--- That time of the year had arrived at last. As we continued playing for now pride and trying to notch another win or two on our belt before the close of the year, it was time to once again say goodbye to another great group of seniors during their last home game. Making this an even more difficult game, besides our offensive and defensive woes, was UNLV entering the contest winless on the season, and no doubt the Rebels would be looking to get that first win of the year over our squad and spoil senior night for us.
The home crowd said farewell to our seniors tonight, including: Halfback Preston Roberson, halfback Dante May, wide receiver Travis Munoz, wide receiver Ryan Conley, tight end Maurice Martin, left guard Brian Johnson, center Adam Jefferson, right guard Jason Oliver, defensive end Freddie Wilson, defensive end Kevin Tolbert, defensive tackle Adam Grant, left outside linebacker Al Washington, right outside linebacker Arthur Lee, cornerback Kevin Moore, cornerback Jeremy Thurman and strong safety Sam Vinson.
Entering the game, to say UNLV was bad would be an understatement. The Rebels entered the game #126 nationally in scoring offense (13.4 points/game), #125 in total offense (284.0 yards/game), #116 in rushing offense (116.6 yards/game) and #118 in passing offense (167.4 yards/game). Defense wasn’t a whole ton greater, as they entered #83 nationally in total defense (400.2 yards/game), #119 in rush defense (192.9 yards/game) and their only bright spot, #40 nationally in pass defense (207.3 yards/game). With a -11 turnover differential, good for #119 nationally, they were almost as bad as our -12 (ranked #123). While our rush offense (#74, 150.3 yards/game) and our pass defense (#89, 246.5 yards/game) didn’t exactly make us a spring chicken, hopefully we’d be able to get a passing and rushing mix on track and break loose offensively against the Rebels, while hoping our defense would continue the same that teams before us had done, and hold UNLV down. UNLV won the coin toss and elected to kick.
A 22 yard kickoff return by David Douglas gave us the ball at our 24 yard line to start the game. Opening up our first drive of the game, Preston Roberson took the handoff on first down for a 5 yard gain, followed by another rush of 5 yard to get the first down at the 34 yard line. Roberson took another handoff, fighting his way to a three yard gain, before a rush by Brian Paris resulted in an 8 yard carry and a new set of downs at the 45 yard line. Taking the ball out of the wingback slot, Roberson plowed straight ahead for a four yard pickup, followed by a 5 yard rush to leave us looking at third and one. Giving the ball right back to Roberson, he would find a hole around the right guard for a gain of 5 yards and a first down at the UNLV 41 yard line. Paris received the handoff on first down, but the Rebels defense was waiting for us this time, tackling Paris for a gain of just one yard. Lining up under center on second down, Jason Barnes dropped back with a play action fake and found Cedric McKinney for an 11 yard gain, giving us a new set of downs at the 29. Going right back to the ground and pound method, Roberson received the handoff for a four yard gain, followed by another gain of four yards around the right tackle to leave us with third and two. Roberson would get the first down and then something, rumbling up the middle for a 12 yard gain to set up first and goal at the 9 yard line. Another dive from the wingback slot resulted in a two yard rush by Dante May, followed by a four yard carry by Roberson to set up third and goal at the three yard line. Paris would finish off the drive on third down with a dash into the end zone for a three yard touchdown, giving us a 7-0 lead with 2:43 left in the first quarter.
A 26 yard kickoff return by Antonio Matthews out to the 26 yard line, would end in the first screw up of the game, as a facemask penalty called on outside linebacker John Hale during the tackle gave UNLV an extra 15 yards and got their first drive underway from the 40 yard line. Gary Alvarez kept the ball on a first down option play, finding an opening and torching our offense for a 21 yard gain right off the bat, giving UNLV a first down at our 39 yard line. Going no huddle and shoving it right down our throats, Alvarez found Joe Triplett over the middle for a 7 yard completion, followed by a two yard rush by Dusty Edwards to leave third and inches. Despite nearly being tackled in the backfield, Alvarez would break out of the tackle and tear off up the field for a 15 yard gain and a first down at the 14 yard line. A three yard rush by Edwards was followed by a gain of 8 yards on the ground by Kasey Ryan, giving the Rebels first and goal from our three yard line. Alvarez would finish the drive off one play later with an option keeper for a three yard touchdown, tying the game up at 7-7 with 1:10 left in the first quarter.
A 25 yard kickoff return by Roberson got us back in action from our 27 yard line. Taking the handoff on first down, Roberson fought his way to a three yard gain, leaving second and 7. Lining up under center on second down, Barnes dropped back and threw a quick pass to tight end Jack Long for a gain of 13 yards and a fresh set of downs at the 43. Lining up in the shotgun, Barnes connected with Douglas for a 15 yard gain, but Douglas ended up fumbling the ball after trying to break a tackle, the ball picked up by the Rebels defense and returned to our 45 yard line. In-stadium replays showed the ball not coming out until after Douglas was already down by his knee, so we challenged the play. The referees would end up reversing the call on the field, ruling that the ground caused the fumble, so we got the ball back with a first down at the UNLV 42 yard line and averted disaster. That would end up being the last play of the first quarter as the last 10 seconds ran off the clock without another snap, taking us into the quarter break deadlocked at 7-7.
Opening up the second quarter with a first down at the UNLV 42, we came out passing as Barnes connected with Ryan Conley for a 12 yard gain and a quick first down at the 30 yard line. Trying to connect with Paris out of the backfield, the pass got broken up by the middle linebacker, leaving second down. Lining up under center on second down, a pass to Long over the middle resulted in a big 20 yard pickup, setting us up with a first down at the 10 yard line. Looking to put this drive to bed, Barnes dropped back from the shotgun and sailed a high flyer into the end zone to Roberson, the pass complete for a 10 yard touchdown and a 14-7 lead with 8:21 left in the second quarter.
A 22 yard kickoff return by George Walters gave UNLV the ball at their 21 yard line. Coming out passing on first down, Alvarez tried to throw deep on first down to a wide open John Williams, but he would end up dropping the pass as it hit him squarely in the hands, resulting in second and 10. A handoff to Edwards went straight up the middle for a gain of 11 yards and a first down at the 31 yard line. Proving to be an elusive little SOB, Alvarez would keep the ball again on an option play, breaking free from two different tackles for a 21 yard gain, giving the Rebels a first down at our 47 yard line. The defense would finally start to show some life, getting to Alvarez and keeping him contained this time, tackling him for a four yard loss to leave second and 14. A handoff to Kevin Davis picked up just two yards, setting up third and 12. Dropping back to pass on third down, Alvarez would never have a chance, as the blitz would get to him before he could get rid of the ball, sacked for a 6 yard loss to bring out UNLV’s punt team on fourth and 18. A 29 yard return by Roberson on the 39 yard punt set us up with a first down at our 44 yard line.
Lining up after the punt, we came out galloping as Roberson took the handoff for a four yard gain, followed by a dive by May from the wingback slot for a 5 yard pickup. Instead of third and one, it would get a whole lot sweeter as a facemask penalty on middle linebacker Ryan Nunez on the tackle would set us up with a first down at the UNLV 32 yard line. The defense would limit Roberson to just a two yard gain on first down, leaving second and 8. Running a play action pass on second down, a flying cornerback broke up the pass to a wide open Douglas, leaving third down. Dropping back to pass on third down, Barnes was able to connect with Conley for an 8 yard gain, leaving us with fourth and inches at the 22 yard line. Taking the gamble on fourth down, Barnes gave the ball to Walter Johnson, the handoff going for a three yard gain and a new set of downs at the 19 yard line. Taking the ball on first down, Roberson was again limited to a minor gain, only getting one yard on the carry. A blown up play on second down would result in Paris being tackled for a four yard loss, leaving us looking at third and 13. Going over the top on third down, Munoz would keep us moving with a 15 yard reception, setting us up with first and goal from the 7 yard line. Roberson took the ball on first down, fighting his way to a three yard gain, followed by a three yard rush by Paris to leave third and goal at the one yard line. Roberson would get the job done, following his blocker and punching it in for the one yard touchdown, putting us on top 21-7 with 2:14 left in the second quarter.
A 24 yard kickoff return by Matthews got UNLV underway from their 23 yard line. Coming out passing from the get go, it would be a pure victory by our defense, as the first down pass to Williams was blown up by our defense, Williams immediately tackled for no gain on the play. A screen pass on second down to Edwards would only pick up three yards to leave third and 7, before the third down blitz our defense left Alvarez trapped and forced him to throw the ball away, bringing out UNLV’s punt team with 1:08 left until halftime. A 10 yard return by Roberson on the 41 yard punt got us started from our 42 yard line.
Lining up at our 42 yard line with just 59 seconds on the clock, there was no secret what our game plan was going to be. Starting the drive under center, Barnes dropped back and rifled a pass to Long for a 16 yard gain and a quick first down at the UNLV 42 yard line. Proving that we too could go no-huddle, Barnes rushed us to the line, setting up in the shotgun, and got off a quick snap and throw to Munoz, the pass good for a gain of 18 yard and another first down at the 24 yard line. Trying to throw over the middle to Long on first down, the pass would end up batted down by the middle linebacker, leaving us with second and 10, 34 seconds on the clock. The second down pass intended for Munoz was nearly intercepted by the cornerback, and we found ourselves with third and long. The pass on third down went to Conley, who was able to pull it in before getting stood up right at the first down line by the cornerback. It was close, but we got a favorable call by the refs, the play going for a 11 yard gain and a first down at the 13. Going right back to Conley on first down, he was again able to pull in the pass, this time for an 8 yard pickup, leaving second and two from the 5 yard line, as we called our first timeout with 21 seconds left on the clock. Taking a gamble on second down, we gave the ball to Roberson, who took the handoff up the middle for a four yard gain, setting up first and goal from the one yard line. Not calling a timeout, we quickly lined right back up, taking advantage of the briefly stopped clock, and before the defense could get organized, we snapped the ball and gave it right back to Roberson, who punched it in for the one yard touchdown, increasing our lead to 28-7 with 15 seconds left in the second quarter.
A 28 yard kickoff return by Matthews gave UNLV the ball at their 27 yard line, just 11 seconds left on the clock. Dropping back 8 defenders in coverage, it nearly bit us in the ass as Alvarez handed the ball off to Edwards, who proceeded to break a pair of tackles and run it straight up the middle for a 21 yard gain, finally brought down at the 48 yard line, UNLV calling their first timeout with 5 seconds left. Dropping three back very deep, we were prepared for Alvarez’s deep pass, the ball broken up and swatted down incomplete at our three yard line, sending us into halftime with a 28-7 lead.
Opening up the second half, a 27 yard kickoff return by Walters set UNLV up with the ball at their 27 yard line to start the third quarter. A first down handoff to Edwards resulted in a four yard gain, followed by a pass to Williams along the sideline for a pickup of four yards to leave third and two. Edwards would end up picking up the first down, taking the third down handoff up the middle for a 14 yard gain, giving UNLV a first down at the 49 yard line. Our defense would start to find life on first down, as the blitz would get to Alvarez, sacking him for a 5 yard loss to leave second and 15. A handoff to Kevin Davis would result in a one yard loss as he got tripped up at the ankles, setting up a big third and 16 early in the third. Going deep on third down, the pass from Alvarez to Jacob Hudson nearly went for a giant gain down inside our 20 yard line, but a jumping Hudson was unable to hold onto the ball, as it bounced off his hands and then proceeded to get kicked away by his legs as he fell to the ground, leaving the punt team coming out on fourth and 16. A 22 yard return by Roberson on the 44 yard punt set us up at our 35 yard line.
Lining up on first down from the 35, we let Roberson do his thing with a three yard rush up the middle, followed by a four yard carry by Paris to leave third and three. Keeping it on the ground, Roberson lined up in the wingback slot, taking the handoff and diving up the middle for a 6 yard rush and a first down at the 49 yard line. A first down rush by Paris would go for a big 14 yard carry, moving the chains once more to the UNLV 37 yard line. Keeping it going on first down, Roberson took the ball, fighting his way to a four yard gain, followed by a three yard pickup to leave third and three. Roberson, despite three different blockers, would get stood up for no gain on third down, leaving us with fourth and three from the 30 yard line. Taking a shot at the 47 yard field goal, the ball would miss just a hair underneath the crossbar, giving the ball back to UNLV at their 30 yard line.
Taking over after the missed field goal, a first down handoff to Edwards resulted in a 21 yard gain as tackle attempt after tackle attempt was broken and shouldered through, giving UNLV a quick first down at our 49 yard line. Another handoff to Edwards would go less successful this time, the defense managing to wrap him up for a two yard loss, leaving second and 12. A quick pass to Hudson went for a four yard gain, before another pass to Hudson on third down resulted in a 10 yard pickup and a first down our 37 yard line. The defense would at least put up a fight again, tackling Alvarez on first down for a five yard loss, leaving the Rebels with second and 15. A handoff to Edwards would go for a 5 yard gain to leave third and 10, but the defense would prevail once more, as defensive end Caleb McBride would break through the line, sacking Alvarez for a three yard loss to bring out the punt team once more on fourth and 13. The 40 yard punt would sail straight into the end zone for a touchback, giving us the ball at our 20 yard line.
Lining up at the 20 after the touchback, we kept the ball on the ground to see what our halfbacks could do, but Roberson would be limited to just a two yard gain on the play. Pitching the ball to Paris on second down, he was able to keep us moving as he took the pitch for a gain of 10 yards, moving the chains to the 32 yard line. Another first down rush by Roberson would result in another two yard gain, leaving second and 8. Taking a shot at a play action pass on second down, Barnes was able to connect with McKinney for a 13 yard gain and a first down at the 46 yard line. Another first down rush by Roberson gained 5 yards, followed by a 10 yard dash by Paris to give us a first down at the UNLV 39 yard line. That would be the last play before the clock ran out, bringing the third quarter to a close with our lead holding at 28-7.
Opening up the fourth quarter, we lined up at the UNLV 39 yard line with a first down, Roberson taking the handoff up the middle for a 5 yard gain, followed by a 4 yard pickup to leave us with third and one. The third down handoff to Paris would pick up three yards, advancing the chains to the 26 yard line. Another play action pass to McKinney would result in the defense completely selling out for the fake, leaving McKinney all by himself in the secondary, hauling in the pass from Barnes near the 15 yard line and taking it the rest of the way for a 26 yard touchdown, putting us up 35-7 with 7:44 left in the game.
A 23 yard kickoff return by Matthews gave UNLV the ball at their 22 yard line. A first down screen pass to Edwards went for a 7 yard gain. The Rebels would end up going backwards as Alvarez would fail to get the second down pass off in time, sacked for a 5 yard loss to leave third and 8. Screwing it up in a way that only our defense could, Edwards took the third down handoff from Alvarez and rushed around the left side of the action, taking it up the field for a 38 yard gain and a first down at our 38 yard line. Going into the air on first down, Alvarez tried to throw to Triplett in the flats, but middle linebacker Al Washington was able to get a hand on the ball and deflect it away, leaving second down. A handoff to Davis resulted in a three yard gain to leave third and 7. The defense wouldn’t fail this time around, as McBride broke through the line and chased down a rolling out Alvarez, flattening him from behind and sacking him for a 7 yard loss, bringing out the punt team once more on fourth and 14. The 42 yard punt would bounce into the end zone for a touchback, giving us the ball from our 20 yard line.
Taking over after the touchback, we came out passing on first down, but the pass intended for Long was broken up by a diving safety, leaving second down. Dropping back into the shotgun on second down, Barnes tried to connect with Douglas, but the pass was likewise broken up to bring up third and 10. The third down pass intended for Conley would end up intercepted, outside linebacker Johnny Hall picking it off and taking it 27 yards all the way back for a touchdown. UNLV would shank the PAT to lessen the damage, only cutting our lead to 35-13 with 5:53 left in the game.
UNLV came out looking to kick the ball onside, forcing us to call our first timeout to get our return team reorganized. Long would recover the onside kick for us, giving us the ball at the UNLV 46 yard line. After an incomplete pass on first down, Barnes was able to connect with Conley for an 8 yard gain, leaving us with third and two. Paris would get the conversion as he took the handoff up the middle, picking up 5 yards and a first down at the 33 yard line. Two more incomplete passes were followed with another 8 yard completion to Conley, setting up a fourth and two situation. Rather than taking a chance on the 42 yard field goal, we gave the ball to Paris, who able to just gain two yards and the first down at the 23 yard line. A play action pass on first down to McKinney resulted in an 11 yard completion, giving us another first down at the 12 yard line. Barnes tried to go over the middle to tight end Maurice Martin, but the ball got broken up, leaving second down. A quick pass on second down to Conley would give us an 11 yard gain, setting up first and goal at the one yard line. Paris would need to just one try cover that one yard, receiving the handoff on first down and punching it in for the one yard touchdown, increasing our lead to 42-13 with 3:41 left in the game.
A 29 yard kickoff return by Walters got UNLV back on the field from their 28 yard line. The defense would continue to come after the offense, even despite the lead, as McBride would sack Alvarez for a four yard loss on first down, leaving second and 14. An encroachment penalty on the defense took away that sack, making it second and 9 at the 29 yard line. Alvarez would try to keep the ball himself on second down, but was quickly brought down in the backfield for a 5 yard loss, leaving UNLV facing third and 14. To make it all the worse, that play brought an end to Alvarez’s season, as he didn’t get up after the tackle, diagnosed with a dislocated elbow that would leave him sidelined for 9 weeks. Bringing the house on third down, McBride would welcome backup QB Martin Mitchell to the game, blitzing through the line and sacking him for a four yard loss, leaving UNLV punting on fourth and 18. A fair catch by Douglas on the 39 yard punt gave us the ball from our 41 yard line.
Taking over after the punt, despite the lead, Barnes came out passing on first down, hitting Munoz over the middle for a 13 yard gain and quick first down at the UNLV 46 yard line. A first down pass intended for Conley ended up broken up by the outside linebacker, leaving second and 10. Lining up under center on second down, Barnes connected with Johnson for a gain of 8 yards, leaving third and two. A four yard rush by Paris would convert the third down and give us a new set of downs at the UNLV 34 yard line. With 1:33 left and ticking, we would call off the dogs, Barnes twice dropping to a knee to run out the remaining clock and seal our 42-13 win.
With the win, we improve to 3-8, 3-4 in Mountain West action. With the loss, UNLV drops to 0-10, 0-7 in Mountain West play. Up next, it’s back on the road to close out the 2021 season as we head to Wyoming for Bridger's Battle. The Cowboys enter the game 1-10, 1-6 in Mountain West action. Wyoming opened their year with a 28-24 loss at Oregon, then lost 49-7 to #4 Michigan State and lost 42-24 to Nevada. The Cowboys would get their lone win of the season in week 5, 24-21 against Colorado State. After that, it was all downhill for Wyoming, losing 34-28 at #24 Fresno State, losing 41-13 to Florida Atlantic, losing 17-14 to Air Force, falling 14-7 in overtime at New Mexico, losing 27-13 at Boise State, falling 42-26 to Tulsa and losing 30-27 at San Diego State heading into our game.
Final Score
42,
13
Stat(s) of the Game:
Utah State Offense - A solid day for Barnes, going 20-32 for 254 yards, two touchdowns, though one interception. Rushing, Roberson led the way with 101 yards and two touchdowns on 27 carries. Paris ended with 65 yards and two touchdowns on 15 rushes. May had 9 yards on two carries. Receiving, Conley led the way with 65 yards on 7 receptions. McKinney had 61 yards and one touchdown on four catches. Roberson had the other receiving touchdown, to go along with 10 yards on one reception. In all, seven receivers caught at least one pass today, six ended with double digit yards.
Utah State Defense/Special Teams – Damn solid defending the pass, as well as a very productive day by the blitz, recording 7 sacks as a team, defensive end Caleb McBride accounting for 6 of them in a career day. Against the run, predominantly the option and especially against the no-huddle? God awful. Only some timely stops and good pass defense kept UNLV from gaining any serious momentum after that first touchdown.
Utah State Kicking – A largely quite day for Marcus. After missing a 47 yard field goal on our first drive of the third quarter, we didn't bother trying another field goal for the day, Marcus ending the game 0-1. He did go 6-6 in PATs at least.
Scoring Summary
| Team |
1st Quarter |
2nd Quarter |
3rd Quarter |
4th Quarter |
Final Score |
|
7 |
0 |
0 |
6 |
13 |
|
7 |
21 |
0 |
14 |
42 |
| Time |
Team |
Result |
Play |
Score |
| First Quarter |
| 2:43 |
|
Touchdown |
B. Paris, 3 yard run (D. Marcus kick) |
7-0 |
| 1:10 |
|
Touchdown |
G. Alvarez, 3 yard run (J. Mack kick) |
TIED 7-7 |
|
| Second Quarter |
| 8:21 |
|
Touchdown |
P. Roberson, 10 yard pass from J. Barnes (D. Marcus kick) |
14-7 |
| 2:14 |
|
Touchdown |
P. Roberson, 1 yard run (D. Marcus kick) |
21-7 |
| 0:15 |
|
Touchdown |
P. Roberson, 1 yard run (D. Marcus kick) |
28-7 |
|
| Third Quarter |
| --- |
--- |
--- |
--- |
--- |
|
| Fourth Quarter |
| 7:44 |
|
Touchdown |
C. McKinney, 26 yard pass from J. Barnes (D. Marcus kick) |
35-7 |
| 5:53 |
|
Touchdown |
J. Hall, returned interception 27 yards (missed kick) |
35-13 |
| 3:41 |
|
Touchdown |
B. Paris, 1 yard run (D. Marcus kick) |
42-13 |
| UNLV |
Stat |
Utah State |
| 13 |
Score |
42 |
| 10 |
First Downs |
28 |
| 176 |
Total Offense |
428 |
| 28 - 141 - 1 |
Rushes - Yards - TD |
47 - 174 - 4 |
| 7 - 12 - 0 |
Comp - Att - TD |
20 - 32 - 2 |
| 35 |
Passing Yards |
254 |
| 7 |
Times Sacked |
0 |
| 4 - 10 (40%) |
3rd Down Conversion |
10 - 14 (71%) |
| 0 - 0 (0%) |
4th Down Conversion |
2 - 2 (100%) |
| 0 - 0 (0%) |
2-Point Conv |
0 - 0 (0%) |
| 1 - 1 - 0 (100%) |
Red Zone - TD - FG |
5 - 5 - 0 (100%) |
| 0 |
Turnovers |
1 |
| 0 |
Fumbles Lost |
0 |
| 0 |
Intercepted |
1 |
| 0 |
Punt Return Yards |
60 |
| 176 |
Kick Return Yards |
49 |
| 352 |
Total Yards |
537 |
| 6 – 41.0 |
Punts - Average |
0 - 0.0 |
| 1 - 15 |
Penalties |
2 - 20 |
| 10:43 |
Time of Possession |
25:17 |
| Goal |
XP Reward |
Completed |
| Win a Game |
100 |
x1 |
| Score a Touchdown |
25 |
x6 |
| Pass for 250 Yards |
25 |
x1 |
| Rush for 100 Yards |
25 |
x1 |
| Kneel Last Minute Q4 While Ahead |
10 |
x1 |
| 3+ Sacks |
50 |
x1 |
| Opponent Under 150 Rush Yards |
50 |
x1 |
| Opponent Under 300 Pass Yards |
50 |
x1 |
| Pass Completion Over 50% |
30 |
x1 |
| 100% Red Zone Efficiency |
50 |
x1 |
| Score 21 or More Points |
50 |
x1 |
| 350+ Offensive Yards |
50 |
x1 |
| 10+ First Downs |
50 |
x1 |
| 4+ 3rd Down Conversions |
25 |
x1 |
| School Record: Sacks/Game (6) |
200 |
x1 |
| School Record: Rush TD/Season (16) |
300 |
x1 |
| Goal |
Expectations |
Progress |
| Target Wins Per Season |
7 |
3 |
24,
Reply With Quote
Originally Posted by jaymo76
- (6-6)
- (6-6)
- (6-6)
- (6-6)
- (6-6)
Bookmarks