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UNLV (5-5, 3-3 MOUNTAIN WEST)vs.SAN DIEGO STATE (3-7, 3-3)
DATE: Saturday, Nov. 25, 2000KICKOFF: 4:07 pm PSTSITE: Qualcomm Stadium (71,400/Grass)TV: SportsWest/KLAS TV-8 (Dave McCann & Blaine Fowler)RADIO: ESPN 920 AM (Larry Kahn & Tony Cordasco)
GAME PREVIEW
After enjoying its first Saturday off in 10 weeks, UNLV (5-5) looks to keep its bowl hopes alive by traveling to San Diego State (3-7) ... The Rebels must win both of their remaining games to become bowl eligible ... Two more wins would secure the team seven victories in a 12-game season and a spot in either the Las Vegas Bowl or Silicon Valley Football Classic ... At 3-3 in the league, the Rebels stand in a four-way tie for third place in the MWC with SDSU, Utah and BYU ... The Rebels have won a third conference game in one year for the first time since going 5-1 in the Big West Conference in 1994 ... UNLV looks to break a seven-game road losing streak ... The Rebels' last road victory came by downing Wyoming 35-32 on Oct. 9, 1999 ... UNLV, which snapped a 10-game losing streak in the month of November by beating New Mexico 18-14 on Nov. 11, has not won a road game in November since downing San Jose State 28-14 on Nov. 13, 1993 -- a span of seven games and three head coaches ... A year after going winless at home, UNLV went undefeated and untied at Sam Boyd Stadium this season for the first time since 1977 ... UNLV's five victories this fall are the most for the program since going 7-5 in 1994 ... UNLV has won two more games -- eight -- in Robinson's first 21 games as coach than the program's previous four seasons combined (6-39 from 1995-98) ... UNLV is 5-0 when scoring first and 0-5 when its opponent scores first ... Senior RB Jeremi Rudolph will look for his fifth-consecutive 100-yard rushing game ... Senior UNLV fullback James Wofford needs 70 yards to move into fifth place on UNLV's career rushing list ... Saturday will mark the Rebels' school-record ninth TV appearance this season, which more than doubles the old record of four set just last fall in Robinson's first year at the helm.
SERIES NOTES
SDSU leads the all-time series 5-4 after winning the last two meetings ... UNLV has not won in San Diego since 1984 ... The Rebels' last visit to Qualcomm Stadium resulted in the program's first-ever overtime game as the Aztecs won 20-17 in 1997 ... UNLV has since lost all three other OT games it has played, including a 43-30 thriller this fall at Ole Miss ... Robinson is 0-1 vs. the man who succeeded him after his first stint at USC -- SDSU head coach Ted Tollner ... More than half of the Rebel roster is made up of California products ... Rebel WR Charles James, who graduated from San Diego Mesa College, is out for the season because of injury ... Other Rebels from the San Diego area are WR Michael Johnson (Oceanside/Vista HS), DB Jamal Wynn (National City/Sweetwater HS) and OL Jimy Zoll (Santee/Sanata HS), who is redshirting ... Freshman DL Marcus Levi, a graduate of Las Vegas' Western High School, is the only Aztec from Nevada.
2000 SCHEDULES/RESULTS
UNLV (5-5)
Date Opponent (TV) Result
S. 9 at Iowa State (KFBT) L, 37-22S. 16 NORTH TEXAS W, 38-0S. 23 at BYU (ESPN+) L, 10-7S. 30 AIR FORCE (ABC) W, 34-13O. 7 UNR (S.West)W, 38-7O. 14 at Colorado St. (ESPN2) L, 20-19O. 21 WYOMING-HC (S.West)W, 42-23O. 28 at Mississippi L, 43-40 (OT)N. 4 at Utah (ESPN+) L, 38-16N. 11 NEW MEXICO (ESPN+) W, 18-14N. 25 at San Diego St.(S.West)4 pm PSTD. 2 at Hawaii 8 pm PST
SAN DIEGO STATE (3-7)
Date Opponent Result
A. 31 ARIZONA STATE L, 10-7S. 9 ILLINOIS L, 49-13S. 16 at Arizona L, 17-3S. 23 at Oregon State L, 35-13O. 7 at Wyoming W, 34-0O. 14 UTAH L, 21-7O. 21 at BYU W, 16-15O. 28 COLORADO STATE L, 34-22N. 4 at New Mexico W, 17-16N. 18 at Air Force L, 45-34N. 25 UNLV 4 pm PST
UNLV QUICK FACTS
Location: Las Vegas, NV 89154Founded: 1957Enrollment: 23,000Nickname: Rebels (Not Runnin')Colors: Scarlet & GrayPresident: Dr. Carol C. HarterDir. of Athletics: Charles CavagnaroFaculty Representative: Dr. Myrlene LaMancusaConference: Mountain WestStadium: Sam Boyd StadiumCapacity/Surface: 36,800/Natural GrassRecord in Stadium: 112-69-3 (28 seasons)UNLV All-Time Record: 183-179-4 (33rd season)All-Time vs. MWC: 22-33-1Head Coach: John RobinsonRecord at UNLV: 8-13 (2nd year)Record Overall: 112-48-4 (14th season)1999 Record: 3-8/1-6 T8thOffense: MultipleDefense: 4-3
THE LAST TIME THEY MET
SAN DIEGO STATE 37, UNLV 7
LAS VEGAS -- (Nov. 20, 1999) UNLV (3-7) lost its 11th straight home game and fourth overall as San Diego State (4-6) methodically distanced itself to earn a 37-7 victory in front of 18,165 at Sam Boyd Stadium. SDSU opened the scoring by tackling RB Jeremi Rudolph in the end zone for a safety, marking the first two-pointer given up by the Rebels since 1996. After the ensuing kickoff, the Aztecs threw deep on first down and posted an 87-yard touchdown -- the longest ever against UNLV and the second-longest in SDSU history. The Rebels answered with a 19-yard scoring pass from true freshman QB Matt Ray to Duane "Toy Train" James, marking only the second time UNLV scored in the first quarter to this point in the season. UNLV blocked its first punt since 1998 in the first quarter but couldn't stop SDSU from putting in two more scores to make it 23-7 at the break. The Aztecs, who closed out the scoring with two more rushing TDs in the second half, were led by Jonas Lewis' 145 yards on 21 carries. UNLV, meanwhile, was limited to just 77 yards on the ground. Senior WR Len Ware was shut out for only the third time in his 41-game career as Nate Turner led UNLV receivers with five catches for 76 yards. DB Quincy Sanders turned in 16 tackles to give the senior 38 in two games after a school-record 22 takedowns at Air Force.
SERIES RECORD: SDSU leads 5-4LAST MEETING: 1999 (SDSU, 37-7)UNLV at SDSU RECORD: 2-3SDSU at UNLV RECORD: 2-2UNLV's LARGEST WIN: 18 (28-10 in 1983)SDSU's LARGEST WIN: 30 (37-7 in 1999)
DATE SITE RESULT10-22-77 San Diego SDSU, 31-710-11-80 San Diego UNLV, 28-1711-14-81 Las Vegas SDSU, 38-209-25-82 San Diego SDSU, 26-2310-27-83 Las Vegas UNLV, 28-1011-3-84 San Diego UNLV, 30-1411-16-96 Las Vegas UNLV, 44-4210-18-97 San Diego SDSU, 20-17 (OT)11-20-99 Las Vegas SDSU, 37-7
TACKLE ELIGIBLE
Despite breaking his hand vs. Wyoming, senior strong safety Randy Black needs just two more tackles to become his school's all-time tackle leader. The Las Vegas native was battling junior linebacker James Sunia to see who would finish 2000 as the UNLV Takedown King before Sunia suffered his own season-ending knee injury in Game Five. Black missed three quarters vs. Wyoming and sat out the Ole Miss game before coming back and registering 10 tackles at Utah. Black, who had a career-high 87 takedowns in `99 while also playing seven games at speed linebacker, moved all the way from seventh place to second in that game. Black's four tackles vs. UNM left him one behind Darnell Pickens (1984-87), who finished with 289. Sunia, who will finish the year with only 26 tackles, led the team for the last two seasons. The linebacker entered the season averaging 10.6 tackles per game in his career and will go into his senior year in 2001 in ninth place with 260. Two now-former Rebels -- DB Quincy Sanders at No. 7 and LB Jerrad Pierucci No. 7 -- battled their way up the same list a year ago.
UNLV CAREER TACKLE LEADERS*
PL PLAYER (POS) YEARS TOT1. Darnell Pickens (LB) 1984-87 2892. Randy Black (DB) 1997-PR 2883. Doc Wise (DL) 1986-89 280 Harvey Allen (DB) 1982-85 2805. Greg Gales (LB) 1996-98 2776. Jason Davis (DB) 1991-94 2767. Quincy Sanders (DB) 1995-99 2708. Jerrad Pierucci (LB) 1996-99 2649. James Sunia (LB) 1998-PR 260 Jody Reinoehl (LB) 1987-90 260
REBELATIONS
ON THE OFFENSIVE:
With 274 points scored through 10 games (27.4 per game), the Rebels are on pace to finish the year with 329, their highest scoring total since racking up 387 points in the 1984 season ... UNLV rushed for a season-high 378 yards at Ole Miss, its highest single-game rushing total since a 383-yard day against Pacific in 1989 ... UNLV has totaled more than 400 yards in offense in four of 10 games this fall after failing to hit the mark even once a year ago ... The Rebels have 20 rushing TDs through 10 games, which is six more than the previous two seasons combined and more than any entire season since posting 21 in 1990 ... After going 55 games and more than four years without a two-point conversion, UNLV has tied a school record with four successful two-point tries this year. The Rebels are 4-of-6 (66%) on two-point attempts in `00 ... Jeremi Rudolph has four straight 100-yard rushing games and a league-leading five century-mark performances this season -- all coming with less than 20 carries in a game. Rudolph, who is tied for seventh at UNLV with seven career 100-yard games, is the first Rebel to earn five such games in one season since Tommy Jackson had five in 1988 ... UNLV boasts a stunning 10 of the 28 century-mark games in the MWC this season. UNLV has had four different players gain 100 yards in a game this fall: Rudolph (five), Kevin Brown (three) James Wofford (once) and QB Jason Thomas (once). Rudolph was the only Rebel to pass 100 yards in a game in 1999, doing it twice ... Nate Turner (50) has exactly 50 percent of the team's receptions (100) this season ... Turner has at least two receptions in all 21 of his games at UNLV.
FOR THE DEFENSE:
UNLV has outsacked its opponents 25-24 this fall. After 10 games in 1999, the Rebels had been outsacked 29-15 by opponents ... The 25 sacks are the most in a season since the team had 41 in 1994 ... Anton Palepoi leads the Rebels and is tied for third in the MWC with seven sacks ... Preseason All-American Thomas leads the MWC with 15 passes defended (13 PBU, two INT) ... Senior SS Randy Black is tied for the league lead in forced fumbles with three ... UNLV has held nine of its 10 opponents to 200 yards or less rushing this season. Air Force picked up 219 yards but the Falcons still finished 118 yards below their average heading into the game ... Safety Sam Brandon, a former receiver who is playing his first season on defense this fall, leads the Rebels in tackles with 71.
SPECIAL (TEAMS) DELIVERY:
Troy Mason ranks fifth in the nation in punt returns with an average of 17.4 on 21 attempts, including an 84-yard return for a score vs. UNM that ranks as the longest in the MWC this season and the school's second longest ever ... Freshman walk-on kicker Dillon Pieffer replaced senior punter Ray Cheetany on kicks after the Rebels missed five PAT attempts, including four blocks, in the first six games ... Pieffer has scored six points in two of his four games, which included making his first collegiate field goal attempt, a 33-yarder in overtime at Ole Miss ... UNLV is 8-of-11 on field goals this season, which quadruples the team's total from a year ago (2-of-5).
J-DUB KEEPS CLIMBING
After entering the Ole Miss game with only 17 rushing yards on the year, senior FB James Wofford exploded for 138 yards on just 10 carries for his first 100-yard rushing game in nearly two years. In that game, he climbed from 10th place all the way to seventh on UNLV's all-time rushing list. After adding 17 yards on four carries vs. UNM, Wofford moved up to sixth with 1,856 yards. Now, with two regular-season games remaining, the co-captain needs 70 yards to surpass Ickey Woods in fifth and just 77 to move past Omar Love into fourth.
UNLV CAREER RUSHING YARDS
1. Mike Thomas, 1973-74 3,1492. Kirk Jones, 1983-86 2,6563. Michael Morton, 1978-81 2,5364. Omar Love, 1992-96 1,9325. Ickey Woods, 1984-87 1,9256. James Wofford, 1997-PR 1,8567. Mack Gilchrist, 1968-71 1,8508. Raymond Strong, 1976-77 1,750
AYE, AYE CAPTAINS
After using game-week captains that were selected by Coach Robinson through the first 10 weeks, the players recently voted for three captains -- SS Randy Black, OL John Greer and FB James Wofford.
IOWA STATE: SS Randy Black, OL John Greer, P/K Ray CheetanyNORTH TEXAS: FB James Wofford, DL Anthony Suggs, LB Tyler BrickellBYU: OL Brian Hart, CB Amar BriscoAIR FORCE: TB Kevin Brown, SS Randy BlackUNR: SS Randy Black, OL John Greer, FB James WoffordCSU: WR Nate Turner, DB Sharif HamiltonWYO: SS Randy Black, QB Jason VaughanOLE MISS: QB Jason Vaughan, DL Anthony Suggs, DL Ahmad Miller, RB Jeremi RudolphUTAH: SS Randy Black, OL John GreerNEW MEXICO: CB Amar Brisco, FB James Wofford
GAME 10 IN REVIEW
UNLV 18, NEW MEXICO 14
FINAL DRIVE KEEPS BOWL HOPES ALIVE
LAS VEGAS -- (Nov. 11, 2000) Celebrating Senior Day, a mistake-prone UNLV (5-5) woke up in time to drive 69 yards for a last-minute, game-winning score to down New Mexico (5-6) and complete its first unbeaten and untied home record since 1977 before 17,081 fans at Sam Boyd Stadium. With both teams needing a victory to stay alive for bowl eligibility, UNLV stumbled to a 5-0 halftime lead behind a field goal and a safety. The Rebels, whose previous high for a game was two turnovers, coughed up the ball five times in the first half alone but the Lobos could not convert for any points. After a breathtaking wind and rain storm rolled in at halftime, UNM scored the only points in the third quarter with an 80-yard drive for a TD. The two-point conversion failed but the visitors still led 6-5. The listless Rebels were awakened in the fourth when Troy Mason ran back a punt 84 yards for a score -- the second-longest return in school history -- to put his team up 11-6. With UNM unable to move the ball, the game seemed finished until a blocked punt set up a an eight-yard TD run to put the Lobos ahead 14-11 with just three minutes on the clock. Despite zero pass completions in the second half, UNLV set out from its own 31 and masterfully drove 10 plays for the winning score -- a two-yard TD pass from Jason Thomas to Nate Turner with 18 seconds remaining. The win was the first for UNLV in the month of November since 1996 and moved the hosts to 5-0 at SBS in `00. Turner finished with 72 yards on six catches while RB Jeremi Rudolph earned 106 yards on 19 carries for his fourth-consecutive century-mark rushing day.
HOME RUN
A year after going winless at home, UNLV went undefeated and untied at Sam Boyd Stadium this season for the first time since 1977 when it finished 6-0 in Las Vegas. The Rebels did not lose at home only four other times in history, including the 1979 season that included two ties.
UNLV UNDEFEATED HOME RECORDS
YEAR RECORD COACH1974 10-0 Ron Meyer1976 8-0 Tony Knap1977 6-0 Tony Knap2000 5-0 John Robinson1979 5-0-2 Tony Knap
