November 8, 1998
GAME 10UNLV (0-9, 0-6 WAC)vs. RICE (4-5, 4-2 WAC)
DATE: Saturday, Nov. 14, 1998KICKOFF: 12:00 pm PSTSITE: Rice Stadium (70,000) HoustonTV: NoneRADIO: KXNT-840 AM, 11:30 am PST (Tony Cordasco & Hunkie Cooper)
GAME PREVIEW
UNLV (0-9, 0-6) heads back on the road to tangle with WAC Mountain Division foe Rice (4-5, 4-2) for the second time ever ... Against the Owls, the Rebels will attempt to snap a school-record 14-game losing streak and 25-game road losing streak ... Last week, UNLV enjoyed its first bye of the season while Rice defeated TCU 14-12 ... The Rebels have lost their last three games by a total of 10 points ... Three of UNLV's first nine opponents this season are ranked in this week's USA TODAY/ESPN Coaches Poll: No. 6 Wisconsin, No. 20 Air Force and No. 25 Wyoming. Another Rebel opponent, BYU, also received votes (35th).
SERIES NOTES
These two teams have met only once and Rice won 38-0 in 1995 ... This will mark the first and last time the programs will meet as WAC opponents ... It is the second time in the last three games that UNLV will travel to Texas (at SMU on Oct. 24) ... The Rebels list seven players from the Lone Star State but only two are expected to make the trip to Houston. Making a homecoming will be DE Roderick Jones, who graduated from Lamar Consolidated HS in nearby Kendleton but also played at Houston's Westfield HS as a sophomore ... In addition, starting QB Chad Reed is from Lubbock and head coach Jeff Horton is a native of Arlington.
ANNUAL AWARDS BANQUET ANNOUNCED
The 1998 Rebel Football Awards Banquet will take place on Sunday, Nov. 22, at Sam's Town Hotel on Boulder Highway and the public is invited. Nine-year NFL veteran quarterback Joe Reed, who also is father of starting Rebel signal-caller Chad Reed, is this year's special guest speaker. Tickets are $35 for the public and $15 for faculty & staff. Tables of 10 can be ordered and player-table sponsorships are also available. Call Terry Cottle for more information at 895-3454.
SERIES RECORD: RICE leads 1-0 LAST MEETING: 1995 (RU 38-0)UNLV at RICE RECORD: 0-1 RICE at UNLV RECORD: 0-0UNLV's LARGEST WIN: NoneRICE's LARGEST WIN: 38 (38-0 in 1995)
UNLV (0-9) 1998 SCHEDULEDate Opponent Result/Time S. 5 at Northwestern L, 41-7S. 12 AIR FORCE L, 52-10S. 19 at Wisconsin L, 52-7S. 26 at Colorado St. L, 38-16O. 3 NEVADA, RENO L, 31-20O. 10 at BYU L, 38-14O. 17 WYOMING (HC) L, 28-25 (OT) O. 24 at SMU L, 10-7O. 31 TULSA L, 20-16N. 7 OPENN. 14 at Rice 2 pm CSTN. 21 TCU 1 pm PST
RICE (4-5) 1998 SCHEDULEDate Opponent Result/TimeS. 5 SMU W, 23-17 (OT)S. 12 at Purdue L, 21-19S. 19 NORTHWESTERN L, 23-14S. 26 at Texas L, 59-21O. 10 at San Jose St. L, 20-17O. 17 TULSA W, 14-10O. 24 at Wyoming L, 34-24O. 31 COLORADO STATE W, 35-23N. 7 at TCU W, 14-12N. 14 UNLV 2 pm CSTN. 21 at Air Force 12 pm MST
SAWYER TO DO HULAUNLV senior defensive end Talance Sawyer has been invited to play in this season's Hooters Hula Bowl All-Star Football Classic. Sawyer, a first-team All-WAC player a year ago, currently leads the conference in tackles for loss with 19. The Bastrop, La., native is the first player to be chosen for a postseason all-star game since Rebel offensive lineman Dennis Whitmore played in the Hula Bowl following the 1996 season. This marks the sixth time a UNLV player will compete in the annual Hawaii showcase - more than any postseason game. This year's Hula Bowl will be played at War Memorial Stadium in Maui on Sunday, Jan. 24.
UNLV HEAD COACH JEFF HORTONJeff Horton, who turned 41 this summer, is in his fifth season at the helm of the Rebel football program and sixth as a Div. I-A head coach. The seventh head man in UNLV's 30 years of football history, Horton has a career record of 20-46 and 13-42 for the Rebels. Facing a half-decade in charge, Horton will tie original coach Bill Ireland (1968-72) for second-longest stint leading UNLV football. Only Tony Knap (1976-81) coached the Rebels longer. Named the 1994 Big West Co-Coach of the Year after leading UNLV to its second-ever league title and bowl win, Horton graduated from Nevada, Reno in 1981 and later received his master's from the Univ. of San Francisco. He came to Las Vegas after spending the 1993 season as head coach of UNR, where he also had been assistant coach from 1985-89 and '92. Horton also served a stint as a UNLV assistant from 1990-91. Born July 13, 1957, Horton is married to the former Teri Arden of Reno.
HORTON'S CAREER RECORDYEAR SCHOOL TOT CONF FIN1998 UNLV 0-9 0-6 8th1997 UNLV 3-8 2-6 7th1996 UNLV 1-11 1-7 T7th1995 UNLV 2-9 1-5 10th1994 UNLV 7-5 5-1 T1st1993 UNR 7-4 4-2 3rd
TOTAL 6 Years 20-46 13-27
RICE HEAD COACH KEN HATFIELDNow in his 20th year as a head coach and fifth at Rice, Ken Hatfield has a career record of 138-89-4, including 25-27-1 for the Owls. The only man to win WAC Coach of the Year at two schools, Hatfield led Air Force from 1979-83, including a 10-2 mark in his final campaign in Colorado. He left the Academy for Arkansas in 1984 and led the Razorbacks to a bowl appearancein every one of his six years in Fayetteville. Hatfield took over at Clemson in 1990 and saw the Tigers go to two bowls from 1990-93. He moved to Rice in 1994 to head the then-Southwest Conference Owls, who then joined the WAC in 1996. A native of Helena, Ark., Hatfield graduatedfrom the University of Arkansas in 1965. His collegiate coaching career began at Army in 1966 and included stops at Tennessee and Florida before moving to Air Force as offensive coordinator in 1978.
THE LAST TIME THEY METHOUSTON -- (Sept. 2, 1995)RICE 38, UNLV 0
UNLV (0-1) went on the road to open the 1995 season and was shut out by Southwest Conference Co-Champion Rice (1-0) in the first-ever meeting between the schools. It was the ninth time in history, the first time since 1989 and first time on the road since 1988 that the Rebels were blanked in a football game. Reeling from the last-minute loss of starting receiver and kick returner Demond Thompkins because of academic reasons, UNLV moved the ball well at times but commited six turnovers and countless more mental errors and lost for the eighth time in the last 10 season openers. The Owls received a gift touchdown with just 16 seconds off the clock when Rice DB Warrick Franklin intercepted a Jared Brown pass and took it into the endzone from 22 yards out. Brown, who had never thrown more than two interceptions in a game, was pulled after being picked off three times in the first half alone but Jason Davis didn't fare much better. Holding only a 14-0 halftime advantage, Rice blew the game open with big scoring runs of 75 and 63 yards en route to 333 yards on the ground. The Owls scored 38 pointsdespite completing just two of 12 pass attempts. UNLV was led by RB Shannon Wilson's 79 yards on the ground on 19 carries while eight different Rebels caught at least one pass.
GAME NINE IN REVIEWREBELS SUFFER THIRD STRAIGHT LOSS BY LESS THAN FIVE POINTS TULSA 20, UNLV 16
LAS VEGAS -- UNLV (0-9) lost for the 14th consecutive time and for the third straight time by four points or less -- this time to Tulsa (3-5) in front of 15,187 at Sam Boyd Stadium. The Rebels took a 10-7 lead in the first quarter on a James Wofford one-yard plunge. The Golden Hurricane, however, responded with 10 straight points to earn a 17-10 halftime lead, includingjust its second field goal of the season. The only third-quarter scoring came on a QB Chad Reed run from three yards out but the extra point attempt never got off the ground to make it 17-16 heading into the fourth. TU then made another field goal with under 11 minutes. UNLV's final drive, which pushed into Hurricane territory, was thwarted by an injury to Reed. The senior twisted his ankle after a first-down pass and his replacement, freshman Chris Hayward, was soon intercepted by Chris Miller to make sure TU snapped its own five-game losing streak. Despite UNLV holding its opponent to under 30 points for the third consecutive game, the Hurricane moved to 3-0 all-time vs. UNLV and handed the Rebels their first loss in three career games at home on Halloween. UNLV was led by Wofford's 96 yards on the ground and Damon Williams' 71 reception yards. Also, senior WR Carlos Baker caught one pass to move into a tie for third all-time at the school for receptions with 155. Punter Joe Kristosik averaged 50 yards on six kicks, which moved the senior into first place in the nation with a 46.6-yard season mark.
ON THE OFFENSIVE...
James Wofford, who currently stands 10th in the WAC with 70.7 YPG, is only the seventh Rebel to rush for more than 600 yards in consecutive seasons and the first since Kirk Jones and TonyLewis both hit the mark in 1984-85 ... UNLV has started three quarterbacks this season: seniorChad Reed (4 games), senior Kevin Crook (3) and redshirt freshman Chris Hayward (2) ... Damon Williams, who became UNLV's career leader in receptions in the season-opener at Northwestern, was one of 32 players on the 1998 Biletnikoff Award Watch List. He needs just 20 more yards tobecome the school's career receiving yardage leader as well ... The Rebels have gone seven consecutive games without a 100-yard receiver.
FOR THE DEFENSE...
UNLV has held its opponent to under 30 points for three consecutive weeks after suffering a 10-game streak of 30+ ... The Rebels have 11 QB sacks in four games after recording only three in the first five ... UNLV has two defensive scores this season and six in two years ... All of the Rebels' seven interceptions this season were by different players -- including four by non-defensive backs. DEs Ted Darnell (who scored a TD with his) and Talance Sawyer join DL Robin Maile and LB Greg Gales with one pick each this fall ... Preseason First-Team All-WAC DE Sawyer leads the conference in tackles for loss with 19 for 60 yards. Sawyer, wholeads the team with four QB sacks, also has five pass break-ups, two forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and one interception on the year ... Redshirt freshman and team captain James Sunia, who leads the team in tackles with a total of 96, had a team season-high 17 vs. Air Force. He has found a home among the WAC's top-five in total tackles.
SPECIAL (TEAMS) DELIVERY...
As a team, UNLV leads the conference and is first nationally with a net punting average of 41.6 YPK ... Boosted by Duane "Toy Train" James' 78-yard punt return vs. UNR, the Rebels are second in the league and fourth nationally in team punt returns with 15.1 YPR ... UNLV has not made a field goal longer than 37 yards since 1996.
NO ORDINARY JOEKRISTOSIK CONTINUES TO LEAD NATION IN PUNTING
UNLV senior Joe Kristosik is attempting to become the fourth punter in UNLV history to earn All-American honors. The Las Vegas native currently leads the nation with a 46.6 average coming on 66 attempts, which is 21 more than the No. 2 man. Last week, he was named as one of Sports Illustrated's Top-10 Special Teams Players and the Rebels have risen to first in the nation in net punting with an average of 41.6 yards. At BYU, Kristosik tied the UNLV record for punts in one game with 13 and averaged an amazing 52.5. Of those boots, eight went 50 yards or longer and four went 60 or longer, including two at a season long of 67 yards. On the year, Kristosik has 24 kicks that traveled at least 50 yards, including eightthat went 60 yards or longer. The former prep quarterback at Bishop Gorman High School has twice been named the WAC's Special Teams Player of the Week (Sept. 28 after averaging 51.3 YPK at CSU and Oct. 12 after the BYU game) to become the first punter in school history to earn a conference player of the week honor since the program joined the Big West in 1982. Kristosik is just six punts away from the UNLV single-season record set by Steve Gortz in 1978 and 16 away from the career record of 232 held by Jim DiFiore (1970-73). Also, with nine more punts, Kristosik will qualify for the NCAA record for highest average with a minimum of 75 punts, which is currently held by Bill Marinangel of Vanderbilt (46.57 in 1996).
UNLV ALL-AMERICAN PUNTERSNAME YEAR ORG(S) AVGBrad Faunce 1993 AP, Football News 45.0Brian Parvin 1992 Football News 46.3Randall Cunningham 1984 AP 47.5Randall Cunningham 1983 AP, AFCA, Kodak 43.5
1998 NCAA DIV. I-A PUNTING LEADERS NO AVG 1. Joe Kristosik, UNLV 66 46.59 2. Stephen Baker, Arizona State 45 45.76 3. Deone Horinek, Colorado State 47 45.38 4. Craig Jarrett, Michigan State 48 45.33 5. Brian Schmitz, North Carolina 55 44.91
UNLV vs. RICE TENTATIVE TWO-DEEP
REBEL OFFENSEH 8 DAMON WILLIAMS (6-4, 225, SR-3L) 16 Duane James (5-9, 175, FR-RS)
LT 72 JOHN GREER (6-5, 290, SO-1L) 71 Glenn Pilarowski (6-4, 315, JR-TR) LG 64 JERALD PIERUCCI (6-5, 290, SR-3L) 74 Brandon Ellena (6-4, 275, SR-1L)
C 76 BUBBA GONZALEZ (6-2, 260, SR-2L) 59 Aaron Hall (6-0, 265, FR-RS)
RG 61 PETER TRAMONTANAS (6-6, 260, FR-HS) 78 Mike Reily (6-3, 290, SR-3L)
RT 71 GLENN PILAROWSKI (6-4, 315, JR-TR) 78 Mike Reily (6-3, 290, SR-3L)
TE 89 SAM MINEO (6-3, 250, SR-3L) 83 Mike Leatham (6-4, 230, SR-1L)
QB 7 CHAD REED (6-1, 210, SR-1L) 11 Chris Hayward (6-4, 210, FR-RS)
WR (X) 42 SAM BRANDON (6-3, 180, FR-RS) 3 Len Ware (6-1, 185, JR-2L)
WR (Z) 16 DUANE JAMES (5-9, 175, FR-RS) 82 Carlos Baker (5-10, 195, SR-3L) RB 33 JAMES WOFFORD (6-0, 200, SO-1L) 21 Dahrin Footman (5-8, 195, JR-2L) 4 Coury Hankins (5-9, 185, JR-2L) REBEL SPECIALISTSKO 13 DANA BARSUHN (5-10, 180, SR-1L)PK 17 TIM O'REILLY (6-0, 205, JR-2L)HOLD 5 KEVIN CROOK (6-3, 200, SR-3L)LS 83 MIKE LEATHAM (6-4, 230, SR-1L)
REBEL DEFENSELE 99 TED DARNELL (6-5, 270, SR-3L) 58 La'anui Correa (65-3, 230, FR-HS) LT 92 DERRICK MONROE (6-2, 285, SR-3L) 73 Justin Conway (6-1, 280, SO-1L)
RT 91 ROBIN MAILE (6-1, 290, SR-1L) 68 Faaolo Alovao (6-2, 270, FR-RS) RE 9 TALANCE SAWYER (6-2, 290, SR-3L) 10 Roderick Jones (6-2, 235, JR-2L)
WILL 55 JERRAD PIERUCCI (6-2, 225, JR-2L) 51 Devon Rose (6-0, 205, FR-RS)
MIKE 43 JAMES SUNIA (5-10, 240, FR-RS) 50 Dusty Pearce (6-2, 250, JR-TR) BANDIT 44 GREG GALES (6-2, 235, SR-2L) 48 Tyler Brickell (6-4, 230, SO-1L) LC 26 ANDRE HILLIARD (5-8, 155, JR-TR) 23 James Teele (5-10, 180, SR-1L) NICKEL 1 MARK HAYS (5-10, 190, SR-1L) 22 Randy Black (5-10, 190, SR-1L)
FS 36 ANTHONY BROWN (6-0, 205, SR-2L) 31 Tumua Vitale (5-11, 185, FR-RS)
RC 28 KEVIN THOMAS (5-11, 165, FR-RS) 23 James Teele (5-10, 180, SR-1L) REBEL SPECIALISTSPUNT 97 JOE KRISTOSIK (6-3, 220, SR-3L) 17 Tim O'Reilly (6-0, 205, JR-2L)KOR 16 DUANE JAMES (5-9, 175, FR-RS) 3 Len Ware (6-1, 185, JR-2L)PR 16 DUANE JAMES (5-9, 175, FR-RS) 3 Len Ware (6-1, 185, JR-2L)
