Kevin McKinney Reflects On the Impact The Cowboys Enjoyed Thanks To Craig Bohl

From the desk of Kevin McKinney, Wyoming Athletic Department

Craig Bohl came to Wyoming with a plan.
It was a model that he had utilized while becoming one of the most successful coaches in college football.
The plan was perfect for Wyoming too.
It was simple and straight-forward. He wanted to recruit good kids, have them earn meaningful degrees, stay out of police reports and enjoy success on the football field.
He wanted that plan to revive respect for Wyoming football. He believed he could do it, so he did, and he did it while staying longer than any football coach in Cowboy history. He was a man of his word.
Like so many before him, he probably could have used Wyoming and then moved on to a bigger job.
But that's not what he was all about. He cherished Wyoming's history and tradition too much.  His plan wouldn't have allowed for that anyway.  It wasn't a quick-fix-and-move-on-to-the-next-job solution. It required time, and he promised to see it through.  He was good on his word.
While it counts on his record, I throw out his first two seasons here because of the program's condition when he accepted the job.  While there were some outstanding Cowboys on that 2014 roster, there weren't nearly enough of them, and the team's star quarterback and leader had decided to forego his eligibility, leaving a major void.
Following those two rocky seasons, the Bohl-led Cowboys produced six winning campaigns—second most of any Wyoming football coach in history—two eight-win seasons, and this recently-completed nine-win season.  To put that in perspective, in its previous 43 years of football, Wyoming had won at least eight games in a season just four other times, and had won nine or more on four other occasions.  Eight years of eight or more wins in over four decades! 
He did all that while staying that long because he wanted to do right by Wyoming.  He loved the place!
"Fit" is an overused word when it comes to the hiring process.
But Craig Bohl fit Wyoming all right, he WAS Wyoming.  It was deep in his soul.
Yes, he was a traditionalist, often called "old school".  But what he was all about, and what he professed to his players, was guarding the tradition of Wyoming, the spirit of Wyoming, the toughness of Wyoming. 
There wasn't a lot of flash. The Cowboys weren't outfitted with a bunch of different ensembles.  Their home and away uniforms represented tradition.  Every now and then he allowed gold jerseys for special days, but that was rare. I'm sure the players would have liked more variety, but I think they understood. Tradition is important, and uniforms don't win games.
Craig relished the tradition of Wyoming football.  He worked with Bob Devaney while at Nebraska. They talked at length about that Cowboy tradition.  Devaney understood how special it was to be Wyoming's head coach.  Bohl would come to believe that as well. "Being the head coach of the Wyoming Cowboys has been a privilege," he would say.  He meant it.
Craig Bohl is one of the most genuine men I have ever known.  There was never any side-stepping issues.  He met them head-on.  He was decisive, yet it was extremely important to him to be fair.
Wyoming people loved him for that because that's how they lead their lives.
I asked him one day what was the most difficult part of being a head coach?  He told me it was understanding the impact of every decision you make, and how many lives it affects.  "That's a heavy load," he said, "so each decision has to be well-thought out, weighed, without wasting much time."
He loved being our head coach.  He loved practice, and running onto Jonah Field on game day. He loved traveling the state, and meeting Wyoming people.  The obstacles they often faced made his job look easy, he would say.  He tried so hard to be successful for them, totally understanding how much pride they have in their Cowboys.
Upon his retirement he was sincere in thanking the Wyoming fans.  "I know I speak for our players and our coaches in saying you've made War Memorial Stadium a special place on game days.  Thank you for all your support through the years."
It was always a special place to him.
Bohl's influence transcended the football field.  He believed that for the Cowboys to be successful, Wyoming's facilities had to improved.  He took off his whistle and stepped in to help the administration and the UW Foundation raise the necessary funds to construct the High Altitude Performance Center.  It was the most important project for the Cowboys and Cowgirls ever undertaken. It remains a showcase today. 
Bohl is as fierce a competitor as I've ever been around in athletics. He fought hard for his players and his coaches as any football referee would attest. He fought just as hard for the State of Wyoming. 
A major reason for the program's success since he arrived was the relationship he enjoyed with Athletics Director Tom Burman.  "When I hired Craig as head coach," Burman says, "our goal was to return Cowboy Football to a place of relevance in the Mountain West Conference and to be a consistently winning program." Mission accomplished. 
About Bohl, Tom said it best, "Craig has reflected the character of the state of Wyoming, and the football program he's built is representative of the blue-collar nature of the people of Wyoming."
Amen.
Craig has now moved on to the next chapter of his life, the important role of Executive Director of the American Football Coaches Association.  Considering the current landscape of the collegiate football enterprise, that job has never been more critical, more important.
They have the right man for the job. 
Wyoming had the right man too, and he is leaving a very healthy program in the capable hands of Jay Sawvel.
I will miss Craig. He is a friend with whom I will remain connected along the way.
Wyoming will miss him. A simple 'thank you' hardly seems enough, and I know he doesn't need that. But thank you Craig for what you did for our program and our great state.