Wyoming Defensive End Enters NCAA Transfer Portal
LARAMIE -- Akili Bonner is no longer a member of the Wyoming football program.
The sophomore from Carmichael, Calif., announced on Twitter Tuesday he is entering the NCAA Transfer Portal, becoming the eighth Cowboy to leave the team since Dec. 5.
Joshua Cobbs, Oluwaseyi Omotosho, Joey Braasch, Cam Stone, Keonte Glinton, Tyrese Grant and Zaire Jackson have also left this offseason. Only Stone, so far, has found a new home, signing with Mountain West foe Hawaii on Dec. 21. Starting running back Titus Swen, who was dismissed from the team after the regular-season finale at Fresno State, ultimately decided to enter the NFL Draft after a brief stint in the portal.
Earlier this week, senior tight end Jackson Marcotte also announced he will be retiring from football.
Don't be surprised to see more announcements like that in the future, according to UW head coach Craig Bohl.
"I had some really meaningful conversations with some great young men who are playing in this game," the ninth-year head coach said before last Friday's bowl in Tucson. "That's going to be their last game. They didn't identify that at the end of the year because they were sorting some things out. You know, we're in hopes we don't have a significant amount of exodus after this game, but that may happen."
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Bonner appeared in just two games in a Wyoming uniform. The 6-foot-4, 250-pound edge rusher saw time in a home tilt against Northern Colorado last September. He also played against Ohio in the Arizona Bowl.
The Jesuit High School graduate received offers from FCS programs San Diego and Stetson. Southern Oregon, an NAIA school, also wanted the former tight end.
Wyoming has signed just one player from the portal, Harrison Waylee, who eclipsed 1,900 rushing yards in parts of three seasons at Northern Illinois, including gashing the Cowboys for 179 yards and two touchdowns in a 2021 meeting in DeKalb. Bohl and Co. also inked 13 high school players on Dec. 21, the NCAA's early signing day.
"We've been actively vetting and watching players," Bohl said. "... You've got to be nimble and evolve, which I think we've done. Some of the guys that we were able to add to our football team last year really were not added until after the first of the year. So, we're going to actively seek that."
Bohl added the plan is to sign a "couple more" players in the portal. The program would like to add at least one cornerback before the portal window closes Jan. 18, according to a source familiar with the process.
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