LARAMIE, Wyo. (AP) - For the first time ever, a University of Wyoming player was among the top 10 picks in the first round of the NFL draft - and Cowboys fans came out to loudly celebrate their venerated quarterback.
As UW quarterback Josh Allen waited to hear his name announced Thursday night in Arlington, Texas, his fans in Laramie celebrated in the Buckhorn Bar & Parlor, crowding the historic saloon to capacity and spilling into the street.
By the time the draft started at 6 p.m., the annexed area of Ivinson Avenue was littered with Bud Lite bottle caps and other festive debris. The crowd outside buzzed with anticipation and generous libations, the Laramie Boomerang reported .
Todd Murdock was a member of that crowd, carrying a Denver Broncos flag, wearing a Denver Broncos jersey and walking a small white dog - Nugget - also wearing a Denver Broncos jersey. Despite the get-up, he said he would be happy for Allen to be drafted by any first-round team.
“I just wish the best for Josh,” he said. “It’s big. We probably haven’t had this big a talent since Jay Novacek (a UW Cowboy who went on to be a star tight end for the Dallas Cowboys in the early ’90s).”
Many were hoping for a pick in the top five, even the No. 1 pick, but there was a consistent feeling among the gathered students and other brown-and-gold clad fans that Allen’s historic success would mean good things for UW football.
“Not only does (Allen) have a chance to go first round, he has a chance to go very high first round,” Jeff White said before the draft. “I think it’s going to provide good exposure for the program, for what coach (Craig) Bohl has built here and hopefully, it can be used as a recruiting tool for future players.”
The mood wasn’t all jubilant, however. Earlier the same day, offensive tweets containing racial slurs written by Allen in 2012 and 2013 were brought into the spotlight.
“It’s very unfortunate and it certainly is a cause for concern,” White said. “I can guarantee I said and did a lot of stupid things when I was 15 and 16 years old. Certainly not proud of some of those things, so I hope it doesn’t affect him. He’s a good kid and we’ve all made mistakes.”
The crowd outside was made to wait through several picks before hearing Allen’s name.
When the Cleveland Browns selected Oklahoma quarterback Baker Mayfield instead of Allen with the first pick, the crowd jeered, booed and hurled profanities at the team that turned down their “chosen one.” They would jeer and swear again as the New York Giants and the New York Jets both passed on Allen as well.
The crowd cheered when the Browns, having already selected a quarterback, passed on Allen for cornerback Denzel Ward.
The fifth pick went to the Denver Broncos and the crowd grew anxious - especially those blue-and-orange pockets in the sea of brown and gold. But Allen was passed over again, first by the Broncos - to the loudest booing of any pick - then by the Indianapolis Colts.
Seven was Allen’s lucky number.
The crowd erupted before NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell could finish saying “Josh.” Some shook their beer bottles, spraying the crowd in foam. Others tossed their cups or aluminum cans in the air as several spun around with smartphones, capturing a crowd gone mad.
Allen was chosen by the Buffalo Bills - a tough pill to swallow for some in the crowd who had so recently held the hope of seeing Allen in a Broncos jersey.
But many adapted to the new reality and some swore allegiance to a team they had never once rooted for.
“I’m buying a jersey tonight,” said Tom Fenn, a member of the crowd. “He’s going to take them far.”
Iysha Garcia said she was hoping for the Broncos, but could learn to love the Bills, for Allen’s sake.
“Once a Cowboy, always a Cowboy, so deep down, I guess I am (a Bills fan),” she said.
Others, such as Kaitlyn Erramouspe, were simply grateful to see him avoid their more despised teams.
“We’re freaking excited,” she said. “I’m just happy he didn’t go to the Browns.”
The last time a UW player was picked in the first round was 1976, when two players - Lawrence Gaines and Aaron Kyle - were drafted. The Detroit Lions used their 16th place pick to draft Gaines, a running back, who would play with the Lions for three years. The Dallas Cowboys used their 27th place pick to draft Kyle, a cornerback, who would go on to help the Cowboys win Super Bowl XII. Kyle was inducted into the Wyoming Athletics Hall of Fame in 2016.
In 1967, Ron Billingsley was drafted by the San Diego Chargers as a 14th pick, holding the distinction of highest pick in Cowboys history until Allen was chosen last night.
Billingsley, Gaines, Kyle and Allen are the only Cowboys to ever be drafted in the first round.
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Information from: Laramie Boomerang, http://www.laramieboomerang.com
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