Tulsa opens Saturday at Wyoming at 2:30 p.m. on FSI. Wyoming opened their season last Saturday with a 6-38 road loss to Illinois.

Even though Wyoming had a lop-sided loss against Illinois from the Big Ten Conference, Tulsa coach Philip Montgomery expects a battle in Cheyenne.

“It’s a very well-coached team, very physical team,” Montgomery said. “We know we’re going to have our hands full plus they play Illinois before they play us so they get game one underneath their belt before we get up there. To start off the year at their place, I think it’s going to be an extremely tough game.”

Tulsa will start five new players on the offensive line and that may determine the level of success this season.

“Obviously, you’ve got five new starters up front and so those guys have got to continue to keep gelling and coming together,” Montgomery said.

“I think that will be the key to who we’re going to be when it’s all said and done. I think our skill guys have really progressed to a pretty good level, our offensive line is catching up, but I love the way they are working and coming together in that sense. We’re in a good space right now, we just got to continue to put in work.”

Tulsa lost Tyler Smith, who was drafted in the first round of the NFL draft.

TU quarterback Davis Brin is confident the new starters will get the job done.

“I think it’s going really well,” Brin said. “You’re fitting the pieces of the puzzle together and creating chemistry and relationships between those guys.

“For us, I feel like it starts off the field. We get together a lot and hang out off the field and create relationships, so that definitely helps. And then when we get on the field, they’re watching tape a bunch, and getting better every day, too, so I like the way that the room is looking. Those guys that we had last year did a phenomenal job and obviously had a lot of trust in them, so we’re in the process of building that trust, and it’s definitely coming along.”

Following a recent practice session, former TU defensive lineman Derrick Alexander spoke to the team.

Alexander came to Tulsa from Booker T. Washington High School and played for the Golden Hurricane from 2011-15.

“It’s huge to have guys like Derrick come back and speak to the guys – that’s what we’ve tried to build our program about,” said Montgomery. “They come here, they have a great experience and they work extremely hard. If they get their shot at the league they do that, and if they don’t, they apply some of the things that they learned when they we’re here – continue to work hard, be a great husband and father, business owner and a man in the community.

“That’s what we’re striving to do each and every day, and Derrick Alexander is a perfect example of all of those characteristics.”

Tulsa was picked to finish eighth in the American Athletic Conference and Montgomery does not see that as something to be worried about.

“Well, it hasn’t changed yet so you know we let those guys pick wherever they want to pick us,” Montgomery said.

“It doesn’t surprise us at this point and so I think our guys understand it and understand that it’s going to be decided on the field. And it and it starts week one with us but we got some veterans that have been around here like Justin wright and Anthony Goodlow.

“Guys that have been through these type of battles with us and so we’re going to focus on us we’re going to focus on game one and then continuing to strive to get better each and every week.”