LARAMIE – There are reasons why Jay Sawvel is looking forward to pulling the curtain back and letting the public watch Wyoming's final major scrimmage of fall camp at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday at War Memorial Stadium.
 
Beyond getting some new Cowboys used to playing in front of a crowd, the second-year head coach wants the fan base to see how all the offseason work is paying off.
 
"This will be a vastly improved football team," Sawvel said Monday at UW's fall sports media day. "I think that it's easy to see to anybody who walks out on the field on a day-to-day basis."
 
Scouts from 17 NFL teams will have watched UW practice when the third week of fall camp concludes. Tight end John Michael Gyllenborg headlines the list of 2026 draft-eligible Pokes already being evaluated.
 
Representatives from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Houston Texans had the opportunity to watch Sawvel's squad follow up last Thursday's 125-play scrimmage with two extremely physical practices over the weekend.
 
"I asked (the scouts), 'You see a lot of practices like this?' They said, 'Coach, we haven't seen a practice like this in years,' especially the one that happened (Sunday)," Sawvel said. "There was a lot of combat there, so we were excited about that part of it. I'm really pleased with the attitude of the team, and the development of the team. We have a lot of work to do."
 
Sawvel said Monday would be "the hardest day of the week" for many of his players because there wasn't an on-field practice.The Cowboys will return to the field Tuesday as they begin ramping up for Thursday's scrimmage.

"I feel like even during fall camp there is a sense of urgency with everyone," defensive tackle Lucas Samsula said. "You can feel the chip on our shoulders when we're headed to practice."
 
Sawvel noted that the development of key young players, including a handful of true freshmen expected to play, coupled with the retention of proven talents like Gyllenborg and the addition of key transfers has improved the competition and depth across the board.
 
"Every player on the team, whether it was workouts, lifting, they're taking it personally," said Damashja Harris, a gifted North Texas running back transfer. "You can feel the passion; you can feel the sense of urgency in everything we do. Coach Sawvel is definitely pushing us. I feel that's the biggest thing."
 
Several position groups, including running back, have been noticeably upgraded since UW ended the disappointing start to the Sawvel era with a win at Washington State last November.
 
The wide receiver room suddenly looks like a strength under the direction of Jovon Bouknight and the linebacker room has reloaded with five or six players ready to make an impact for Aaron Bohl.
 
"I'm really impressed," left guard Wes King said. "I think we've made the full team mindset change to being player-led. In the past there's been guys here or there that count the clock and can't wait for (practice) to end. This year it's just non-stop rolling with people who want to be out there at practice and not people who, quote, just wear the jersey."
 
Despite filling holes by adding 23 transfers and preparing for the future by signing 24 true freshmen, Sawvel and his staff were able to retain the bulk of the fully developed Cowboys they wanted to keep out of the portal.
 
The list includes Gyllenborg, offensive linemen Jack Walsh and Caden Barnett, wide receivers Chris Durr Jr. and Jaylen Sargent, defensive end Tyce Westland and quarterback Kaden Anderson.
 
The 2025 Cowboys have a sense of confidence they can ride for the brand to the top of the Mountain West standings.
 
"It would mean everything to me," said senior safety Andrew Johnson, who is from Cheyenne. "I've been on teams that were a game away from getting into the championship game and if I was able to flip that script and be part of the team that finally did it, I would not only feel like we achieved to our potential but left the program, left the University of Wyoming in a place to continue doing that in the future."
 
If you are interested in learning more about NIL (Name, Image and Likeness) or would like to support our student-athletes, please visit 1wyo.org. 1WYO was created out of Wyoming's culture of neighbor helping neighbor. The mission is to promote and strengthen local charitable organizations and develop Wyoming student athletes. 
 
Follow Ryan for more stories on Wyoming athletics on X at @By_RyanThorburn on Facebook at Wyoming Athletics and Instagram at wyoathletics. Also follow him at Pokes Insider at Gowyo.com/pokesinsider.