SAN ANTONIO, Texas (UNLVRebels.com) – Facing yet another undefeated team at the time of the game, UNLV (0-5/0-1) made its way to San Antonio for the first time Saturday and was driving for the tying score at the end before falling to surging UTSA (5-0/1-0), 24-17, before a crowd of 20,154 inside the famed Alamodome to close out non-conference play. It marked the third time this season that the Rebels lost by one touchdown or less.
Cameron Friel threw a 63-yard touchdown to Steve Jenkins and then Daniel Gutierrez hit a short field goal to give the visitors a 10-7 lead early in the second quarter. However, two interceptions and a lost fumble by Friel led to two straight UTSA touchdowns, which proved the difference in the score.
UNLV, which was short about a fourth of its starters because of injury, entered the game tied for 42nd in the nation at plus-two in turnover margin but lost that key stat Saturday, 3-0, after the Rebels failed to get a takeaway for the first time in 2021.
Despite the costly trio turnovers, true freshman quarterback Friel completed seven of his first eight pass attempts en route to becoming the first Rebel QB to pass for 300 yards in a game since Max Gilliam in 2018. Friel finished 25-of-37 for 307 yards. Justin Rogers came off the bench to throw a nine-yard touchdown pass to Zyell Griffin in the fourth quarter on a fourth-down play to make it 24-17 with six minutes left but UNLV could get no closer after turning it over on downs on its final drive.
STAT OF THE GAME:
PK Daniel Gutierrez improved to 8-for-8 on field goals this season and 29-of-35 in his career, which raised his career percentage to 82.9 -- the highest in school history
QUOTABLE:
"That's a tough football team, they did a heck of a job. I don't need stats, I don't need anyone to tell me that that was our most undisciplined game. We beat ourselves in a lot of ways. We've got to look at ourselves and figure out why we did that. You're right up in that game until the end too, we've just got to communicate to our guys it's such a small margin for victory and they've got to understand that."
-UNLV Head Coach Marcus Arroyo
REBEL NOTES:
-Steve Jenkins posted the first 100-yard receiving game for a Rebel since Kyle Williams at Hawaii in the 2020 season finale
-UTSA marked the fourth opponent to host the Rebels inside a domed stadium, joining Houston, Idaho and Idaho State
-The Rebels fell to 13-7 vs. teams currently in Conference USA but just 1-2 vs. teams who were members of the league at the time of the game
-UTSA became the 10th team from the Lone Star State to face UNLV in football
-The Roadrunners will return the game by playing at Allegiant on Sept. 25, 2027
-The teams were tied at 7 after the first quarter. UNLV has trailed after the first quarter in just one game this season – 7-0 vs. Iowa State
