LARAMIE – Wyoming's spring is going out like a lion.
 
Head coach Jay Sawvel had to scold two defensive players for finishing plays with excessive force during the team's 14^th practice on Thursday.
 
The rowdy session ended with a combative 1-on-1 kickoff drill.
 
When defensive tackle Jayden Williams and left tackle Rex Johnsen – two Cowboys who will be vital to the team's success in the fall – stepped to the front of the line to spar in the special teams exercise, Sawvel stepped in and ended the spirited practice after 18 periods.
 
"I knew that they would tee it up during that," Sawvel said. "Lot of energy today on a shortened practice. It's good. When you have to say whoa to certain things it's a good thing. I appreciate that."
 
The Cowboys will play the annual spring game at 1 p.m. Saturday in War Memorial Stadium.
 
Here are three key positions to watch during the 80-to-95-play scrum, which begins with the defense leading 21-0 lead and the offense challenged to catch up:
 
Quarterback
 
What a difference dual-threat QBs make.
 
UW's offense will look much different this season under Christian Taylor, who was a respected play caller at the FCS level before spending the past two seasons as an assistant with the Buffalo Bills.
 
For starters, the quarterbacks – Tyler Hughes and Mason Drube are expected to take all the snaps Saturday – will be an integral part of the running game.
 
"Between the new buck (Hughes) that we have to Drube, those guys create plays, they extend plays," defensive ends coach Brian Hendricks said. "When there's a designed play for them, they do what they're supposed to, but when things break down, they do the undesigned. That's what makes it so difficult to defend. It's very refreshing."
 
The 6-foot, 210-pound Hughes was recruited by Taylor at William & Mary, where he passed for 2,330 yards with 20 touchdowns and three interceptions and rushed for 670 yards and 11 touchdowns last season.
 
Drube, the talented redshirt freshman from Gillette, has also demonstrated a strong grasp of Taylor's playbook through 14 practices and has already emerged as a vocal leader.
 
"They've done a great job of making daily progress," Taylor said. "I thought at the beginning of the (previous) scrimmage they started slow, probably the whole offense started slow, but after that 2-minute (period) they picked it up."
 
Even though defenders are not allowed to hit or tackle Hughes and Drube in the spring game, it should be obvious to spectators that UW has upgraded the position with more accurate passers and dynamic athletes.
 
Landon Sims has been limited this spring while recovering from a knee injury. He will join the competition in fall camp, as will incoming freshman Taylor Hasselbeck. Junior Gage Brook is making the transition from quarterback to tight end.
 
Cornerback
 
Taylor is the only new coach on the offensive side of the ball and cornerbacks coach JB Hall is the only new defensive assistant on Sawvel's full-time staff.
 
The talented young coach has some talented young players to develop, including sophomore Tyson Shamsid-Deen and true freshman Kendall Griffin.
 
"We have the opportunity to kind of mold those guys and develop them because there's no bad habits quite yet," Hall said. "That's what is exciting. They are doing a great job as a collective group of taking the coaching, learning and developing. Do we make mistakes every day? Yes, nobody's perfect, not even me. It has been exciting to be working with these guys."
 
There are high expectations for Weber State transfer Logan Mackey and Snow College transfer BJ Inmon. Juniors Ian Bell and Junus McGraw are also competing for spots on the two-deep.
 
"I've seen a lot of guys that are improving each day. Coach Hall has done a really good job and brought a lot of energy to them," defensive coordinator Aaron Bohl said on the One Wyoming Podcast. "It has been like a cycle. We have put a lot of guys out there, given everyone their shot and this Saturday will be huge.
 
"We're excited to hopefully see a lot of people there because one thing is these young players need to realize what it's like to play in front of a crowd and people look at you when the ball is in the air."
 
Wide receiver
 
The Cowboys are explosive and deep at running back with Samuel "Tote" Harris, Markell Holman and Nico Hamilton leading the way.
 
Taylor will also be utilizing the tight end group in a variety of formations. Brook, Jake Wilson, Kyle Frendt, Landon Pace, Isaac Schoenfeld, Tyler Hampton and Tyler Siddons all have a chance to have roles on this team as targets in the passing game and/or blockers in the running game.
 
The competition for the receiver rotation won't be sorted until the end of fall camp.
 
Sophomore Deion DeBlanc is a dangerous weapon in the slot. Senior Eric Richardson and junior Bricen Brantley can stretch the field vertically but need to perform with more consistency.
 
Returners Charlie Coenen and Jackson Holman and newcomer Justin Popovich are also in the mix. Redshirt freshmen Pierre "PJ" Jackson and Ke'Lyn Washom have the highest ceilings.
 
"We've got a number of receivers that need to have a good day and show up," Sawvel said. "We've got corners that this is a big deal for."
 
Shamsid-Deen will be the only UW player in a win-win situation during the spring game. He has been playing cornerback in Bohl's defense and wide receiver at times in Taylor's offense.
 
"As long as we're winning games, we can use that guy as much as possible," Hall said. "At corner there's a ton of technique, a ton of fundamentals that need to happen. We try to keep the game simple for our guys in the perimeter. So, when he does have that opportunity to go make a play with the ball in his hands, just watch out. He's a good player."
 
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.
 
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