ESPN College Football

Boise State quarterback Kellen Moore was named the Mountain West Offensive Player of the Year, the league announced Tuesday.

The other award recipients:

• Defensive Player of the Year: TCU linebacker Tank Carder
• Special Teams Player of the Year: TCU kick retrner Greg McCoy
• Freshman of the Year: Wyoming QB Brett Smith
• Coach of the Year: Wyoming coach Dave Christensen

Moore completed 300 of 405 passes for 3,507 yards and 41 touchdowns this season, setting Boise State and Mountain West single-season records in completions and touchdowns. His completion percentage (.741) is also the highest single-season mark in program history.

Carder becomes the fourth player in league history to win back-to-back Mountain West Defensive Player of the Year honors, after making 66 tackles and recording two interceptions.

McCoy gives TCU three straight special teams player of the year honors. He leads the MWC and ranks fourth nationally with a kick return average of 31.6, and has two kick returns for touchdowns this season.

Smith set a new Mountain West freshman single-season record with 3,140 yards of total offense, surpassing former TCU quarterback Andy Dalton (2,691 yards in 2007).

Christensen led Wyoming to an 8-4 regular season, improving on a 3-9 season in 2010. The Cowboys' five conference wins also ties a program record.

Here are the first-team selections:

Offense

QB: Kellen Moore, Boise State

WR: Josh Boyce, TCU

WR: Tyler Shoemaker, Boise State

RB: Ronnie Hillman, San Diego State

RB: Doug Martin, Boise State

TE: Gavin Escobar, San Diego State

OL: Kyle Dooley , TCU

OL: Tommie Draheim, San Diego State

OL: Blaize Foltz, TCU

OL: Nate Potter, Boise State

OL: A. J. Wallerstein, Air Force

PK: Parker Herrington, Air Force

PR/KR: Greg McCoy, TCU

Defense

DL: Nordly Capi, Colorado State

DL: Tyrone Crawford, Boise State

DL: Stansly Maponga, TCU

DL: Shea McClellin, Boise State

LB: Miles Burris, San Diego State

LB: Tank Carder, TCU

LB: Carmen Messina, New Mexico

DB: Jon Davis, Air Force

DB: George Iloka, Boise State

DB: Leon McFadden, San Diego State

DB: Larry Parker, San Diego State

P: Brian Stahovich, San Diego State

Andrea Adelson talks with the coach about the expectations for the upcoming season.

Wyoming starting quarterback Austyn Carta-Samuels has decided to transfer after a tumultuous sophomore season that ended in disappointment.

Speculation swirled in December that Carta-Samuels was headed out of Laramie. But coach Dave Christensen said his quarterback was staying. He was under that impression until Monday, when spring classes started and Carta-Samuels informed Christensen he would not return to the team in 2011.

“I had met with Austyn at the end of the season,” Christensen said in a statement issued through the school. “After our meeting, he had indicated he was excited to be a Cowboy, and had already signed up for his spring lifting schedule.

“While it is disappointing to our team and Wyoming fans that Austyn has made this decision, if you are in this business long enough as a coach you face situations where young men choose to transfer. We wish Austyn the best in his future."

In an interview with the Laramie Boomerang, Carta-Samuels declined to say why he decided to leave. He said he would enroll in a junior college and work with a quarterbacks coach and former Ole Miss quarterback Jeremiah Masoli with the hopes of playing football again.

“After the season, I made a tough decision that it was best for me not to come back, and I promise that it wasn’t for the wrong reasons,” Carta-Samuels told the newspaper.

As a freshman in 2009, Carta-Samuels threw for 1,953 yards, 10 touchdowns and five interceptions, leading the Cowboys to a bowl game. But this past season, Wyoming went 3-9 and Carta-Samuels struggled, throwing nine touchdown passes, eight interceptions and 1,702 yards. He also missed a game with a concussion.

His transfer leaves Wyoming thin at quarterback. Nobody on the roster has taken a snap in a collegiate game. The Cowboys have now lost their best offensive and defensive players. Wyoming announced last week that starting strong safety Shamiel Gary has also left the team.

Now it is time for a little bit of non-AQ Did You Know?

You probably know that Air Force leads the nation in rushing with an average of 394 yards per game. But did you know the Falcons have finished the season with the NCAA rushing title just once since 1980? It happened in 2002, when they averaged 307.8 yards a game. They have been awfully close, though, finishing second 11 times in the same span.

Wyoming head coach Dave Christensen and offensive line coach Jim Harding return to a very familiar place when the Cowboys play Toledo on Saturday. Christensen spent nine seasons at Toledo as offensive line coach and offensive coordinator from 1992-2000. During his nine seasons, Toledo won outright or tied for three MAC West titles (1997, ‘98 and 2000) and won the MAC title in 1995, advancing to the Las Vegas Bowl where it defeated Nevada 40-37. Harding was a former offensive tackle for the Rockets from 1997-2000, starting a school record 46 consecutive games. In his senior season, he helped lead Toledo to a road win against Penn State, a 10-1 record and a No. 25 national ranking.

Utah State quarterback Diondre Borel needs 393 yards of total offense to reach 7,000 career yards, becoming just the second quarterback in school history to reach the milestone. He also needs 220 passing yards to crack the top five on the school’s career passing list.

Western Michigan receiver Jordan White is second in the nation in receiving yards with 127.3 a game. He averages nine catches.

Boise State receiver Titus Young has caught a pass in 33 straight games, the third longest active streak in the nation. He leads the country in all-purpose yards with 208 a game.

Nevada is 19-for-19 in the red zone with 14 touchdowns and five field goals this season. The Wolf Pack also have converted 6-of-7 fourth-down attempts.

TCU (27-3) and Utah (27-3) are two of six teams (Alabama 30-2, Florida 30-2, Boise State 29-1, Texas 28-3) with 27 or more wins since the beginning of the 2008 season. The Mountain West is one of two conferences (SEC) to have two teams with 27-plus wins during that span.

San Diego State and Utah are two of 12 teams in the country that have allowed just one sack this season. Both are off this week.

UTEP quarterback Trevor Vittatoe passed Tulsa's Paul Smith (2005-07) to move into fifth place on the all-time Conference USA passing list in last week’s game against Memphis (10,669). Vittatoe is also fifth on the conference list in touchdown passes (83).

North Texas defeated Florida Atlantic for the first time in school history last week. The Mean Green were 0-6 all-time versus the Owls coming into this game. North Texas starts the Sun Belt season 1-0 for the first time since 2005 when it won a road game at Middle Tennessee 14-7 to begin the conference season.

Five Northern Illinois starters -- running back Chad Spann, guard Joe Pawlak, tight end Jason Schepler, defensive end Jake Coffman and defensive end Sean Progar -- and 11 players on the current depth chart originally arrived to the school as walk-ons.

It appears Saints quarterback Drew Brees lost a bet with receiver Lance Moore when Toledo beat Purdue last week. Moore, who went to Toledo, sent out a Twitter message and picture of Brees wearing a Rockets shirt. Brees played at Purdue. The twitter message said, “Ok so I wasn't gonna do it but I couldn't help myself. Thanks Rockets for beating Purdue! @drewbrees u look good in that bro.”

Terrific note from ESPN Stats & Information: This year marks the first since 1947 that both New Mexico (0-4) and New Mexico State (0-3) have entered the month of October winless. Football seasons started later back then, and New Mexico was 0-1 while New Mexico State was 0-2 entering October. If neither team wins this week, something will have to give next week since they play each other in Las Cruces.

For Boise State, the business of getting back to football begins Saturday at Wyoming. But even then, the Broncos will be judged on more than their performance on the field.

We have seen it already. No. 3 Boise State was off last week after its 33-30 win against Virginia Tech, but might as well have lost for all the hand-wringing that ensued following the Hokies’ loss to James Madison. What Boise State does in its games is no longer good enough.

People will wonder not only whether they did enough to win (i.e. did they win by enough points), but they will look at their opponents to see how they did, too. When you are an outsider playing in a non-AQ conference, hoping to become the first to play for a BCS national championship, the over-scrutiny goes along with your performance.

Boise State coach Chris Petersen has done his best to preach to his team to avoid listening to what everybody else says about his team.

“We just hear so much outside noise, you can never win,” he said. “It just doesn’t matter. We’re past Virginia Tech, and Virginia Tech has got their own season. We’re just worried about Wyoming.”

Boise State should just worry about Wyoming. Though critics cite the remaining Broncos schedule as a bunch of cupcakes, Virginia Tech proved last week that no win is a given.

The Cowboys have played the Broncos tough in their most recent meetings, and especially the last time the two teams met in Laramie in 2006. Wyoming outgained Boise State and had the ball in the fourth quarter with a chance to tie the game before throwing an interception. The Broncos won 17-10 en route to their undefeated season and eventual win in the 2007 Fiesta Bowl.

Wyoming brings a high-octane spread offense into the game with Austyn Carta-Samuels leading the way. Petersen called the Cowboys “extremely” creative on offense. They certainly have that capability, and could try to pick on Jamar Taylor early the way the Hokies did in the opener.

But they are no doubt facing a very tough defense, one that kept the pressure on Tyrod Taylor all night. This game is also in the middle of a tough stretch for the Cowboys, after going on the road to play Texas last week and losing 34-7.

The difficulty of playing back-to-back teams ranked in the Top 5 is not lost on Wyoming coach Dave Christensen, though he refuses to use that as an excuse. Wyoming's last victory against a Top 25 came on Oct. 26, 2002, when the Cowboys defeated No. 22 ranked Air Force 34-26.

On top of the challenge of playing consecutive ranked teams, Wyoming has had to deal with the tragic death of freshman linebacker Ruben Narcisse, killed in a car accident last week.

Wyoming held a memorial service for Narcisse this past Monday. His family attended and spoke to the team.

“We’re in a better place right now than we were a week ago,” Christensen said. “We’re moving forward. We’re not trying to move on, but we’re in a better place now than we were.”

The atmosphere is sure to be intense on Saturday night. The game is sold out, and Boise State comes into town as the second highest ranked team ever to play in Laramie, behind No. 2 Texas last year.

Wyoming wants to harness that excitement into an upset. Boise State must avoid that at all costs. Now the Broncos face the task of playing again after a week off, and perhaps losing some of the momentum they built in the opener.

“Early in the season, you’re trying to get into a rhythm,” Petersen said. “You start to develop and then you have a bye. It is what it is and we just try to make the best of it.”

A memorial service will be held to honor linebacker Ruben Narcisse on the Wyoming campus Monday afternoon. Narcisse died in a car accident on Monday and three teammates were injured in the wreck as they drove home from Fort Collins, Colo. The service is open to the public.

Wyoming has done its best to maintain normalcy and routine this week as it deals with the tragedy. Coach Dave Christensen said the team will wear decals (see right) with Narcisse's initials on their helmets for the rest of the season, and players will rotate wearing his No. 12 in honor of him. Sophomore strong safety Shamiel Gary will wear the decal first. The team has also kept his locker the way he left it and will keep it that way for the next four years.

The Cowboys travel to play Texas on Saturday.

The Ruben Narcisse Memorial Fund has also been established. All donations will go to the Narcisse family to help defray funeral and other costs associated with his death. Send donations to:

Ruben Narcisse Memorial Fund
Cowboy Joe Club
University of Wyoming
Dept. 3414, 1000 E. University Ave.
Laramie, WY 82071

Funeral arrangements are still pending.

Wyoming coach Dave Christensen is trying to keep the routine this week as normal as possible as his team tries to work through tragedy.

Early Monday morning, freshman linebacker Ruben Narcisse was killed in a car accident. Freshman cornerback Trey Fox, freshman wide receiver C.J. Morgan and redshirt freshman linebacker J.J. Quinlan were also injured in the wreck near the Colorado-Wyoming state line. Fox apparently fell asleep at the wheel and the pickup they were riding in veered off the road, ejecting three of the players. They were returning from Fort Collins, Colo., where they went to visit some high school friends, hoping to make it back on campus in time for academic mentoring appointments.

"We're going to try to stay as close to normalcy as well can," Christensen said Tuesday on the Mountain West coaches conference call in his first public comments since the tragedy. "We think it will help get the kids get their minds on something different. There’s not a manual on how to do these things. It’s something we’re going to take one day at a time and make the best of an awful situation."

Narcisse came to Wyoming from Miami after initially wanting to play at USF. But he never got a scholarship offer and settled on the Cowboys.

"He spent a lot of time up here in the summer time, a great young man -- had a smile on his face the whole time," Christensen said. "What a huge impact he made on our campus in such a short period. A very promising athlete, a good student, a good person and a guy that’s going to be sorely missed in our program."

Wyoming plans on wearing a decal with his initials on its helmets when it plays Texas on Saturday. Several players have asked to wear his jersey number, 12, and they will be allowed to do so. Counseling has been made available to the athletes, coaches and students on campus as well. But Christensen has no idea what to expect from his team come game time.

"I’d be lying if I said I knew how we were going to react," he said. "I’m hoping this will pull us together, make us stronger. I don’t know; we’ll find out."

Tragic news at Wyoming today: freshman linebacker Ruben Narcisse was killed and three of his teammates were injured in a car accident early Monday morning.

Freshman cornerback Trey Fox, freshman wide receiver C.J. Morgan and redshirt freshman linebacker J.J. Quinlan were also in the car. The four players were in a Toyota Tundra pickup about 6 miles south of the Wyoming state line when Fox apparently fell asleep at the wheel. The Colorado State Patrol spokesman Sgt. John Hahn said there is no evidence that drugs or alcohol were a factor in the crash.

Troopers say Morgan was injured seriously, but wasn't in life-threatening condition. Fox had moderate injuries. Both he and Quinn were treated and released.

Counseling support was being offered to team members and coaching staff, as well as Wyoming students.

“We’re reaching out to our entire team and coaching staff,” Coach Dave Christensen said in a statement. “It’s a terrible tragedy, and a terrible loss. Our focus now is helping our team and staff deal with this tragedy and making sure the families of the young men involved know that we are here to support them in any way we can.”

Wyoming plays Texas this Saturday.

Let us recap what happened at media days for the non-AQ conferences, starting with the Mountain West.

Preseason favorite: No surprise here. TCU was picked to win its second straight MWC title in the poll of media members last week in Las Vegas. The Horned Frogs received all 31 first-place votes. After going 12-1 last season with an appearance in the Fiesta Bowl, TCU returns seven starters on defense and nine on offense and should be a preseason top-10 team.

The rest: Here is the rest of the preseason order:

2. Utah

3. BYU

4. Air Force

5. Wyoming

6. San Diego State

7. Colorado State

8. UNLV

9. New Mexico

Preseason first team: Check out the complete first team here. Preseason players of the year: TCU QB Andy Dalton, offense; TCU LB Tank Carder, defense; TCU KR/PR Jeremy Kerley, special teams.

Seen and heard: TCU coach Gary Patterson addressed the preseason ranking, saying he tries not to pay attention. “We understand we’ve got quite a nonconference schedule ahead of us. If you win those kinds of games, for us to start as high as we’ll start in the preseason rankings gives us the opportunity to reach the top of our pyramid. That’s what our goal is.”

BYU coach Bronco Mendenhall on the BYU-Utah rivalry changing once the Utes go to the Pac-10: “There’s no way the rivalry can be quite the same.” Indeed. The game will most likely move to either September or October, rather than serving as the regular-season finale for both.

Mountain West commissioner Craig Thompson said Boise St. will replace Utah in the conference schedule for 2011.

Speaking of Utah, coach Kyle Whittingham said his team won’t lose focus on the MWC even though this is its last season. “We obviously have change on the horizon, but we’ve got challenges ahead this fall that require all of our attention.”

Air Force coach Troy Calhoun on what it will take to crack TCU, BYU and Utah: “We’re to the point where we have it layered the way you’d like to have it at the Academy. You never stop developing. It’s during January and February. For our guys, it’s finding their own way.”

Wyoming coach Dave Christensen on building off last season: “We harp on consistency on a daily basis. We never look too far ahead. It’s a process of building this program. We’ve laid a really good foundation and now we’ve got to build on that.”

UNLV coach Bobby Hauck on top priorities: “The first priority has got to be improve on defense. Fundamental work. As we move through camp we’ll continue to educate our team on the intricacies of the game.”

New Mexico’s motto for this season: All in. Coach Mike Locksley said his team is buying into his program, and he is very optimistic about the 2010 season.

Top San Diego St. recruit J.J. Whittaker, a defensive back, tore his ACL and is out for the season.

Colorado St. ended the season on a nine-game losing streak, but coach Steve Fairchild has high hopes going into the year. "I'm dumb enough to think we can win a national championship," he said. The Rams are still undecided at quarterback, but a freshman will start for the first time in school history. The job will go to either Pete Thomas or Nico Ranieri.

Wyoming exceeded expectations last season by going to a bowl game and winning that bowl game to finish 7-6. First-year head coach Dave Christensen became the first coach in Wyoming history to win a bowl game in his first season and it netted him a contract extension. However, the second year is always the hardest, especially with raised expectations. But Christensen returns and recruited some good players that figure to make the Cowboys another threat in the Mountain West.

Here’s a look at the strongest and weakest positions for Wyoming this spring:

Strongest position: Linebacker

Key returners: Junior Josh Beizuns (61 tackles, 9.5 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks), junior Brian Hendricks (116 tackles, five tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks), sophomore Ghaali Muhammad (21 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, .5 sacks), junior Gabe Knapton (128 tackles, four tackles for loss, .5 sacks)

Key departures: Weston Johnson (106 tackles, 12.5 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks)

The skinny: Wyoming switched to the 4-3 defense this year and moved linebackers Gabe Knapton and Josh Beizuns to the defensive line. Although those were two of the team’s best linebackers, the linebacking corps still has a lot of talent with players such as Ghaali Muhammad and Brian Hendricks. And if there are injuries in the linebacking corps, coach Dave Christensen knows that he has players that can move back into that position and still play a high level of defense.

Weakest position: Receiver

Key returners: Senior David Leonard (77 catches, 705 yards and three touchdowns), senior Zach Bolger (28 catches, 314 yards, one touchdown), senior Travis Burkhalter (21 catches, 213 yards, two touchdowns)

Key departures: Orlando Arnold (17 catches, 172 yards), Greg Bolling (18 catches, 170 yards, one touchdown)

The skinny: Wyoming had one of the worst passing offenses in the country last year and some of it was because Christensen didn’t have the right receivers to play his spread out system and some of it was consistency. This season, the Cowboys figure to be better with the addition of junior college transfers DeJay Lester and Mazi Ogbonna, who have both impressed during spring drills and will likely be starters in the fall. If the Cowboys can have a more consistent passing attack, they could be a legitimate threat in the Mountain West.

Wyoming announced Tuesday that it was extending the contract of coach Dave Christensen an extra season so that his contract ends on Dec. 31, 2013.

That was a smart move by Wyoming.

In just one season, Christensen transformed the mentality of the team and the fanbase. He became the first Wyoming head coach to win a bowl game in his first season and just the second Wyoming head coach to make a bowl game in his first year (Paul Roach, 1987).

“In his first year, coach Christensen did an outstanding job of returning Wyoming football to a competitive position in the Mountain West Conference,” Wyoming athletic director Tom Burman said in a statement. “He led our football program to a winning record and a New Mexico Bowl victory, and it was evident by the large number of fans at the bowl game that he has reenergized our fan base.

“We are excited about the future of Cowboy football and the leadership that coach Christensen has provided, and we are pleased to announce this extension of his contract.”

Make no mistake that Christensen’s 7-6 season with Cowboys did not go unnoticed nationally and one more bowl berth might make him a candidate for some of the open positions available after next season. But you never know how that second year might go (see Steve Fairchild at Colorado State), which is why Wyoming’s decision to add a year to Christensen’s contract is good all around. It gives both Christensen and the school some security depending on next year’s outcome and the extension shows the type of commitment Christensen can sell while recruiting.

Christensen does have high hopes for the 2010 season. With Austyn Carta-Samuels, the reigning Mountain West Freshman of the Year, returning, and several junior college transfers to help on both sides of the ball, Christensen expects more from his second season.

“We lost some pretty good players and some leadership in that senior class, but it’s exciting to know that we’ve got so many young guys coming back that can play and contribute, and then we’ll add another class to that," Christensen said in an earlier interview with ESPN.com. "We’re still building. We haven’t arrived by any means. We’ve laid a foundation and now we’ve got to continue to build upon that foundation.”

Wyoming has had three spring practices and already change is in full swing.

The Cowboys are transitioning from a 3-4 defense to a 4-3 in an effort to minimize big plays and get more speed on the edges.

It’s a system coach Dave Christensen wanted to implement when he arrived last spring, but couldn’t because of the personnel. However, after recruiting two classes to the 4-3 scheme, Christensen said his squad is ready for the change.

“We’re trying to put guys in certain positions where they can make plays and get as much speed and athleticism on the field as we can,” Christensen said. “The reason we recruited some of these kids is that we projected them to be able to play different positions. We get more speed on the sides. So, now we’re able to get the faster players in different positions.”

Wyoming has run the 3-4 since 2005. In 2006, the Cowboys ranked ninth in the country in total defense and were especially good against the pass. In coach Joe Glenn’s final two seasons, the Cowboys ranked 22nd and 38th nationally.

Last season, Christensen's first year, Wyoming struggled and ranked 81st nationally with 393.31 yards per game. It was the lowest defensive ranking since the Cowboys were 102nd in 2003.

The Cowboys allowed 29 plays of 25 yards or more and nine of those plays went for touchdowns.

“The good news is that we weren’t very good going into this point in time last year,” Christensen said. “This year, we’re better athletically, we understand the expectation, how to do things. So, we’re a lot further ahead than we were a year ago.”

The biggest reason for the defensive switch is Christensen’s familiarity with the 4-3. It’s what teams have run at nearly every coaching stop he’s made throughout his career and it was a nice complement to his spread offense while at Missouri.

To facilitate this move, juniors Josh Biezuns and junior Gabe Knapton will move from linebacker to defensive end. Christensen said he’s a little light on depth at defensive tackle this spring, but the Cowboys will have more help when recruits arrive in August.

With the transition already in the works, Christensen is confident that his team will be able to execute the 4-3 by the time the season begins in September.

“I don’t think the transition will be that difficult,” Christensen said. “We are missing some guys, some defensive linemen that will be with us in fall camp. They’re going to miss out on some time right now, but other than that, most of the guys that played last year are back at other spots. So, we’ll be in good shape.

“We just feel like the 4-3 is the best direction for us to go for the future of our program.”

For Wyoming coach Dave Christensen, the difference in this year’s spring football and last year's is like night and day.

When Christensen took over for Joe Glenn last year, he had to instill a different work ethic and level of discipline that the players weren’t used to. He lost some players who didn’t want to do the work and some whose bodies couldn’t handle the work, but he came out of the spring with a team that was better equipped to handle the rigors of the Cowboys’ brutal schedule.

While Christensen said he felt like the team bought in early, it wasn’t until after its New Mexico Bowl win against Fresno State that he saw the attitudes change. Players started to believe in Christensen and his staff because they’d seen tangible results. So, this offseason, the Cowboys have been dedicated to winter workouts and coming into spring practice, which started last Saturday, as a team ready to experience success on a consistent basis.

“The work ethic has been unbelievable,” Christensen said. “Our kids are working extremely hard and were much more athletic and much faster and a more explosive football team than we were a year ago. They’ve been through it, they know that it works and now they’ve bought in and they’re giving great effort.”

One of the biggest advantages this year will be an increase in talent and a steady quarterback situation. Last year, three quarterbacks duked it out in spring football and none of them ended up being the starter. Freshman Austyn Carta-Samuels took the reins late in nonconference play and led the Cowboys to their first bowl game and winning record since 2004.

Carta-Samuels earned Mountain West Conference Freshman of the Year honors after throwing for 1,953 yards, 10 touchdowns and just five interceptions.

“I’d say he exceeded my expectations,” Christensen said of Carta-Samuels. “He did a nice job of directing the team, made great decisions with the football and being a playmaker with his feet to get out of trouble. Yeah, I’d probably say he did exceed my expectations.”

Carta-Samuels will have some extra help this year with junior college wide receivers Mazi Ogbonna and DeJay Lester and freshman running back Nehemie Kankolongo joining the mix.

The addition of some better playmakers means that Wyoming can actually expand its offense and not rely on Carta-Samuels so much. Christensen was not able to put his entire playbook in place as he was tailoring it to his personnel. But this year, Christensen is confident that he’ll have the people around Carta-Samuels to make the Cowboys even better than they were a year ago.

“It’s going to make it a little easier for [Carta-Samuels] not having to make all the plays,” Christensen said. “To have offensive success, you have to have a number of playmakers to get the ball in their hands. We can’t just rely on one guy. We need five or six guys to make that happen and I think we'll have those guys.”

Wyoming has added linebacker Ruben Narcisse to its 2010 recruiting class.

Narcisse, who was originally committed to South Florida but opened up his recruitment after the coaching change, is the 24th pickup for coach Dave Christensen and just the second linebacker in the class.

Narcisse had 88 total tackles, 10 sacks, five fumble recoveries, three blocked punts, two interceptions, two forced fumbles and two touchdowns for Chaminade-Madonna Prep in Hollywood, Fla., in 2009. Chaminade-Madonna went 12-1 this season and won the Class 2B District Championship. It lost in the state semifinals.

Narcisse is a key pickup in this class since Wyoming is transitioning from a 3-4 to a 4-3 base defense and moved some of its linebackers to defensive end.

Wyoming’s 35-28 overtime win against Fresno State in the New Mexico Bowl last month won’t affect the Cowboys’ recruiting too much come signing day next week; the Cowboys’ class was almost filled by the time the come-from-behind win was completed.

But the effects of that monumental bowl win, Wyoming’s first since 2004, have resonated through the staff and the current players. The win was validation for all the yelling and running and hard work each player put in when coach Dave Christensen took the job more than 13 months ago. Christensen’s style was in stark contrast to his predecessor Joe Glenn and not everyone responded well. Both those who did were rewarded with a seven-win season and the understanding of what it takes to play on a winning football team.

“It really solidifies what we’re trying to do,” Christensen said. “I don’t have to sell on my philosophy and my vision because now it's there. And now [the current players] are going to sell it because they got through it and they know how it works.”

Prior to Christensen’s arrival, the Cowboys hadn’t had a winning season since 2004 and they were on the cusp of another losing season had it not been for some late-season heroics against San Diego State and Colorado State that earned them a bowl berth. In the New Mexico Bowl, the Cowboys were trailing 28-17 in the fourth quarter and scored 18 unanswered points for the overtime win.

In all three games, freshman quarterback Austyn Carta-Samuels was the catalyst. Christensen named him the starter against UNLV late in September and the team responded immediately. Carta-Samuels was named Mountain West Conference Freshman of the Year and is the main reason why Wyoming is so hopeful that its winning season will not be a fluke.

“We lost some pretty good players and some leadership in that senior class, but it’s exciting to know that we’ve got so many young guys coming back that can play and contribute, and then we’ll add another class to that," Christensen said. "We’re still building. We haven’t arrived by any means. We’ve laid a foundation and now we’ve got to continue to build upon that foundation.”

Christensen said the bowl win was a nice building block, but that establishing a pattern of consistency will really be the difference in the program. Glenn also led the team to a bowl win in his first season, but was not able to replicate the success. Christensen said he’s working on making sure that’s not the case with his regime.

“We need to do everything we did the first 12 months that we were here,” Christensen said. “We need to make sure there’s no complacency in any area of the program whether it be support staff, coaching staff, players, whatever. You can’t get complacent. You’ve got to work as hard as the first 12 months every month for the rest of the time we’re here. That’s the only way you can be consistent.”

Once that consistency starts showing, Christensen is confident better recruits are going to flock to Laramie. Currently, Wyoming has 25 commitments and most of those players are on the defensive side of the ball where the Cowboys needed the most help.

With better recruits means a better program and the possibility of bringing Wyoming back to its heyday of the late 1980s and early 90s.

“If you go to a bowl game and then you go to another bowl game, all of a sudden you have stability in your program,” Christensen said. “The big this is to be able to sustain a winning program and go every year to a bowl game. That’s when it comes into recruiting. When recruits know that you’ve gone two, three years in a row, then they know that your program is pretty solid.”