RENO (UNLVRebels.com) – UNLV (5-1/2-0) posted its fifth win in the first six games of a season for the first time since 1984, 45-27 over UNR (0-6/0-2) in Saturday's annual Battle for the Fremont Cannon in front of 24,578 fans at Mackay Stadium.
 
The cannon trophy will remain painted Rebel Red as UNLV also earned three points in the Silver State Series presented by America First Credit Union. In addition, Barry Odom became just the second head coach at the school to win his first two conference games, joining Jeff Horton, who started 4-0 in the Big West at UNLV after moving from UNR to Las Vegas in 1994.
 
The last time a UNLV team started 5-1 in a season All-American Randall Cunningham was starting at quarterback and punter. The Rebels also posted their first four-game win streak since their last bowl season in 2013.
 
UNLV saw running back Donavyn Lester and wide receiver Ricky White score two touchdowns each to earn a 28-7 halftime lead. Lester posted his third touchdown in the third quarter on a 66-yard run.  
 
Vincent Davis Jr.'s nine-yard score with under four minutes remaining pushed UNLV over the 40-point mark for a school-record fourth straight week and fifth time this fall. It also meant the Rebels tied their high-mark for points in Reno, joining the 1975 squad that downed the Pack 45-7.
 
Redshirt freshman quarterback Jayden Maiava started his third straight game and finished with 257 yards while completing 20-of-25 pass attempts with two TDs. Linebacker Jackson Woodard led the way defensively with nine total tackles and a key interception deep in Rebel territory.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         
REBEL OF THE GAME:
Ricky White III nearly set a season high in yards in the first half alone as he hauled in six passes for 161 yards and two touchdowns before halftime. His final line was eight grabs for 174 yards, fueled by scoring plays of 82 and 59 yards.
 
STAT OF THE GAME:
UNLV grabbed two interceptions and recovered a fumble but did not turn the ball over to take the turnover battle 3-0.
 
QUOTABLE:
"I'm happy for our team, our athletics department, all of the people that support our program and the city of Las Vegas. It's big, it's huge. There's momentum, you can feel it. You feel it in the city -- not just with our sport, but with all of the UNLV sports, and then you've got all the other things in the city. We have to do our part. The guys feed off of that, there's no doubt about it. We're still not where we need to be, offense, defense, kicking. We did some really good things, enough to win that game. We'll enjoy this one until we get home and then it's on to the next, but I'm so happy for our team. I don't want to confuse the message. I'm thrilled for our program to be 5-1, 2-0 in the conference, but that's right where UNLV should be. Now we'll see how good we can get between now and next Saturday for a home game, which is huge. And we need the home field advantage that will make such a huge difference for us and for our team.
-UNLV Head Coach Barry Odom
 
REBEL NOTES:
-UNLV won in Reno for the fourth time in the last six trips up north
-Despite the Rebels winning the last two pverall, UNR still leads the all-time series 28-21
-UNLV's defense allowed its first 100-yard rusher of the season and it was a quarterback as Brendon Lewis finished with 115 net yards on 15 carries
-The Rebels had 28 points at halftime for the second straight road game as they led UTEP 28-14 at the break
-UNLV allowed its first sacks in three games but still won the sack battle 3-2
-The Rebels' trio of sacks on defense gave them 13 in the last three games
-This marked the earliest meeting between the rivals since Oct. 3, 2015
-Nevada governor Joe Lombardo, a UNLV graduate, did the pregame coin flip
 
NEXT FOR THE REBELS:
UNLV will return for Homecoming vs. Colorado State next Saturday. Kickoff is set for 4 p.m. PT at Allegiant Stadium and the game will be televised by SSSEN.