Deion DeBlanc Finds His Football Home in the Cowboy State

Jeff Bugher
Apr 21
3 min read

Updated: May 18

Deion DeBlanc (3), Photo courtesy of UW Athletics

LARAMIE, Wyo — When wide receiver Deion DeBlanc starts his first game for the University of Wyoming, he won't just be playing football. He will be one step closer to honoring a promise — and chasing a dream that began in his hometown of Houston, Texas.

DeBlanc told us he got into football at the age of five, when he discovered peewee football. “It turned into something I couldn't live without," DeBlanc said.

Now a freshman in Laramie, DeBlanc’s passion shines in brown and gold. The game has been his constant from the early days of youth football through his high school breakout. While the road to Wyoming included early recruiting attention and interest from major programs like Oregon and Arkansas, the Houston native found something special in the Cowboy State.

"I started hearing about Wyoming a little bit… he reached out to me,” DeBlanc said of wide receivers coach Jovon Bouknight. “I love the way he talked to me. He made sure my family was good. He checked in a lot, and he made sure to talk about my family almost every day.”

Though DeBlanc had other offers, his decision came down to more than logos or Power Five.

"I wasn't too caught up in the name of the school or how big it was. I just knew the time was right," he said.

The first-year wideout credits his community back home for helping him become the person — and the player — he is today, especially the support system back home.

“Oh yeah, for sure,” he said. “At Northshore… anytime I had a problem — and anytime they had one — we’d talk...I would go to them and they would help.”

So what’s it been like adjusting to the pace of Division I football under Coach Bouknight?

“It’s really great,” DeBlanc said. “Day by day — that’s how he coaches. He doesn’t throw too much on me all at once. If I go out there and start thinking too much, it slows me down. But he gives me a little bit every day, and I get better and better. If I don’t go out there and get 1% better, then I don’t really feel right.”

His motivation? It runs deep — much deeper than yards or touchdowns.

“When I was younger, my grandmother passed,” DeBlanc said. “I promised her I was going to make it to the NFL. So ever since then, every time I work, every time I get tired… I just think about that promise. I can’t break that.”

What does DeBlanc do off the field?

He told us he has an “old soul” and doesn’t do a whole lot compared to others his age. “I’m really a secure person,” he said. “I'm not too active socially. I just like to be a real person. I don’t do too much. That’s just my personality.”

So what can Wyoming fans expect to see when they watch No. 3 take the field?

“Expect to see a lot,” DeBlanc said. “I don’t want to predict too much. But no matter what — no matter if I’m injured, if I’m 100% — I promise that you’ll see the best of me.”