Wyoming QB's arm a puzzle to Air Force

By Austin Ward, Special to the Rocky

Published September 5, 2008 at 10:21 p.m.

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Photo by Ben Woloszyn / Laramie Boomerang

Quarterback Dax Crum's strong arm barely came into play in Wyoming's win against Ohio, and there's no guarantee it'll be unholstered when Air Force visits.

Wyoming loves its new toy, even if nobody is really sure what all it can do.

Dax Crum hardly had to throw to win the starting quarterback job in the first fall scrimmage, didn't get to throw much more in the second - and the Cowboys barely needed him to pass in his winning debut against Ohio.

It figures that Crum finally would get an opportunity to show off his arm today against a team not known for its pass defense, but Wyoming isn't making any promises about Air Force's visit to War Memorial Stadium (1:30 p.m., CBS C).

"We watched film, and based on what coverages they're playing, we have plays for those types of coverages and things," first-year offensive coordinator Bob Cole said. "Hopefully, we'll execute better and have some more completions, get some yards off the catch and do a little better there.

"We don't want to come out with 111 passing yards, I'll tell you that right now."

Neither does Crum, who has bought into Wyoming's run-first, run-second philosophy early in the season.

Naturally, the junior-college transfer would like more opportunities to throw downfield, but he has been patiently waiting and hasn't complained once about managing the ground attack.

Crum made some plays there himself against the Bobcats, rushing three times for 14 yards to go with his 14-for-22, two-touchdown, two-interception passing performance.

"We're still going to try and run the ball," Crum said. "Air Force really likes to blitz a lot, and they really like to attack you. That's how they try to make big plays and force turnovers, so we just have to take what the defense gives us.

"Sometimes, they do some coverages behind their blitzes that aren't really sound pass defenses because they're trying to get their blitz home. When we see that stuff, if I can get us in the right play, hopefully, we can make some big plays down the field."

The sophomore has offered glimpses that he's capable of doing it, twice connecting on long passes in limited work already.

Crum hooked up with Chris Johnson in the seam on a critical third-and-18 for a first down during the game last week, and with the Cowboys trailing in the fourth quarter, he improvised a route with Donate Morgan on the game-winning 23-yard touchdown pass.

The encouraging signs from the debut should drop a play-calling ratio that was nearly 2-to-1 in favor of the run last week, but how much remains to be seen.

"We are what we are," Wyoming coach Joe Glenn said. "I've asked us to be a balanced team, and I think, at some point in the season, we're going to have to be able to run the ball. It's important to me in the grand scheme of things to be able to run the ball.

"Regardless of what they're doing, we're going to try and run the football. So we're going to keep working on the running game, even if we can throw on somebody."

Most indications point to Wyoming having success through the air against the Falcons, who finished eighth in the Mountain West Conference in pass defense last season.

Even the combination of Karsten Sween and Ian Hetrick passed for 260 yards in the still questionable loss last year at the Academy - the second- best total for the Cowboys all season.

Their new toy beat out both those quarterbacks for the starting job, and Wyoming is going to have to remove the packaging at some point.

"(Crum) is a tough guy, a lot of emotion out there, too," Cole said. "I think our guys kind of feed off that out there now, so that's real positive to see.

"We didn't know what we were going to get until we got to the first game, and now we have a better idea going into the rest of the year."

It starts this afternoon.

1,000th go-round

Wyoming coach Joe Glenn has downplayed the effect the game today - it's the 1,000th in school history - might have, and with good reason. The game has changed plenty since the Cowboys debuted with a 14-0 win against Cheyenne High in 1894, although it's still a significant milestone.

Some other firsts:

* Touchdown: Herbert Brees, in the win against Cheyenne, 1894.

* 1,000-yard rusher: Jim Crawford, 1,104, 1956.

* 1,000-yard receiver: Shawn Wiggins, 1,018, 1990.

* 1,000-yard passer: Eddie Talboom, 1,061, 1950.

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