Transfer Harrison Waylee highlights UW's early singing class

Dec. 22—CHEYENNE — Craig Bohl didn't need to watch video of Harrison Waylee when he heard the former Northern Illinois running back had entered the transfer portal.

"It's embedded in my brain," Bohl said Wednesday afternoon. "I thought the game was done, and then, all of a sudden, we can't tackle this guy. ... He left an indelible impression on me when he raced down the far sideline and we couldn't catch him."

Waylee rushed for 179 yards and two touchdowns during UW's 50-43 victory over Northern Illinois on Sept. 11, 2021, in DeKalb, Illinois. The Cowboys led that contest 42-22 after the third quarter.

Waylee broke off a 75-yard run that sparked a 21-0 outburst that put the Huskies up 43-42 with 4 minutes, 56 seconds remaining. Waylee also had a 15-yard scoring scamper during that stretch.

The 5-foot-10, 190-pounder was the only transfer among the 14 players who signed national letters of intent to join the Cowboys on Wednesday, which was the first day of the early signing period. The other 13 spent the past fall suiting up for their high schools.

Waylee was a third-team All-Mid American Conference honoree this season after rushing for 899 yards and five touchdowns. He also caught 17 passes for 119 yards to help Northern Illinois finish with a 3-9 record. Waylee rushed for 1,929 yards and 10 scores in three seasons with the Huskies.

Cowboys running backs coach and recruiting coordinator Gordie Haug met with Waylee in DeKalb, and Bohl made a home visit to Johnston, Iowa, before UW brought Waylee to Laramie for an official visit.

"We're really excited about Harrison. I think he fits what we look for in the running back room with explosiveness and being ready to roll," Haug said. "... We were excited about getting to know a little bit more about him. Outside of his tape and being athletic, fast and making yards, he's a really good person.

"I'm really excited to be able to coach and bring him in this spring."

Waylee is the lone proven NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision talent in UW's signing class. Bohl didn't rule out adding more during February's late signing period, but said the Cowboys decided to stick with their model of signing and developing high-schoolers.

"Kudos to (Haug), because he jumped on that and was really aggressive," Bohl said.

UW's class includes seven players rated three stars (out of five) by recruiting websites. There were four defensive linemen, three cornerbacks, two offensive linemen and two wide receivers in the group. The emphasis on certain positions was to even out the roster, Bohl said.

"I think we addressed our needs, and the class is well-balanced between offense and defense," the coach said.

Early enrollees

Three-star quarterback Kaden Anderson had his senior season at perennial Texas power Southlake Carroll ended in early October due to a leg injury. He will graduate early and continue his injury rehab in Laramie this spring.

As a junior, the 6-foot-4, 205-pounder completed 204 of 338 passes for 3,036 yards and 34 touchdowns against eight interceptions to help the Dragons go 14-1, with the lone loss coming in the semifinals of the Class 6A Division 1 playoffs.

Three-star receiver Justin Stevenson caught 37 passes for 552 yards and five touchdowns during his career at Paetow High in Katy, Texas. He also will be enrolled at UW during the upcoming spring semester. The 6-2, 180-pound Stevenson helped the Panthers go 5-5 this past season, but they were 15-1 and won the 5A-D1 state title during his junior campaign.

"With the quarterback situation and targets, it took us a while to offer him," Haugh said. "... The one thing you see is he plays the game really fast, and that's exactly what we're looking for in receivers."

Transfer talk

UW has already had eight players enter the transfer portal, including three starters. Bohl expects a few Cowboys to walk away from football after the Arizona Bowl on Dec. 30, and possibly a couple more to transfer.

"There are a few who have come in and said, 'I want to continue on with my career and life,'" Bohl said. "I've had some meaningful conversations with some great young men who are playing in this game, and it's going to be their last game, but they didn't identify it at the end of the year because they were sorting some things out.

"We're in hopes we don't have a significant amount of exodus after this game, but that may happen. You're just finding everywhere across the country that the lay of the land has changed. I'd be surprised if we had the number we did last year."

The Cowboys lost 15 players to the transfer portal last winter.

On the flip side, Bohl said UW expects to have several transfer prospects on campus in early January, and may add more during the late signing period.

"We may end up with just one (transfer), but I'd be surprised if it is just one," Bohl said. "We're going to try to access a few more guys in the portal."

Name game

The Cowboys signed California defensive tackle Jaden Williams last year. On Wednesday, they signed Texas defensive tackle Jayden Williams.

Jeremiah Johnke is the WyoSports editor. He can be reached at jjohnke@wyosports.net or 307-633-3137. Follow him on Twitter at @jjohnke.