Know the Foe: Portland State at Wyoming

Sep. 8—Lucas Semb has been a national FCS football writer for FCS Nation Radio since June. He weighs in on what University of Wyoming fans can expect during this weekend's matchup between the Cowboys and Portland State.

The Vikings are coming off a game where they gave up 81 points to No. 15-ranked Oregon. How do you expect the defense to respond?

It's been almost a decade since Portland State beat an FBS program. The last time they did so was in 2015 at Washington State. Since then, they've lost to San Jose State, Washington, Washington State, BYU, Oregon State, Oregon, Nevada, Arkansas, Boise State and Hawaii. They've pretty much run the gamut up and down the West Coast and lost them all. A couple games were close, but the majority weren't, so history isn't telling me they'll respond particularly well. Consider the fact that Wyoming is coming off a huge double-overtime win against a Big 12 opponent, and it spells trouble for the Vikings. But you never know with them. They can put up lots of points any given week.

Portland State played two quarterbacks, Dante Chachere and Logan Gonzalez, against the Ducks. Was that a case of the team benching its starters during the blowout loss?

True freshman Logan Gonzalez didn't make an appearance until his team was down 67-7 with just a couple minutes left in the third quarter, and that was certainly to preserve Chachere, the team's best player. Chachere was on the Big Sky Conference preseason ballot as a votable option for offensive player of the year. Last season, he completed 60% of his passes for 19 touchdowns and led the team in rushing with 609 yards and another seven scores. He's as dual-threat as they come, and can put up points in a hurry. There won't be anyone pushing him for the job until he's gone, in my opinion.

The Vikings play a high-tempo offense very similar to Texas Tech's in terms of speed. How effective can that be for a team like Portland State?

It's shown to be effective for them in the past. Looking at 2022, specifically, they didn't finish 4-7 because of their offense. On that side of the ball, they could hit a rhythm and force you to keep up with them on the scoreboard. They scored 42 at Cal Poly, 35 versus Northern Colorado, 38 at Eastern Washington and 35 versus Northern Arizona. They averaged 26.5 points per game on the year. The problem was that most teams could keep up with them on the scoreboard. Defense was their weak spot, allowing 41 points per game, a mark that was second worst in the Big Sky.

Linebacker Michael Montgomery had a team-high 14 tackles last week. How much of a weapon is he on the defensive side?

The blowout for the Vikings last week had to sting, but if there's one good thing that came from it, it's this: I think the Vikings may have found an immediate upgrade at linebacker. With the game out of reach, head coach Bruce Barnum started mixing up personnel in the second half. Montgomery, a true freshman, was one of those guys who benefitted from it. All 14 of his game-high tackles came in just the second half. PSU knew he could play, as he had scholarship offers from ACC, Pac-12 and SEC schools, but this just shows he's already ready.

Portland State just lost by 74 points to open the season. How much will that fuel them going into this matchup with Wyoming?

Anyone who plays football at that level is there because they like to compete. You don't do it otherwise — it's too much of a commitment to not compete. If you don't compete, you lose your role on the team, you lose your teammates' trust, and, of course, you get embarrassed like last weekend. So, naturally, they should come out fired up and giving Wyoming their best shot. No matter what happens, they should be motivated to not let up another 80 points. If they fail to show some heart and lose in similar fashion, it'll be a long season for PSU.

Running back Quincy Craig ran for 42 yards on eight carries (5.3 yards per carry) against the Ducks. Do you expect him to see more touches this weekend?

I don't see why not. Like I said earlier, their quarterback was the leading rusher last year. And while that's a nice extra tool to have, you probably don't want it to be a featured piece of your offense. PSU hasn't had someone who can take a lot of carries, make something out of them and take some pressure off Chachere. They need one, and Craig, yet another freshman, showed some promise in his first outing. Barnum will probably want to see if that's sustainable and can turn into something real.

Wyoming loves to run the ball. How successful do you think the Cowboys' offense can be on the ground?

A year ago, I probably would've said the Vikings will match up better against a run-heavy team. Though they were dead-last defending the pass (in the Big Sky), their run defense was much more respectable, at least comparatively. But many of the guys who made those plays for them up front like V.J. Malo (7 1/2 tackles for loss and 1 1/2 sacks), E.J. Ane (9 TFLs and 7 sacks), Jake Porter (7 1/2 TFLs and 3 sacks) and Moses Finau (9 TFLs and 1 1/2 sacks) are all graduated. Now counting on a lot of young replacements, Wyoming might be able to have its way with PSU.

What do you expect to happen between Wyoming and Portland State?

I think Portland State is using these games experimentally. They are giving different guys opportunities on big stages, getting ready for what really matters most at the FCS level: Conference play. I don't think there's any real shot the Vikings beat an FBS squad anytime soon, but if they can learn some things before getting into the Big Sky schedule, they'll be better off for it. So, I expect them to continue with that approach. Give me Wyoming with a final score of 48-20.

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Alex Taylor is the assistant editor for WyoSports and covers University of Wyoming athletics. He can be reached at ataylor@wyosports.net. Follow him on X at @alex_m_taylor22.