Laramie grad Isaac Sell embracing position change at UW

May 9—LARAMIE — Isaac Sell was caught off-guard following the University of Wyoming's spring game last year.

The Laramie High graduate led all wide receivers with eight catches for 79 yards during the team's annual scrimmage last April, providing a big spark for an otherwise stagnant offense for the Brown team.

A few weeks after the breakout performance, Sell was pulled aside by UW cornerbacks coach Benny Boyd.

"Coach Boyd came up and told me that I was with him now, and I've been a cornerback ever since," Sell told WyoSports last month.

The transition from wide receiver to defensive back last summer wasn't something Sell was expecting. But for the past year, the 5-foot-10, 192-pound redshirt junior has embraced the shift from offense to defense.

"I was open to it," Sell said. "It was kind of a shock at first, but I gave it a day, and after that, it is what it is, and there's nothing that's going to change that, so I figured I'd just start figuring out the corner position.

"... It was rough in the fall. In fall camp, it was a lot of information to take in. I haven't played defense since my junior year of high school, so that was a bit of a transition, but through the fall and throughout the season, I started improving.

"I had a conversation with coach Boyd before spring ball, and it was just a super honest one about seeing where I needed to be at and what he thought I could improve on. That's just been my big focus."

Sell has played all over the field throughout his football career. He earned first team all-state honors at running back as a senior with the Plainsmen, leading Class 4A in rushing with 1,602 yards to go along with 13 touchdowns.

He also played a hybrid safety/linebacker role on Laramie's defense, but had never lined up at corner before his position change at UW. The lack of experience showed in his first reps during fall camp, but the early struggles weren't enough to deflate Sell's ambition to perform well at corner.

"(Those first reps of fall camp) were rough," Sell said with a laugh. "I have some clips on my phone, and there's a couple that aren't very good. But just keeping my head down and sticking to the process was big.

"Coach Boyd was super big in helping my improvement, and he stayed on me and didn't let me feel bad about myself or anything like that. Guys like (cornerback Tyrecus Davis) have been super helpful in the process, too."

Sell originally enrolled at UW as a student after graduating from Laramie in 2021, but he'd kept in contact with Shannon Moore, who is the program's primary recruiter in the state of Wyoming. Moore called him shortly after he arrived on campus, offering Sell a spot on the team as a walk-on at wide receiver.

The phone call came just months after Sell had reconstructive surgery to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee.

"I was super excited when he called me, so I accepted that," Sell said last April. "... I kind of had to calm myself down when I was on the phone with him and try to stay sane. I was super happy when I got that call."

Sell made a full recovery from the torn ACL, but his focus has again shifted to getting back to 100% before fall camp rolls around in August.

"I want to go into the summer healthy," Sell said. "I tweaked my hamstring the week before spring, so that first week of spring practice wasn't very fun. ... I'm just looking to take care of myself and get healthy. Then, I'm just looking to go out and compete."

Sell's breakout spring game was a big boost to his confidence. But with over a year separating him and the scrimmage, he doesn't spend too much energy replaying highlights of his performance at War Memorial Stadium.

"It was special, for sure," Sell said. "I had a great time. I don't really think about it too much anymore, just because it was a long time ago. At the end of the day, work still has to be done, and I'm at a new position, so I still need to improve.

"I try not to think about it too much. It was a cool experience, and I'm glad I had that, but my mindset is still looking to improve on where I'm at now."

Going into his second season at cornerback, Sell is looking to play his way into the rotation. With UW's secondary lacking depth at the position, Sell is taking the offseason one day at a time.

"I'm feeling good," Sell said. "There's a lot of work that I need to do (during the summer and into fall), but I think, physically, this is the best I've been here.

"Mentally, I'm in a really good spot. So, I'm just looking to improve every day and attack each day."

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Alex Taylor is the assistant editor for WyoSports and covers University of Wyoming athletics. He can be reached at ataylor@wyosports.net. Follow him on X at @alex_m_taylor22.