With UNLV saying goodbye to Sam Boyd Stadium after five decades, we pick the 10 (plus one) top Rebel games played there before we head out the door.

NUMBER 11
Sept. 12, 2007
UNLV 27, UTAH 0
Led by the hard running of Frank "The Tank" Summers, UNLV put together one its most satisfying – and unexpected -- performances in its Mountain West history just one week after getting hammered at home by a ranked Hawai'i club. On a perfect autumn evening the Rebels pitched their second shutout ever against a league opponent and first since blanking Cal State Fullerton in 1983. UNLV's second win over the emerging Utes and first since 1979 was especially sweet for head coach Mike Sanford, who took the Rebels' job after spending two years as offensive coordinator in Salt Lake City under Urban Meyer. Summers, however, was the big story of the night as the junior-college transfer and future NFL back carried it 29 times for 190 yards and a pair of touchdowns on the ground to go with a 29-yard catch-and-run into the end zone. With the Tank providing plenty of offense behind quarterbacks Travis Dixon and Omar Clayton, the Rebel D, which featured future pros Beau Bell and Quinton Pointer, twice thwarted Utah drives with holds on fourth down, including one at the UNLV one-yard line to help ensure the whitewashing of the Utes was complete.
 


NUMBER 10
Sept. 28, 1974
UNLV 20, MONTANA 17
Having moved into the national Division II rankings for the first time the previous season, the 1974 Rebels were poised for a big year under second-year head coach Ron Meyer. After two relatively easy road victories, UNLV's home opener came before a crowd of 11,524 at new Las Vegas Stadium as Montana made its first-ever trip to town. The Rebels fell behind for the first time all season when the visitors from the Big Sky Conference opened the scoring on a four-yard run by Del Spear at the beginning of the second quarter. UNLV All-American running back Mike Thomas darted in from 16 yards before halftime to knot the score at 7-7. Eventually trailing 17-7 in the fourth period, Rebel great Glenn Carano drove his team down the field and handed off to Thomas for a three-yard touchdown run with just over 13 minutes left. However, a failed extra-point attempt by the Rebels meant Meyer's team would have to score a touchdown to remain unbeaten on the year. Down 17-13 with less than two minutes on the clock, Carano got the ball back in his hands and led a monumental drive to inside the Montana 10-yard line. With just five seconds left in the game he lofted the winning touchdown pass to tight end Kurt Schnabel to complete the rally. The great escape allowed UNLV to eventually go undefeated in the regular season for the first and only time in program history at 11-0 before later falling in an NCAA national semifinal game
 


NUMBER 9
Nov. 16, 1996
UNLV 44, SAN DIEGO STATE 42
Coming in with the nation's longest losing streak at 12 games, the 1996 Rebels figured to have little chance to derail 6-2 San Diego State's drive for a bid to the WAC championship game in what was the first meeting between the two schools in a dozen years. However, the mismatch on paper turned into one of the most exciting wins in school history. In a game overflowing with big plays (an incredible seven touchdowns measuring 35 yards or longer), Jeff Horton's squad earned its first-ever victory as a member of the newly expanded league. UNLV freshman QB sensation and Green Valley High grad Jon Denton was unstoppable, setting five NCAA and two more school freshman records, including 503 yards passing. In fact, UNLV matched the potent Aztec attack strike for strike. SDSU RB George Jones rumbled for 275 on the ground, including three scores, while Rebel WR Lenny Ware led all receivers with 200 yards on seven catches as the game produced a jaw-dropping 1,297 yards of offense. However, it was a missed field goal attempt that finally sealed the unlikely outcome. A 40-yard run by Jones opened the scoring and the Aztecs later added an 85-yard TD pass from Billy Blanton to Nathaniel Jacquet. Just 18 seconds later, Denton found Ware for an 82-yard score. Another 53-yard TD jaunt by Jones was offset by a 75-yard pass play from Denton, this time to Damon Williams. UNLV led 44-36 with six minutes left but Will Blackwell's relatively puny 27-yard scoring catch put SDSU on the verge of tying it up, but the Aztecs' two-point attempt failed. The Rebels then had a rare three-and-out and punted it back to the Aztecs, who drove 50 yards to the UNLV 18-yard line and handed it off to Jones on third-and-four. The All-American tailback was stuffed for no gain so head coach Ted Tollner summoned Peter Holt, who was 14-15 in his attempts coming in, to nail the would-be game winner. Holt, however, missed the 35-yarder – badly -- and the celebration was on as Horton was carried off the field on his players' shoulders.
 


NUMBER 8
Oct. 20, 1979
UNLV 43, UTAH 41
In front of what at the time was the biggest crowd to see a sporting event in the state of Nevada (24,782), a 5-1 UNLV squad that was looking to earn an invite to the Western Athletic Conference took on the WAC's first-place team, Utah. The first-ever meeting between the two programs saw the Utes jump out to a 14-0 lead at the end of the first quarter. Sam King started the game at quarterback but was relieved by Larry Gentry, who sparked a 19-point second-quarter outburst. King eventually found his way back onto the field in time to hit Sam "Disco Kid" Greene for the receiving great's third scoring reception of the night. The see-saw affair saw Michael Morton's 18-yard run put his team back on top 40-34 with 6:46 left. Utah, however, would drive 58 yards and put in a one-yard TD with 39 seconds left to regain the lead at 41-40. After a touchback on the kickoff, King soon faced fourth-and-six at his own 24 when he found Morton for an eight-yard gain. He then hit Barnett for 27 yards to get into Ute territory and the drive continued down to the 32. With time for just one more play and facing what would be the longest field goal in school history, head coach Tony Knap trotted out soccer-style kicker Todd Peterson, who was the team's kickoff man but had not attempted a field goal all season. Peterson smashed the 49-yarder through the uprights as time expired, giving the Rebels their 10th-straight home win. "I don't know what we can do for an encore," said an exhausted Knap. "There's a man for every situation and tonight Todd Peterson was that man…I don't know who is doing the script-writing for us, but I'm going to fire him!"
 


NUMBER 7
Nov. 24, 2018
UNLV 34, UNR 29
Trailing 23-0 against the arch-rival Wolf Pack in the season finale, the Rebels would only allow six more points the rest of the way in staging the biggest comeback in program history, besting 21-point rallies vs. CMU in 2013 and Nebraska-Omaha in 1976. The Wolf Pack scored TDs on its first three drives of the night (missing one PAT) but was finally held to a field goal on its fourth. That's when the Rebels woke up in a big way. Facing a fourth-and-eight, UNLV needed something good to happen and it did when quarterback Armani Rogers hit running back Lexington Thomas for a catch and run that turned into a 38-yard scamper and spurred a 21-point outburst in the second quarter. Rogers threw for three touchdowns, completing 13 of 20 attempts for 172 yards and no turnovers, and rushed for two scores as part of his 46-yard night on the ground, including running in the game-winner from three yards out with 2:34 left. UNR was twice driving to take the lead late but safety Javin White picked off Ty Gangi both times to seal it. The monumental comeback meant the fabled Fremont Cannon returned to Rebel Red while the Pack lost in Las Vegas for the first time in a dozen seasons as UNLV outscored them 34-6 after the first minute of the second quarter in what would be the final Battle for the Fremont Cannon staged at Sam Boyd Stadium.
 


NUMBER 6
Dec. 15, 1994
UNLV 52, CENTRAL MICHIGAN 24
One of the most unlikely bowl teams anywhere in college football, the 1994 Rebels eschewed any building process under new head coach Jeff Horton and went from 3-8 the previous season to conference champions. Bursting out of the gates in league play with a 4-0 mark, UNLV lost a heartbreaker at Southwestern Louisiana, 28-27, but made up for it by shocking first-place UNR to earn a spot in Las Vegas Bowl III. Featuring a rare bowl rematch from earlier in the season, UNLV would face MAC rep Central Michigan after having traveled to Mount Pleasant three months earlier, falling 35-26. This time, however, the game was in Horton's House. Playing before an ESPN audience, the Rebels racked up 589 yards of offense, which was the most of any bowl team that season. UNLV jumped out to a 14-0 lead with a 46-yard pass from Jared Brown to Henry Bailey and then a one-yard trip into the end zone by Bailey. CMU managed a short field goal and then got a big play itself, a 53-yard scoring strike to draw closer at the end of the first quarter. The Rebel offense, powered by RB DeJohn Branch's 125 yards on just 13 carries, continued to hum and the Rebels pulled away for good on a 15-yard fumble return for a touchdown by future NFL defensive end Keith Washington who was so excited about his defensive score that he continued running out of the end zone and into the Rebel locker room. The rout was on after Nick "The Kick" Garritano booted a field goal, Bailey got another TD run and Daemon Keener hauled in a 33-yard TD pass. The Rebels later made it 38 straight points when Randy Gatewood took a Jason Davis pass 45 yards for a TD to build an eventual 52-10 lead before Horton cleared the bench in what ended as a bowl blowout.
 
 

NUMBER 5
Nov. 12, 2017
UNLV 69, WYOMING 66 (3OT)
Quarterback Kurt Palandech rushed for 157 yards and threw for a career-high 252 yards to lead the Rebels to a wild, thrilling triple-overtime victory over Wyoming. The game marked the highest combined scoring contest (135 points) in UNLV and Mountain West history and ranked among the top three in college history. The Rebels ran all over the Cowboys with 401 net yards with big contributions from Xzaviar Campbell and David Greene. Receiving great Devonte Boyd caught 10 passes en route to his 11th career 100-yard game. A back and forth game with tons of big plays saw the Cowboys rally to take a one-point lead with a 60-yard punt return in the fourth quarter. UNLV answered right back when Palandech raced for a 76-yard touchdown and converted the two-point conversion. The Pokes, however, were led by future first round NFL quarterback Josh Allen who somehow directed his team on a 97-yard drive with no timeouts to tie the game with a miracle toss to Tanner Gentry as time expired. Heading to its third ever overtime affair against the Cowboys, UNLV matched Wyoming score for score for two extra sessions, including converted defensive back Jericho Flowers hauling in a pretty 22-yard scoring pass. In the third overtime, the Rebels took control when future NFLer Torry McTyer picked off Allen for the second time of the day at the goal line. UNLV looked to end it with field goal but missed from 35 yards out. Fortunately, the Rebels got hit with a motion penalty and this time Nicolai Bornand made it from five yards further out to end one of the most entertaining games ever staged in our -- or any other -- building.


 
NUMBER 4
Dec. 21, 2000
UNLV 31, ARKANSAS 14
Year two of John Robinson's reign at UNLV brought much promise to Sam Boyd Stadium with the addition to the lineup of former USC transfer Jason Thomas. However, three excruciatingly close road losses during the season had pushed the Rebels into a bowl-game corner. Standing 4-5 overall in early November, a bid to the Las Vegas Bowl was still attainable if UNLV could emerge from its final three games with a winning record. New Mexico came to town on Nov. 11 and when Nate Turner fought through defenders to haul in Thomas' two-yard TD pass, UNLV had won its final home game of the season 18-14. A trip to San Diego State was next up and a tense battle with the Aztecs saw the game tied at 24 with the home team driving for what seemingly would be the game-winning field goal. However, Amar Brisco stepped in front of a Lon Sheriff pass and returned it 72 yards for a game-winning score. A trip to play non-conference rival Hawaii saw three Rebels rush for at least 100 yards apiece in building a big lead. Timmy Chang and the Rainbows scored late but the game-tying two-point conversion fell to the ground and UNLV formally accepted its hard-earned bowl bid. Playing before a national ESPN2 audience and what was a Las Vegas Bowl-record 29,113 fans, UNLV took on an Arkansas squad that upset two-straight ranked SEC opponents to earn its way into the game. The Razorbacks opened the scoring with a seven-yard touchdown pass before the Rebels answered with a Thomas to Turner connection. The Hogs went up 14-7 before Turner got his second TD from Thomas to knot things at halftime. "Third-And-Nate" turned in a spectacular first half, catching eight balls for 126 yards. Things stayed tied until Thomas found a streaking Troy Mason with a stunning 54-yard strike into the end zone that was one of the top plays of the bowl season. After a Dillon Pieffer field goal put UNLV up 24-14, Arkansas coach Houston Nutt elected to go for it on fourth and 10 with more than 12 minutes remaining. The defense forced an incompletion and the Rebels enjoyed an 18-yard icing-on-the-cake scamper by Kevin Brown. UNLV had its most wins in a season since 1984 and finished a perfect 6-0 at Sam Boyd fueled by a roster that featured six future NFL draft picks. Robinson, meanwhile, improved to 8-1 in the postseason to become the winningest bowl coach in NCAA Division-I history with a percentage of .889.


 
NUMBER 3
Nov. 10, 1984
UNLV 26, NO. 20 CAL STATE FULLERTON 24
The Rebels and the Titans clashed for the PCAA title before a vocal crowd of 25,678 at the Silver Bowl. Cal State Fullerton came in ranked 20th in the nation in one poll and boasting a shiny 10-0 record. Early in the third quarter quarterback Randall Cunningham became the league's all-time passing leader, passing San Jose State's Ed Luther with 7,190 yards. Cunningham, who was earlier named First Team All-America as a punter, showed why in this game as he booted 10 balls for an average of 49.4 yards and long of 70, which pushed the Titans to their own one-yard line in the fourth quarter. With less than three minutes remaining, Cunningham, who outdueled Fullerton legend Damon Allen, found Reggie LaFrance for a nine-yard TD that put the Rebels ahead by nine to clinch the first and only win UNLV ever posted over a ranked opponent at what is now known as Sam Boyd Stadium.

 

NUMBER 2
Oct. 19, 1974
UNLV 37, BOISE STATE 35
With the largest crowd to ever watch a sporting event in state history (18,631) on hand at Las Vegas Stadium, UNLV squared off with fellow Division-II powerhouse and fellow-unbeaten Boise State in late October. The Rebels, led by head coach Ron Meyer, were looking to make a national splash after jumping out to a 5-0 record. It did not take long. On the third play from scrimmage, All-American senior running back Mike Thomas burst through the middle of the line and didn't stop until he hit the end zone 85 yards later. Still standing as the fifth-longest rush in UNLV history, Thomas' bolt gave his team enough momentum to upset the Broncos 37-35 and earn the Rebels a place in the national top 10 for the first time in history. Thomas finished with 266 yards on 33 carries that night -- more yards than any Rebel before or since in their own facility. The Rebels finished the regular season undefeated and did not lose until falling to Delaware in the NCAA semifinal game held in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
 


NUMBER 1
Nov. 19, 1994
UNLV 32, UNR 27
The biggest Battle for the Fremont Cannon was also UNLV's least likely victory in the series. Played on an electric November afternoon, this one was magnified for two reasons – a conference title was on the line and UNLV was coached by Jeff Horton, who moved south soon after Ault had selected him to take over the Pack in 1993. Although the winner was assured at least a share of the Big West Conference championship, the folks in Reno weren't too worried about the trip to Sam Boyd after having downed their rivals five straight times. One Pack player was even quoted during game week saying it wasn't a matter of "if" but only by "how much" his team would beat UNLV and their former mentor. In arguably the most exciting game ever between these two, UNR took a 14-13 halftime lead. However, the hosts used a school-record tying 54-yard field goal by Las Vegan Nick Garritano to take their first lead. Looking to answer, all-conference quarterback Mike Maxwell went over the middle hoping to pick up a first down. Instead, Rebel linebacker Rossie Johnson stepped in front of the throw, secured his second interception of the afternoon and headed up the right sideline for a stunning 48-yard touchdown return that sent the red portion of Sam Boyd Stadium's stands into an all-out frenzy. After another field goal by Nick "The Kick", the Pack fought back to score two late TDs and take a 27-26 lead with under three minutes left. Rebel QB Jared Brown led his team on its most important drive in history, completing six passes, including a key fourth-and-four completion to star wideout Randy Gatewood. RB DeJohn Branch eventually rumbled with the winning points for four of his 169 yards rushing. The biggest home crowd in two years tore down a goal post in celebration of a win that tied the all-time series at 10-10, gave UNLV its 100th all-time home victory and, because of a series of tiebreakers, sent the Rebels (instead of the Pack) to the Las Vegas Bowl to face Central Michigan. Beating your heavily favored arch-rival, winning a share of a league title and grabbing an unexpected bowl trip all in one never-will-forget afternoon? Just. Wow.