Aug. 15, 2011

CAMP REBEL (UNLVRebels.com) - The UNLV football team turned in its first set of two-a-days Monday and there were big plays on both sides of the ball, as has become the norm at Camp Rebel 2011.

"It was a good day, we got a lot of work in during the two practices," second-year head coach Bobby Hauck said. "Our guys responded well."

The team will retake the fields Tuesday for a single afternoon practice.

CHASING MULTIPLE STARTING SPOTS Chase Lansford, the son of a former longtime NFL place-kicker Mike Lansford, was signed by Hauck to fill a huge hole at punter as well as compete with returning starter Nolan Kohorst for field-goal duty.

So far, so good, for the versatile booter out of Santa Ana College.

Lansford has shown both good placement and distance on his punts during the first week of camp. If that continues, Rebel fans can look forward to a big improvement over last year's dismal national punting team ranking of 109th (33.4 yards per attempt).

"Chase has done a nice job so far but I think he'll be even better than he's shown," Hauck said. "We're looking for punting to be an improved spot for us this year."

Asked about any differences between JC ball and his first week at UNLV, Lansford said there was at least one major one.

"It's a lot more intense here," Lansford said. "Junior college was a lot more laid back. I feel like I'm settling into things and will do a lot better as I get accustomed to the system and my snapper."

Lansford, who was named First Team All-Region V as a punter, also has his sights set on place-kicking for his new team.

"My dad was a kicker and I've always been a kicker. I never focused on punting, I just did it when my team needed it. I'm looking forward to showing what I can do on field goals."

Last season, Lansford nailed 8-of-11 attempts with a career-long 52-yarder en route to earning second team all-conference honors. Coincidentally, those were the same field-goal numbers posted by Kohorst, who was named Freshman All-Mountain West after leading the Rebels with 53 points.

While Lansford is showing great promise at punter, look for a duel with incumbent Kohorst to continue daily as UNLV works toward its season opener at Wisconsin on September 1.