Aug. 26, 2000
LAS VEGAS - Quarterback Jason Thomas wowed the crowd with two touchdown runs as UNLV's offense scored 27 points in the football team's final scrimmage Saturday.
Playing before more than 1,000 fans at Sam Boyd Stadium, five Rebel quarterbacks combined for 22 completions in 33 attempts for 200 yards. However, it was Thomas who got in the end zone with a stunning 18-yard burst and a winding 15-yard rush to make it 14-0. After the game, head coach John Robinson officially named Thomas the team's starting quarterback.
Senior kicker/punter Ray Cheetany made two field goal and senior tailback Kevin Brown rushed for a three-yard touchdown for the other offensive scores. Defensive back Sharif Hamilton returned a fumble 35 yards for the defense's only points.
Jeremi Rudolph led all Rebel rushers with 48 yards on just four carries (12.0 average per carry) while Thomas finished with 38 yards on his three runs. Troy Mason led the receivers with four catches for 44 yards while Bobby Nero (40 yards) and Nate Turner (30 yards) both had three catches.
Junior-college transfer Scott Parkhurst had two sacks for a loss of 12 yards to pace the defense. Shanga Wilson led all tacklers with six, which included a sack.
UNLV SCRIMMAGE STATS LEADERS
RUSHING NO YDS TD LG AVGJeremi Rudolph 4 48 0 29 12.0Jason Thomas 3 38 2 18 12.7Kevin Brown 3 8 1 4 2.7John Holliday 12 6 0 13 0.5
PASSING ATT CMP INT YDS TD LGMatt Ray 9 7 1 80 0 26Kurt Nantkes 8 5 0 54 0 26Jason Vaughan 7 4 0 25 0 9Jason Thomas 6 4 1 25 0 16Ryan Hanson 3 2 0 16 0 14
RECEIVING NO YDS TD LGTroy Mason 4 44 0 16Bobby Nero 3 40 0 26Nate Turner 3 30 0 24James Wofford 2 8 0 8Jeremi Rudolph 2 0 0 0Trevan Sorensen 1 26 0 26George Gordon 1 14 0 14Six others tied with 1 reception
