Opposing quarterback stands over center. Opposing quarterback takes snap. Opposing quarterback takes five-step drop. Opposing quarterback stands in the pocket long enough to update Facebook status on iPhone. 

Opposing quarterback finally finds open receiver and lobs an easy completion for a big play.

The Cowboy defensive front seven’s inability to generate pressure or bottle up the run was an evident factor in Wyoming’s disappointing 3-9 campaign.

But just how much of a factor was it?

Head football coach Dave Christensen and his team prepare to take the field before a loss to Boise State last season. (Photo by Zach Spadt.)

Wyoming had six of those sacks in its season finale, a 45-0 win over rival Colorado State in perhaps the Cowboys best performance of the season. 

The Cowboys added five sacks in a loss to New Mexico and four in a 28-20 victory over FCS Southern Utah.

Take away the stats from two games against opponents with a combined record of 4-20, and one game against a subdivision opponent, and Wyoming’s defensive unit ranks right at the bottom of the country.

Throw in a run defense that allowed 205.08 yards per game—106th in the country—and it’s all too easy to discern where the Cowboys season struggles emanated from in 2010.

 “We have something to prove,” senior linebacker Oliver Schober said about the team’s struggles last year. “We have got to be better.”

Indeed.

In Dave Christensen’s first two seasons as head coach, the Cowboys allowed somewhere around 5,000 yards of total offense and 30 points per game in both seasons, marks which will have to improve for the Cowboy fortunes to do the same.

This year, however, Wyoming has reason to believe its front seven will be ready to front opposing offenses.

Last year marked the Cowboys’ first year transitioning to a 4-3 defensive scheme, and—in addition to the loss of stellar ends John Fletcher and Mitch Unrein in 2009—the growing pains were evident throughout the season.

    “The mental aspect, recognizing routes, understanding schemes, knowing exactly where you are, where your teammates are, what kind of leverage you have, and mentally, I’d say that has been a big improvement,” Schober said, remarking on the growth exhibited by the defensive unit in its second spring with the 4-3.

The Cowboys strides in both depth and personnel in the offseason could be immeasurable in just how much better the front seven has the potential to be in 2011.

Senior defensive ends Josh Biezuns and Gabe Knapton, who were the team’s leaders in sacks despite playing their first seasons at the position after switching from linebacker after 2009, have a year more of experience and physical maturity on the ends.

It could be just a matter of time before the duo morphs into one of the premier quarterback-mashing machines in the Mountain West Conference.

They will be joined on the line by a number of emerging players who have matured across the board since last season.

Experienced, returning tackles like Patrick Mertens—who has three sacks in two spring scrimmages—Ben Durbin, and Mike Purcell are joined by a core of rising talent, including defensive ends Matt Birkeness, Max Gustafson, and Sonny Puletasi, as well as defensive tackles Riley Lange and Kurt Taufa’asau.

 “I think right now, our No. 1 defense is coming together really, and now we need that No. 2 to really solidify and we’ll have a very strong, cohesive unit headed into the summer and then into fall camp when the time comes,” said Taufa’asau, a redshirt junior who had four tackles and a sack in last Saturday’s scrimmage.

The linebacking corps has the potential to be even better.

Two newcomers from Germany, Mark Nzeocha and Alex Borgs, have been two of the most impressive defensive players of the entire spring, bringing athletic capabilities and football instincts necessary for the Cowboys to take the next step to a top-flight defensive unit.

Sophomores Devyn Harris and Todd Knight have been strong contributors this spring, and junior college transfer Korey Jones flashed enormous potential in Saturday’s scrimmage, recording two tackles for loss and a sack.

 “Our expectations for our corps – and for our entire defense – are very high,” Schober said. “Our D-line has looked really good. We’re getting bigger and stronger up there. It’s just going to be important that everyone does their jobs and that we’re all playing together as one unit, and I think you’re going to see some really good things start to happen.”