The Cowboys, led by Western Athletic Conference Coach of the Year Joe Tiller and Offensive Player of the Year Marcus Harris, finished 10-2 overall after clinching the conference’s Pacific Division with a dramatic win at Colorado State and losing in overtime to No. 5 BYU in the inaugural WAC championship game in Las Vegas. UW was ranked as high as No. 16 and finished No. 22 in the final Associated Press poll. Harris, who led the WAC with 1,650 receiving yards and 13 receiving touchdowns, won the Biletnikoff Award as the nation’s most outstanding receiver and capped his legendary career as a unanimous All-American. Harris finished ninth in the voting for the Heisman Trophy and graduated as the NCAA’s all-time leader in receiving yards (4,518). Quarterback Josh Wallwork led the conference with 4,090 passing yards and tied BYU’s Steve Sarkisian for the most touchdown passes (33). Middle linebacker Jim Talich led the team with 138 tackles, which ranks seventh in school history for a single season. The Pokes finished ninth nationally in scoring (38.7 points per game) while allowing only 23.7 points per game. UW started the season 9-0, including a thrilling 41-38 overtime win at Iowa State and a 22-19 victory over Air Force in front of a crowd of 31,009 at War Memorial Stadium. The Cowboys bounced back from a narrow 28-24 loss at San Diego State with “The Drive” – a 96-yard march capped with a Marques Brigham touchdown scamper to stun the Rams 25-24 at snowy Hughes Stadium in Fort Collins. Brian Lee, who set the program single-season record with eight interceptions, sealed the Bronze Boot win with a pick in the closing seconds. Harris (2004), Lee (2008), offensive lineman Steve Scifres (2008) and placekicker Cory Wedel (2018) are UW Athletics Hall of Fame members. Harris, Scifres and defensive back Lee Vaughn were selected in the 1997 NFL Draft.

Whitman was a three-time NCAA Tournament qualifier, a three-time Western Athletic Conference champion, a two-time Mountain Intercollegiate Wrestling Association champion and a member of the Cowboys’ 1983 and 1985 conference championship teams. Whitman won the WAC in 1983, 1984, and 1985. He qualified for the NCAA Championships in 1983 at 158 pounds and in 1984 and 1985 at 167 pounds. He was an honorable mention freshman All-American and the WAC freshman of the year in 1982. As a senior in 1985, Whitman was the team captain, the outstanding wrestler of the WAC Tournament, and he was voted as winner of the Everett Lantz Most Outstanding Wrestler Award by his teammates. He still owns the program’s single-season record for victories (47, 1984-85) and is second on UW’s career wins list (140) behind only four-time All-American Joe LeBlanc.

Sawyer, an all-Western Athletic Conference men’s basketball player and track & field champion, is one of the greatest two-sport athletes in UW history. On the hardwood, the gritty guard from Burns was a team captain for Larry Shyatt during the 1997-98 season when he averaged 14.4 points and was on the all-WAC defensive team while leading the Cowboys to the NIT. UW defeated No. 12 New Mexico, No. 5 Utah and BYU at home and Front Range rivals Colorado and Colorado State on the road during Sawyer’s senior season. He was also named the most valuable player of the Cowboy Shootout and was an academic All-American. Sawyer, who was recruited by North Carolina, Stanford and Texas for track & field, won the pentathlon at the WAC Indoor Track & Field Championships and the decathlon at the WAC Outdoor Track & Field Championships in 1999. His 3,981 points in the pentathlon set the UW and WAC records. His 7,250 points in the decathlon ranks second in UW history behind Jay Novacek (7,762 points, 1984). Sawyer still owns the school record in the indoor pole vault (17-0 3/4, 1999) and is second all-time in the outdoor pole vault (16-6). He was also the leadoff man for the 4×400 meter relay team that posted the six-fastest time (3:12.04) in program history. An injury in qualifying prevented Sawyer from competing at the U.S. Olympic Trials in 2000.

Prosinski, a two-time All-Mountain West selection who started 37 consecutive games for the Cowboys at free safety, finished his UW career ranked fourth in career tackles with 373. He led the team with 108 total tackles in 2010 and 140 tackles in 2009, which ranks fifth in school history for a single season. In 2009, Prosinski had 17 tackles against No. 2 Texas, 16 tackles against No. 25 BYU and 13 tackles and a 98-yard fumble return for a touchdown against No. 4 TCU. During his senior season in 2010, Prosinski had 12-tackle games against No. 3 Boise State and No. 10 Utah and 11-tackle performances against No. 4 Texas and New Mexico. The UW team captain was one of only 47 student-athletes selected from FBS programs nominated for the William V. Campbell Trophy, commonly referred to as the “Academic Heisman.” Prosinski was honored by the Wyoming Chapter of the National Football Foundation as a UW Scholar-Athlete for the 2010 season. Before UW, Prosinski was the 2006 Milward Simpson Award winner after leading Buffalo High School to back-to-back state titles. After the three-time all-MW academic team selection graduated from UW in 2010 with a degree in business administration he was drafted by the Jacksonville Jaguars in the fourth round of the 2011 NFL Draft. Prosinski played eight seasons in the NFL with the Jaguars (2011-14), Philadelphia Eagles (2014) and Chicago Bears (2015-17).

Hampton was a versatile standout during “The Golden Era” of Cowboy football as the blocking back for legends Jim Kiick, Vic Washington and Joe Williams. In his first two seasons at UW, Hampton played on offense, defense and returned kicks. The star-studded 1967 Cowboy team finished the regular season 10-0 and ranked No. 6 before losing 20-13 to LSU in the Sugar Bowl. During the 1968 season, Hampton was given more opportunities to carry the ball in the backfield and finished with 749 yards rushing on 137 attempts (5.5 yards per carry) with eight touchdowns. He had 849 total yards from scrimmage and was second in the WAC with 10 total touchdowns. After helping to lead the Cowboys to their third consecutive WAC championship, Hampton was drafted by the Green Bay Packers. In 1971, he set the NFL record for kickoff return yards (1,314), a mark that stood until 1985. He still holds the Green Bay record for kickoff return average (28.2 yards) and is third in kickoff return yards (2,084) despite playing only three seasons for the Packers. Hampton became the first Atlanta Falcon to rush for 1,000 yards in a season (1,002 in 1975) and the only UW player to accomplish the feat in the NFL. He was named the NFL Comeback Player of the year that season. He also rushed for 995 yards in 1972 and 997 yards in 1973 and led the NFL in all-purpose yards in 1972 (1,780).

Carlson was a member of the first Cowgirl team to make the NCAA Tournament as a freshman (2008) and earned All-Mountain West honors the next three seasons (2009-11) during a decorated UW career. The 6-foot-3 forward left the Cowgirls ranked No. 2 all-time in blocked shots (212), No. 11 in points scored (1,485), and No. 14 in rebounds (678). Carlson’s 10 blocks against Nevada on March 9, 2010, remains the single-game school record. She blocked a school-record 98 shots during the 2009-10 season. Carlson scored a career-high 34 points against UNLV on Jan. 26, 2011, which is tied for the fourth most points in a single game in program history. She averaged 17.3 points and 7.2 rebounds as a senior for the Cowgirls. Before UW, Carlson led Cheyenne Central to a Class 4A state championship in 2005, and she was named the 2006-07 Gatorade Player of the Year in Wyoming. After UW, she started her coaching career at her alma mater, Cheyenne Central, and was an assistant at Central Washington, Air Force and Weber State.

Adams, one of the most prolific scorers and dunkers in program history, was an honorable mention Associated Press All-American (the first Cowboy to earn All-American status since 2002) and was named Mountain West Player of the Year by the conference’s media after the 2015-16 season. As a senior, the dynamic 6-foot-2, 190-pound guard averaged 24.7 points, 5.5 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 1.5 steals in 36.9 minutes per game while shooting 44% from the field, including 38% on 3-pointers, and 83% from the free-throw line. His 24.7 points per game led the MW and ranked third in the NCAA. His 740 points in 2015-16 broke Flynn Robinson’s school record of 701 during the 1964-65 season, while Adams’ nine 3-pointers against Colorado State on Feb. 20, 2016, tied UW’s single-game record. He made 96 3-pointers during the season to rank second in UW single-season history. Adams scored a career-high 38 points at New Mexico on Jan. 16, 2016, for the program’s first win in The Pit since 2003. Adams finished his career fifth in UW history with 1,819 career points, sixth in assists (398) and fifth in steals (144) to join Fennis Dembo and Brandon Ewing as the only Pokes with top 10 entries in all three categories. Adams was named the most valuable player of the 2015 MW Tournament as a junior after leading the Cowboys to the championship and the program’s first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 2002. Prior to UW, Adams led Chaparral High School to the Class 5A state championship, which was capped with a spectacular game-winning dunk in the title game. After graduating from UW, Adams played professionally in the NBA G League, Australia, China, Greece, Italy, Russia, Slovenia and Spain.

Wendling concluded his Wyoming football career as one of the most decorated student-athletes in school history. A hard-hitting safety, he earned Honorable Mention All-Mountain West Conference as a sophomore and a junior, and was named First Team All-Mountain West Conference as a senior in 2006. His myriad of honors was highlighted by being named a second team All American by College Football News.com. He finished his four-year career ranked No. 10 in school history in career tackles with 259. He led Wyoming in tackles his senior season, being credited with 78. The Rock Springs, Wyo., native was elected Wyoming’s defensive team captain as a senior. Academically, Wendling earned a post-graduate scholarship by being named a finalist for the Draddy Trophy, which is presented annually by the National Football Foundation (NFF) to the top football scholar-athlete in the country. He earned another of the nation’s top academic honors when ESPN The Magazine named him a Second Team Academic All American in voting by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA). Wendling also earned Academic All-Conference honors all four years of his career at Wyoming. He played in the East-West Shrine Game to conclude his college playing career and participated in the NFL Combine. Wendling was drafted by the Buffalo Bills with the 10th pick in the sixth round of the 2007 NFL Draft. He also played for the Detroit Lions.

A trailblazer in women’s athletics, Waddell was a four-year letterwinner for the Cowgirl basketball team. She scored 1,521 points in her career, averaging 13.1 points per game. She holds the Cowgirl record for blocked shots with 322. She had nine blocks in a game three times during her career. She holds four of the top six places all-time for blocks in a season. She is still in the top five in the Cowgirl record book for career rebounds with 947, and ranks tenth in career scoring. A versatile player, she had 36 double-doubles during her career. After earning her degree from UW, she was a speech pathologist in Wyoming public schools for many years.

An outstanding hitter and first baseman, Mulvaney earned all-Western Athletic Conference honors in 1986 and 1987 and was named a third-team All-American in 1987. A four-year letterwinner, Mulvaney posted a career batting average of .396 and holds the Cowboy career records for hits with 261, runs batted in with 194 and runs scored (193). He is also listed in the top three in doubles (55) and home runs (37). Coached by Bill Kinneberg, the Cowboys finished first in the WAC Eastern Division in 1986 with a record of 29-19 and claimed third place in the Western Division in 1987 at 27-22. Mulvaney was drafted by the Cincinnati Reds in the MLB Draft. He earned a degree in Education from UW and went on to teach and coach at the college and high school levels for many years.