Sept. 22, 1999

GAME 4UNLV (2-1, 0-0 MOUNTAIN WEST)vs. UTAH (2-0, 0-0 MOUNTAIN WEST)
DATE:   Saturday, Sept. 25, 1999KICKOFF:7:07 pm  PDTSITE:   Sam Boyd Stadium         (40,000/Natural Grass) Las VegasTV: KJZZ-TV in Salt Lake CityRADIO:  ESPN 920 AM

GAME PREVIEW

UNLV (2-1) looks to snap an eight-game home losing streak by hosting Utah (2-0) in the first-ever Mountain West Conference game for both schools ... The Rebels will try to rebound from their first loss under Head Coach John Robinson ... UNLV fell to Iowa State 24-0 last Saturday in Robinson's Las Vegas debut, which also marked the opening of the newly renovated and expanded Sam Boyd Stadium ... The Utes stayed perfect by downing their in-state rival, Utah State, 38-18 ... The Rebels will play an undefeated team for the third time in their first four games ... UNLV looks to improve to 3-1 for the first time since 1992 ... This week marks the latest the team has had a winning record since the end of the 1994 season ... The Rebels will try to win for the first time in three all-time league debuts ... UNLV lost 29-27 at Pacific Oct. 2, 1982, in its first Big West Conference game and fell 65-17 to Air Force on Sept. 7, 1996, in its Western Athletic Conference opener ... Robinson is 1-0 vs. Utah in his career ... His 1993 USC squad downed the Utes 28-21 on Dec. 30 in the Freedom Bowl played in Anaheim, Calif. ... Utah was one of five Mountain West teams which received at least one vote in this week's AP poll ... 17th-ranked BYU, 24th-ranked Air Force, Colorado State and Wyoming were the others.

SERIES NOTES

UNLV and Utah have met four times and the Utes lead the series 3-1 ... The two schools met four consecutive years (1979-82) when UNLV was playing a WAC schedule while an independent hoping to join the league ... With the Rebels instead entering the PCAA (Big West), the 1982 game counted as one of UNLV's six league games ... The Rebels' lone victory in the series was a heart-stopping 43-41 win that featured seven lead changes and ended with a last-second, then-school-record-long 49-yard field goal by Todd Peterson ... The 69-28 Utah win in 1981 matched the most points ever scored against the Rebels (Houston 69-0 in 1989) ... UNLV does not list a player from Utah while the Utes have one player from the Silver State -- freshman LB Arnold Parker, who was a teammate of Rebel DL Kawika Sagapolu at Cimmarron-Memorial HS in Las Vegas.

SERIES RECORD:          UU  leads 3-1   LAST MEETING:       1982  (UU 24-14)UU at UNLV RECORD:  1-1UNLV at UU Record:  0-2UNLV's LARGEST WIN: 2 (43-41, 1979)UU's LARGEST WIN:   41 (69-28, 1981)
SERIES SCORES:DATE            SITE            RESULT10-20-79    Las Vegas   UNLV, 43-419-20-80         Salt Lake City  UU, 45-2910-24-81    Las Vegas   UU, 69-2810-16-82    Salt Lake City  UU, 24-14

THE LAST TIME THEY MET

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah -- (Oct. 30, 1982)

UTAH 24, UNLV 14

In a game that was designated as a PCAA league game for UNLV, the Rebels fell behind early and trailed 17-0 at halftime. However, UNLV cut the lead to 17-14 on a one-yard rush by Andrew Lazarus before the Utes iced the win with 1:29 left on a seven-yard Ken Vierra scoring run. Rebel quarterback Randall Cunningham rushed for 45 yards and passed for another 196 as UNLV, which fell to 1-5, actually outgained the hosts 343-335.

UNLV (2-1) 1999 SCHEDULEDate    Opponent    Result/Time S. 2    at North Texas  W, 26-3S. 11   at Baylor   W, 27-24S. 18   IOWA STATE  L, 24-0S. 25   UTAH            7 pm PDTO. 2    at Nevada, Reno 1 pm PDTO. 9    at Wyoming  12 pm PDTO. 16   OPENO. 23   BYU (HOMECOMING)7:30 pm PDTO. 30   at New Mexico   5 pm PDTN. 6    OPENN. 13   at Air Force    10 am PSTN. 20   SAN DIEGO STATE 1 pm PSTN. 27   COLORADO STATE  1 pm PST

UTAH (2-0) 1999 SCHEDULEDate    Opponent    ResultS. 4    at Wash. State  W, 27-7S. 18   UTAH STATE  W, 38-18S. 25   at UNLV         8 pm MDTO. 2    at Boise State  7 pm MDTO. 9    NORTHEAST LA.   6 pm MDTO. 16   AIR FORCE   TBAO. 23   SAN DIEGO STATE TBAO. 28   at Colorado St. 6 pm MDTN. 6    WYOMING         TBAN. 13   NEW MEXICO  TBAN. 20   at BYU          TBA

UNLV QUICK FACTSLocation:       Las Vegas, 89154Founded:        1957Enrollment:         21,000Nickname:       Rebels (Not Runnin')Colors:             Scarlet & GrayPresident:      Dr. Carol C. HarterDir. of Athletics:  Charles CavagnaroConference:         Mountain WestStadium:        Sam Boyd StadiumCapacity/Surface:   40,000/Natural GrassRecord in Stadium:  107-65-3 (28th season)UNLV All-Time Record:   177-167-4 (32nd season)All-Time vs. MWC Teams: 17-24-1Head Coach:             John RobinsonRecord at UNLV:         2-1  (1st year)Record Overall:     106-36-4 (13th season)Offense:        MultipleDefense:        4-3

TV SCHEDULE CHANGES ANNOUNCED

The annual Battle for Nevada will be shown live in Las Vegas on Oct. 2, the school announced. The UNLV at UNR game, scheduled to kick off at 1 pm from Mackay Stadium, will be produced by SportsWest Network and shown live on KLAS TV-8 (CBS). Also, the BYU at UNLV game at Sam Boyd Stadium on Oct. 23 has been moved from 4 pm to 7:30 pm and will appear live in both Las Vegas and Salt Lake City.

REBEL HOME OPENER NEARLY A RECORD-BREAKER

UNLV's debut in the newly expanded and renovated Sam Boyd Stadium was a success at the gate. The game vs. Iowa State on Saturday drew 26,167 fans, which was 961 short of the school's record for a home-opening crowd. It represented the 10th largest home crowd in UNLV history and the biggest since 1997. The Rebels averaged 18,000 fans in 1998.

HOME COOKIN'

UNLV made its 33rd home debut last Saturday but the games have never looked like this in the Valley. Thanks to an $18 million renovation and expansion of 28-year-old Sam Boyd Stadium, the team played in front of more people in a drastically upgraded facility. Although the final capacity is still to be determined, the stadium features more than 36,000 permanent seats (all painted red for the first time), which is at least a 4,000 raise over last year. Temporary seating is also available if needed, which would raise the capacity to 40,000. Not included in those numbers are the contents of the new Airway Tower, which is the jewel in the desert-set stadium's crown. The three-level structure features a club seat level, a press level and is topped by new luxury suites. The most striking change may be the new grass playing surface. The so-called "Magic Carpet" artificial turf is now gone and Sam Boyd Stadium now sports grass for the first time in its history. The move to grass ensured that the new Mountain West Conference is all-natural. The Rebels have already played their only game on artificial turf this season -- at North Texas in game one.

RUDOLPH: THE HARD-NOSED GAIN'S NEAR

Highly touted tailback Jeremi Rudolph did not disappoint in his first two games as a Rebel. The former Florida State signee and minor league baseball player was John Robinson's first recruit at UNLV after two impressive seasons at Southwest Mississippi Community College. The consensus preseason newcomer of the year for the Mountain West Conference, Rudolph led UNLV to victory in week one with 97 yards on 20 carries with a long of 28. The native of Apopka, Fla., scored two touchdowns (nine and three yards), including the team's first points of the year. Then, at Baylor, he rushed for 91 yards on 18 carries, including a long of 23. He also added his team-leading third score of the young season. Rudolph's 68-yard average currently puts him fourth in the MWC. He also ranks eighth in scoring in the league among non-kickers with a 6.0 points-per-game average.

ON THE OFFENSIVE...

The Rebels' offense is averaging 17.7 points while the defense is giving up 17.0 per game ... James Wofford, who finished 10th in the WAC with 74.2 YPG a year ago but has been moved primarily to fullback this fall, has moved into 11th place on the school's career rushing list with 1,552 in just over two years. He needs 41 yards to crack the top 10 and pass Shannon Wilson (1992-93, 95) ... Peter Tramontanas, who spent '98 as an offensive guard, is now the team's starting tight end and had a reception in both of the first two games ... Two Rebel O-linemen were recently named to the Henderson (NV) Home News' All-Time Henderson football team. Basic HS graduate Brandon Bair and Silverado HS alum Glenn Pilarowski both made the team, which also listed former Rebel Jon Denton as the QB.

FOR THE DEFENSE...

The Rebels lead the Mountain West in pass defense, giving up only 76.7 yards per game. UNLV is currently ranked 10th in the nation in that category after finishing 97th a year ago ... UNLV's opponents have scored 51 points in three games this year compared to 145 in the same stretch a year ago ... Rebel opponents have converted only two of eight fourth-down attempts this season ... The Rebel defense has two scores in three games -- both by DB Kevin Thomas. Following his 49-yard interception return at UNT, the sophomore waited until the final play for an encore in game two. His 100-yard fumble return was only the third in NCAA history and the first to win a game. The school record for most defensive touchdowns in a career is three by Patt Medchill (1970-72) ... Since 1996, UNLV has returned four fumbles 65 yards or longer ... The Rebels have recorded 17 pass breakups in three games after having only 32 all of last year ... Walk-on Sharif Hamilton, a junior transfer from St. Peter's College in New Jersey, made his first career interception vs. Iowa State ... MLB James Sunia led the team in tackles last year as a rookie with 115, helping the Hawaiian earn first-team Freshman All-America honors from Football News. He currently leads the squad again and is tied for fourth in the conference with 30 ... Linebacker Jerrad Pierucci, who is the brother of former starting offensive lineman Jerald Pierucci (1995-98), is the squad's active leader in career tackles with 207 ... Senior DB Quincy Sanders had a team single-game high 13 total tackles vs. Iowa State, including 12 solo.

SPECIAL (TEAMS) DELIVERY...

Kicker/punter Ray Cheetany, who has handled kickoff duties for UNLV this season, made his Div. I-A punting debut vs. Iowa State. The transfer from Iowa Central CC replaced freshman Ryan McDonald in the second half and boomed three balls for a 42-yard average, including a team-season-long 51-yarder ... Kickoff return man Len Ware is currently third in the conference and 32nd in the nation with a 24.5-yard average ... When James Sunia got a hand on UNT kicker Jason Ball's field goal attempt, it marked the first such block for UNLV since Nov. 13, 1993.

DANDY DEBUT

Playing for his fourth team in four years, quarterback Jason Vaughan had a record-breaking premiere for UNLV against UNT. The junior-college transfer was nothing if not efficient in leading his team to victory. Finishing without an interception, his 16-of-19 passing included hitting his final nine attempts. Vaughan's percentage of .840 shattered the school record for single-game completion percentage, besting Randall Cunningham's 21-of-26 (.804) performance vs. Idaho State in 1984. Vaughan also threw his first career I-A touchdown pass when he hit freshman DeJhown Mandley for an eight-yard score late in the game. At Baylor, Vaughan hit on 17 of 27 attempts for 192 yards and two scores and did not throw his first interception until game three vs. ISU.

DANDY DEBUT PART II

John Robinson's first game coaching the Rebels produced a long list of notable achievements as the school's all-time record for head coaching debuts improved to 5-3. The victory not only broke two school-record losing streaks, but also marked the first win on the road to start a season since 1981. The 23-point margin of victory was the largest road win since a 45-20 game at Oregon State in 1991. It was also the school's second-biggest win in a coaching debut behind Ron Meyer's 38-6 victory over the State College of Arkansas in 1973. Defensively, North Texas' 3 points marked the least allowed since Jeff Horton's coaching debut in the 1994 season opener versus Eastern Michigan. In fact, only twice before in 32 years of Rebel football had UNLV held an opponent to three points or less on the road (25-3 at CS Fullerton in 1991 and 13-0 over CSUF in 1983). Ironically, it was the first time Robinson won his first game at a university. He lost his debut game in both of his stints at Southern California.

GAME THREE REVIEW: IOWA STATE 24, UNLV 0

REBELS SHUT OUT IN HOME OPENER

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA -- (Sept. 18, 1999)

Attempting to go 3-0 for the first time since 1984, UNLV (2-1) instead was overwhelmed by Big 12 visitors Iowa State (3-0), 24-0, in the home debut of Head Coach John Robinson. The game also marked the opening of the newly expanded and renovated Sam Boyd Stadium and a raucous crowd of 26,167 turned out to see the team's nearly-new digs. Cyclone back Darren Davis owned the night, however, running for 208 yards on 37 carries and two touchdowns. ISU scored on the first drive of the game, went up 10-0 and then capitalized on failed punt by UNLV to take a 17-0 lead into halftime. The Rebel defense stiffened after the break but the offense could not get on the board. The closest UNLV got to scoring was a failed 46-yard field goal attempt in the first half as the Rebels were shut out for the 11th time in school history and the first time since 1995. "We were worried about it being a very physical matchup and as it turned out, we were right to worry," Robinson said. "As the game wore on, they shut us down. I think our team learned a good lesson tonight." The Rebels only netted eight yards rushing on the night and quarterback Jason Vaughan struggled to a 9-for-23 night for 98 yards passing. The Cyclones, who totaled 319 yards rushing, improved to 3-0 for the first time since 1981 after pitching their first shut out on the road since 1978 and earning their first win outside the state of Iowa since 1991. UNLV fell to 21-11 in home lid-lifters after playing on a grass surface at home for the first time since 1971.