Welcome to Wyoming Football: Michael Fitzgerald
LARAMIE -- Wyoming has welcomed nearly 50 new faces this offseason.
Transfer portal era, am I right?
Jay Sawvel knew a rebuild on defense was in order after losing both starting linebackers and safeties, along with leaders like Jordan Bertagnole and DeVonne Harris. The departures of Wrook Brown, Sabastian Harsh and Keany Parks only magnified things.
The second-year head coach got busy, inking a dozen transfers on that side of the ball on February's traditional signing day and adding three more since the annual spring game.
On offense, the damage was limited.
Yes, running back Harrison Waylee is now at Virginia. Young wideout Justin Stevenson is a Utah Ute now, too. But if you ask Sawvel, he kept the players he wanted on offense, beginning with quarterback Kaden Anderson.
Three of the Cowboys' top linemen -- Jack Walsh, Caden Barnett and Wes King -- are also back. So is tight end John Michael Gyllenborg, wide receivers Chris Durr Jr. and Jaylen Sargent, along with leading rusher Sam Scott.
So, without further ado, let's spent the summer meeting the new players that litter this 2025 roster:
NAME | Michael Fitzgerald
YEAR | Graduate transfer
HT/WT | 6' 6", 210
HOMETOWN | Atlanta, Ga.
POSITION | Wide receiver
JERSEY NUMBER | N/A
PREVIOUS SCHOOL | Central Missouri
YEARS OF ELIGIBILITY | One
NOTABLE | Michael Fitzgerald snagged 55 passes for 835 yards and eight touchdowns during his two seasons at Division-II Central Missouri University. More than 300 of those yards and three scores came last fall. The previous season he hauled in 32 receptions for 526 yards and five touchdowns. The UMass transfer accounted for 15.2 yards per catch during his tenure in Warrensburg. Before heading to Amherst out of Roswell High School, Fitzgerald received offers from Gardner-Webb, Bryant, Austin Peay and Middle Tennessee State.
QUOTABLE | "You know, with the players that are here, where we're at with that, if we had one more thing on the wish list for the mid-year right now, would have been another receiver. But as you kept going and going and going, the one thing you don't want to do, you don't want to just spend money on something that you don't want. And what I mean by that is, use a scholarship spot on a player that you get here and he's not a good enough player. So, you have to make that evaluation and look at it and go, what's better for us, to sit back?" -- Jay Sawvel said in in February on traditional signing day before landing Fitzgerald in late April
WELCOME TO WYOMING FOOTBALL SERIES:
* BJ Inmon
MORE UW FOOTBALL NEWS VIA 7220SPORTS:
* Why did tight end John Michael Gyllenborg stay at Wyoming?
* Wyoming's Jaylen Sargent Looking to Leave a Legacy in Laramie
* 'He's going to be special': Bricen Brantley turning heads
* Wyoming Cowboys Football: A Mother's Day Tribute
* Former North Texas running back Damashja Harris inks with Pokes
* Cowboys land edge rusher from FAU in portal
* Cowboys go back to the well to sign latest defensive end
* Wyoming receives commitment from 6'6" senior wideout
* Tuck's Take: Wyoming won today's Brown and Gold Spring Game
* Who is No. 44?: 'He's a kid that's going to show up'
* Wyoming loses starting cornerback to transfer portal
* Wyoming's Dante Drake has been a menace in the trenches
* Cowboys plan to add another QB after Batiste departure
* Wyoming's rookie corner is turning heads this spring
* Double or nothing: Pokes' makeshift front five falters late
* Wyoming looking to add to roster with spring portal looming
University of Wyoming’s Top 50 Football Players
Gallery Credit: 7220Sports.com
- University of Wyoming’s Top 50 Football Players
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