Lindenwood), were also brought in along with cornerback BJ Inmon (Snow College).
 
Bohl said the position battles across the board remind him of 2022 when a young group that included Easton Gibbs, Shae Suiaunoa, Wyett Ekeler, Isaac White, DeVonne Harris and Jordan Bertagnole stepped into the spotlight.
 
"That year we ended up having a pretty good team, but it was a bunch of new guys that didn't know anything about anything," Bohl said. "It's fun seeing guys that are so green growing and just learning. They hang on to every word that you say and just keep learning and keep improving."
 
Bohl expects UW's retooled defense to "be swimming" through the first six spring practices before getting up to speed and growing as a cohesive unit during the final three weeks of the spring.
 
UW will put the pads on for the first time this spring for a 10:30 a.m. practice Saturday in the Indoor Practice Facility. The session will be open to the public.
 
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