Photo credit: @SJSUSpartanFB

By: Ana Kieu

The San Jose State Spartans have nothing to play for and nothing to lose, but with four games left in the team’s season, the team has a desire to finish off strong…and beat the Wyoming Cowboys for the second straight season.

Game 8 between San Jose State and Wyoming at Memorial War Stadium was nothing short of exciting. There was a little bit of snow, but it didn’t hurt any of the Spartans. After all, the Spartans had proved to the general public that they were all in on offense and defense in the last few weeks or so.

The Cowboys opened the scoring as Cooper Rothe kicked a 26-yard field goal to give the Cowboys a 3-0 lead at the 10:36 mark of the first quarter.

The Cowboys led the Spartans 3-0 at the end of the first quarter. But, of course, a three-point lead could disappear in an instant. That, however, wasn’t the case for Wyoming.

The Cowboys went up 10-0 at the 14:50 mark of the second quarter. Nico Evans ran for 58 yards for a touchdown and Rothe kicked in an extra point.

The Spartans caught a break midway the second quarter as Jonathan Lenard Jr. recovered a fumble at the 10:45 mark, but that didn’t help the cause. The Spartan offense was fairly silent. Yes, there was a lot of football left, but the Cowboys carried a 10-0 lead to the locker room at the end of the first half.

The Spartans looked to narrow the lead, and they did just that, as Bryce Crawford kicked a 26-yard field goal to cut the deficit to 10-3 at the 11:09 mark of the third quarter.

But the Cowboys were resilient in the snowy weather. Sean Chambers ran 64 yards for a touchdown and Rothe kicked in the extra point to increase Wyoming’s lead 17-3 with 8:41 left in the third quarter.

The Spartans were down by two touchdowns 17-3 at the end of the third quarter. San Jose State drove hard for a big comeback and reportedly swore they were going to get the job done. San Jose State was partially right.

Josh Love threw a 17-yard touchdown pass to Tre Walker. The Spartans went for the two-point conversion, but failed on the attempt. The Spartans settled to reduce the deficit to 17-9 with 8:48 left in the fourth quarter.

The Spartans were still in the game and refused to back down, but the Cowboys diminished all of San Jose State’s hopes when they expanded their lead to 24-9 with 1:04 left in regulation. Chambers threw a 20-yard touchdown pass to Austin Fort and Rothe kicked in the extra point.

Time wasn’t on the Spartans’ side and the down-to-the-wire penalty for roughing the passer aggravated the situation. Charlie Ramirez Jr. appeared to be hurt and it was unclear as to what happened to him from there.

The Spartans got routed by the Cowboys 24-9.

Notes
The Spartans donned their white uniforms. The Cowboys sported their gold tops and brown pants.

The Spartans fans in the South Bay showed up to Stanley’s Sports Bar to cheer on the Blue and Gold.

Up Next 
The Spartans head to Maverik Stadium in Logan, Utah to take on the No. 18 Utah State Aggies next Saturday at 1:00 pm PT on FCBK and STAD.