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UNLV (2-2, 1-1 MOUNTAIN WEST)vs.NEVADA, RENO (1-3, 0-1 BIG WEST)
DATE: Saturday, Oct. 7, 2000KICKOFF: 7:00 pm PDTSITE: Sam Boyd Stadium (36,800/Grass)TV: SportsWest/Gold 33, Cable 6RADIO: ESPN 920 AM
GAME PREVIEW
UNLV (2-2) looks to win its third consecutive home game by hosting Nevada, Reno (1-3) for the 26th edition of the now-annual Battle for the Cannon Presented by AT&T Wireless ... The last time UNLV won three straight games at Sam Boyd Stadium came in the first three home contests of 1997 ... The Rebels upset first-place Air Force last week for its first-ever Mountain West Conference home victory, 34-13, while the Wolf Pack fell at home to MWC member Colorado State 45-10 ... UNLV's victory over the Falcons marked the first defeat of a conference opponent at home since a 21-19 win over TCU on Oct. 11, 1997, when both of those schools were members of the WAC ... UNLV has now won more games -- five -- in John Robinson's first 15 games than the previous three seasons combined (4-30 from 1996-98) ... With the Rebels making their first appearance on SportsWest this week, UNLV will have already appeared on television four times this season -- as much as the school-record four showings last year ... The Rebels have give up only three points in the fourth quarter all year and UNLV has now shut out its opponent in nine of the last 12 quarters ... Rebel QBs have thrown just two interceptions in the last 34 quarters of play.
SERIES NOTES
UNR leads the all-time series 15-10, including five straight wins ... The 25 games vs. the Pack are by far the most played between UNLV and any opponent ... The Rebels once had an 8-4 lead in the series but UNR has dominated recently by taking 11 of the last 12 meetings in the rivalry, which is being played for the 12th consecutive season in `00 ... The Rebels' last win in the series was also the most significant as UNLV's 32-27 victory in 1994 earned it both a Big West Conference title and Las Vegas Bowl berth ... While both schools have been members of both the Big West and Western Athletic conferences, the teams have only met each other four times as league rivals (1992-95) ... UNLV has just one player on its roster from the Reno area -- LB Bill Cofer of prep power McQueen HS -- who is a former Nevada high school state player of the year ... UNR has two former Rebels in its program -- senior CB Del Bates and sophmore QB Matt Ray, who is sitting out the season per NCAA transfer rules after leaving UNLV just before the fall semester.
2000 SCHEDULES/RESULTS
UNLV (2-2)
Date Opponent (TV) TimeS. 9 at Iowa State (KFBT) L, 37-22S. 16 NORTH TEXAS W, 38-0S. 23 at BYU (KFBT) L, 10-7S. 30 AIR FORCE (ABC) W, 34-13O. 7 UNR (S.West)7 pm PDTO. 14 at Colorado St. (S.West)3 pm PDTO. 21 WYOMING-HC (S.West)4 pm PDTO. 28 at Mississippi 11 am PDTN. 4 at Utah (ESPN+) TBAN. 11 NEW MEXICO (S.West)TBAN. 25 at San Diego St.(S.West)4 pm PSTD. 2 at Hawaii 8 pm PST
NEVADA, RENO (1-3)
Date Opponent TimeS. 2 at Oregon L, 36-7S. 9 TCU L, 41-10S. 23 at Wyoming W, 35-28S. 30 COLORADO STATE L, 45-14O. 7 at UNLV 7 pm PDTO. 14 at Fresno State 7 pm PDTO. 21 SAN JOSE STATE 1 pm PDTO. 28 at SMU 6 pm CDTN. 4 UTEP 12 pm PSTN. 11 at Hawaii 7 pm HSTN. 18 RICE 12 pm PSTN. 25 at Tulsa 2 pm CST
UNLV QUICK FACTSLocation: Las Vegas, NV 89154Founded: 1957Enrollment: 23,000Nickname: Rebels (Not Runnin')Colors: Scarlet & GrayPresident: Dr. Carol C. HarterDir. of Ath.: Charles CavagnaroFaculty Rep: Dr. Myrlene LamancusoConference: Mountain WestStadium: Sam Boyd StadiumCapacity/Surface: 36,800/Natural GrassRecord in Stadium: 109-69-3 (28 seasons)UNLV All-Time Record: 180-176-4 (33rd season)All-Time vs. MWC: 19-31-1Head Coach: John RobinsonRecord at UNLV: 5-10 (2nd year)Record Overall: 109-45-4 (14th season)1999 Record: 3-8/1-6 T8thOffense: MultipleDefense: 4-3
THE LAST TIME THEY MET
UNR 26, UNLV 12
BID FOR FREMONT CANNON ONCE AGAIN DENIED
RENO, Nev. -- (Oct. 2, 1999) Looking to break a two-game losing skid overall, UNLV (2-3) traveled north in search of its first win in Reno since 1979. Instead, the Rebels fell 26-12 to UNR (1-4) in the 25th edition of the now-annual Battle For Nevada. After failing to draw first blood by missing a field goal, UNLV saw UNR use a pair of David Neill to Trevor Insley scoring passes to take a 14-0 lead. Insley, the nation's leading receiver, was actually held below his averages in the game, finishing with 11 catches for 169 yards. A short Adrien Dugas touchdown rush made it 20-0 at halftime before the Rebels got their first points on a jaw-dropping 40-yard catch-and-run by TB Jeremi Rudolph, who also earned 120 yards rushing and led the squad with six receptions. Another failed kick made it 20-6 before Neill sealed it with a 12-yard TD run to start the fourth. UNLV's final points came on a two-yard Jason Vaughan pass to TE Brad Osterhout -- the freshman's first career grab. The statistics were surprisingly even as UNR outgained their guests just 420-357 in a game that featured zero turnovers. UNLV lost its fifth straight to UNR and now trails the all-time series 15-10, closing out its 1999 non-conference schedule with a record of 2-2.
PICK IT!
UNLV preseason All-American cornerback Kevin Thomas has moved into a tie with four former Rebels for 10th on the school's career interception list. The junior led the squad a year ago with five picks and paces the Rebels again this fall with two. With his next interception, the Sacramento, Calif., native will move all the way into a four-way tie for seventh.
UNLV CAREER INTERCEPTION LIST
Marlon Beavers (1973-76) 17Charles Jarvis (1978-81) 14David Hollis (1983-86) 11Patt Medchill (1970-72) 11Rodney Mazion (1991-94) 9Jim Farnham (1970-71) 9Alvin Horn (1984-86) 8Aaron Mitchell (1977-78) 8Jim Thompson (1968-69) 8Kevin Thomas (1998-PR) 7Carlton Johnson (1989-91) 7Anthony Blue (1983-86) 7Harvey Allen (1982-85) 7Rich Logan (1968-70) 7
JT BIG PLAY
All of Jason Thomas' five career touchdown passes have gone for at least 18 yards. In addition, Thomas has touchdown runs of 45 yards (at ISU) and 20 yards (vs. AFA) and a rush for 72 yards (at BYU), which was the longest run from scrimmage for the Rebels since Darin Brightmon's 89-yard scamper in 1989.
THOMAS' TDs
YDS RECEIVER GAME57 Nate Turner NORTH TEXAS56 Nate Turner at Iowa State40 Charles James NORTH TEXAS31 Nate Turner at Iowa State18 Bobby Nero AIR FORCE
LAST WEEK IN REVIEW
UNLV 34, AIR FORCE 13
REBELS DOMINATE FALCONS IN HISTORIC WIN
LAS VEGAS -- (Sept. 30, 2000) UNLV (2-2) won its first-ever Mountain West Conference home game by surprising previously first-place and undefeated Air Force (3-1) in front of 22,321 at Sam Boyd Stadium. Appearing on ABC TV for the first time since 1981 and first time ever from Las Vegas, the Rebels outrushed the Falcons for the first time in history -- 224-219 -- and the result was a 34-13 win. Things were nearly even in the first half as UNLV scored on two Ray Cheetany field goals and a short Jeremi Rudolph run. AFA, meanwhile, got two scoring runs by Scotty McKay in the first half to take a 13-12 lead into the locker room. In the third quarter, a thrilling 20-yard Jason Thomas scramble for a score on third-and-10 got UNLV a lead it wouldn't relinquish as the hosts scored the last 25 points of the game. Rudolph found the end zone again and Thomas later sealed the win with an 18-yard TD strike to Bobby Nero. After Cheetany had two extra-point attempts blocked, Thomas rushed in the team's second two-point conversion of the game (after not having one since 1995) for the final score with six minutes remaining. The Rebel defense continued its stunning performance by shutting out the Falcons in the second half and their opponents in nine of the last 12 quarters of play. Kevin Thomas grabbed his second interception of the year while Sam Brandon and Randy Black both turned in 10 tackles. Offensively, Jason Thomas had his best day yet, with career highs in pass attempts (22), completions (16) and passing yards (259) to go with the one score and no interceptions. Nate Turner rung up a career-high nine receptions for 102 yards and Troy Mason got four balls for 122 yards -- all in the first half. It marked the first time UNLV boasted two players with 100-yard games and the same player with back-to-back century-mark games since 1997. The surprise of the day, however, came in the form of Steven Costa who brought a whopping two career carries into the game. The sophomore fullback filled in for injured starter James Wofford and ended up leading his team with 78 yards on only eight carries, including a long of 32. UNLV broke a four-game losing streak to AFA and won its second consecutive game at home after previously enduring a school-record 12-game losing streak at SBS.
UNR at UNLV
TENTATIVE DEPTH CHART
REBEL OFFENSE
WR (Z) 6 Nate Turner (6-3, 200, SR-1L) 1 Bobby Nero (6-1, 180, JR-TR)WR (X) 86 Troy Mason (5-10, 170, SO-1L) 9 Charles James (6-2, 180, JR-TR)LT 69 Bradon Bair (6-6, 295, JR-1L) 54 Brian Hart (6-5, 285, SR-3L)LG 63 Greg Hulett (6-3, 300, JR-RS) 75 Shane Wagers (6-5, 300, JR-1L)C 61 Peter Tramontanas (6-5, 275, JR-2L) 78 Joel Menendez (6-3, 275, FR-RS)RG 70 Tony Terrell (6-4, 295, SO-1L) 73 Dominic Furio (6-2, 285, FR-RS)RT 75 Shane Wagers (6-5, 300, JR-1L) 77 Jimy Zoll (6-6, 300, FR-HS)TE 80 DeJhown Mandley (6-4, 240, SO-1L) 83 Trevan Sorensen (6-4, 240, SO-1L)QB 2 Jason Thomas (6-4, 235, SO-TR) 10 Jason Vaughan (6-4, 210, SR-1L)TB 4 Kevin Brown (6-2, 225, SR-TR) 7 Jeremi Rudolph (5-9, 175, SR-1L)FB 33 James Wofford (6-0, 200, SR-3L) 24 Steven Costa (6-1, 225, SO-1L)
REBEL SPECIALISTS
PK 39 Ray Cheetany (5-11, 180, SR-1L) 82 Rob Williams (5-11, 170, FR-HS)KO 39 Ray Cheetany (5-11, 180, SR-1L)HOLD 23 Toby Smeltzer (5-10, 185, SO-1L)LS 53 Ryan Hanson (6-2, 220, FR-RS)
REBEL DEFENSE
LDE 47 Anton Palepoi (6-4, 275, JR-TR) 37 Scott Parkhurst (6-3, 235, JR-TR)DT 44 Ahmad Miller (6-4, 295, JR-1L) 91 Dietrich Canterberry (6-4, 290, FR-RS)NG 98 Anthony Suggs (6-0, 260, SR-1L) 92 Phil Reed (6-3, 270, SO-1L)RDE 90 Ahmad Briggs (6-3, 230, SO-1L) 45 Steve Newton (6-3, 245, JR-1L) 99 Adrian Watson (6-3, 240, JR-TR)SLB 48 Tyler Brickell (6-4, 225, SR-3L) 13 LaMar Owens (6-2, 235, JR-TR)MLB 43 James Sunia (5-10, 245, JR-2L) 49 Ryan Claridge (6-3, 235, FR-HS)WLB 36 Shanga Wilson (6-1, 215, JR-TR) 18 Tosh Burrus (6-0, 210, SO-1L)CB 5 Amar Brisco (5-10, 170, SR-3L) 19 Jamal Wynn (6-0, 185, SO-1L)SS 22 Randy Black (6-0, 200, SR-3L) 31 Sharif Hamilton (6-0, 195, SR-1L) 41 Ross Dalton (6-3, 205, SO-1L)FS 42 Sam Brandon (6-3, 195, JR-1L) 23 Toby Smeltzer (5-10, 185, SO-1L)CB 28 Kevin Thomas (5-11, 180, JR-2L) 25 Sean Mackey (6-1, 190, FR-RS)
REBEL SPECIALISTS
P 39 Ray Cheetany (5-11, 170, SR-1L) 17 Ryan McDonald (5-10, 175, SO-1L)PR 86 Troy Mason (5-10, 170, SO-1L) 7 Jeremi Rudolph (5-9, 175, SR-1L)KOR 7 Jeremi Rudolph (5-9, 175, SR-1L) 86 Troy Mason (5-10, 170, SO-1L)
