Old rivals BYU, Wyoming will be reunited in Poinsettia Bowl

BYU will play Mountain West Conference runner-up Wyoming in the Poinsettia Bowl on Dec. 21 in San Diego.

The FBS independent Cougars (8-4) have played the Cowboys (8-5) a total of 77 times, mostly from the 1930s to 1990s.

BYU leads the series 44-30-3, and this will be their first meeting since 2010.

BYU has played in the Poinsettia Bowl once, in 2012, and the Cowboys are making their first appearance. BYU committed to playing in this game three years ago, in a deal that also has the Cougars going back to San Diego in 2018 — provided they aren’t in that season’s College Football Playoff.

THE BREAKDOWN:

BYU (8-4, Independent) vs. Wyoming in San Diego (8-5, Mountain West, Dec. 21, 6 p.m. PST)

TOP PLAYERS

BYU: RB Jamaal Williams has rushed for a team-leading 1,165 yards rushing and 11 touchdowns.

Wyoming: RB Brian Hill is the Cowboys’ career rushing leader, and he broke his single-season school record with 1,767 yards and 21 touchdowns.

NOTABLE

BYU: The Cougars lead all-time series with their old conference rival 44-30-3. They’ll start QB Tanner Mangum after Taysom Hill strained his left elbow Nov. 26 against Utah State.

Wyoming: The Cowboys have beaten two Top 25 opponents (Boise State, San Diego State) in the regular season but lost to San Diego State in the MWC championship game.

LAST TIME

BYU won 25-20 in 2010, breaking up a fourth-down pass with 27 seconds left after Wyoming had driven to the Cougars 26.

BOWL HISTORY

BYU: It’s the Cougars’ 12th straight bowl and second appearance in the Poinsettia Bowl. They’ve lost three straight and are 13-20-1 in bowls.

Wyoming: This is the first bowl appearance since 2011, and the Cowboys have a 6-7 all-time record in the postseason.