LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) – Super Senior placekicker Jose Pizano's school-record sixth field goal as time expired made UNLV (6-1/3-0) bowl-eligible for the first time in a decade as the Rebels rallied for a thrilling 25-23 victory over Colorado State (3-4/1-1) Saturday before 22,585 at Allegiant Stadium.
 
UNLV's Barry Odom became the first head coach to win six of his first seven games at the school since Ron Meyer in 1973 as the Rebels (4-0 at Allegiant Stadium this fall) won their fifth-straight home game dating back to last year's season-finale.
 
Pizano's 42-yarder in the second quarter opened the scoring but CSU eventually earned a 13-3 lead at the break, which marked the first time the Rebels trailed at halftime since Game 2 at Michigan.
 
Two more Pizano three-pointers drew the home team closer in the third and then Donavyn Lester's seventh rushing touchdown of the season pushed UNLV ahead for the first time and marked his team's only touchdown of the evening.
 
A Pizano 34-yarder helped the Rebs build a 19-13 lead before CSU scored a go-ahead touchdown with less than four minutes remaining. Pizano would nail a 46-yarder to regain the advantage but the Rams put through a 55-yard field goal to retake the lead with 44 seconds left. Redshirt freshman quarterback Jayden Maiava, however, coolly led his team down field to set up Pizano's 28-yarder to win it. The local product finished with a career-high 353 yards, which tied for the 24th-most by a Rebel in a game.
 
Wide receiver Jacob De Jesus was all over the field throughout, posting his first UNLV century mark game with 120 yards on nine receptions (off nine targets) to go with 103 kickoff return yards and 40 punt return yards for a total of 263 all-purpose yards.
 
Linebacker Jackson Woodard led all tacklers with 14 takedowns and safety Jaxen Turner had a key interception to thwart a Ram drive for his team-leading third pick of the season.
 
REBEL OF THE GAME:
Pizano set two school records, including the most points-by-kicking in a game by a Rebel with 19 (former record of 16 was by Daniel Gutierrez in 2022 and Evan Pantels in 2017). His six three-pointers bested Gutierrez's mark, set just last fall vs. Fresno State. Pizano improved to 18-of-19 on the season, which moved him into a tie for third place for most field goals in a season.
 
STAT OF THE GAME:
UNLV improved to 6-1 for the first time since 1984 and reached bowl eligibility for the first time since the 2013 season, which earned the squad a trip to the Heart of Dallas Bowl on New Year's Day.
 
QUOTABLE:
"Thrilled to get that win. I don't know what our attendance was, but they made the difference in the game. They were loud -- we felt it and our team made so many big plays over the course of four quarters to find a way to win the game. You never know what play is going to make the difference and I don't know how many two minute drills we have done since we started here together, but we always go good on good and it's always at the end of practice. It is for those reasons. We are going to get in those situations in the game and you have to make clutch plays. You have to protect, you have to make throws, you have to make tough catches and we felt like if we got in position today, from the 40-yard line and in, that we were going to come away with points. Our team showed toughness, they showed resolve, they showed togetherness, they showed strain. It wasn't great at halftime and I didn't have to say a word, our team did, and I was proud of them for that. Our guys found a way and we are so thrilled to have a chance to get down and win one like that, because we will grow from it. The energy was amazing. We will continue to build on that and we have a chance now at 6-1 and 3-0 in the conference, it opens up a lot of opportunities for our football team."
-UNLV Head Coach Barry Odom
 
REBEL NOTES:
-UNLV broke a four-game losing skid against CSU
-The Rebels earned their first win over the Rams since a 38-35 thriller in 2011
-Colorado State was making its first appearance in Allegiant Stadium
-UNLV won its Homecoming game for the first time since 2016 to improve to 27-28 all-time in the traditional affair
-UNLV went four-for-four in the red zone, improving to 29-of-30 on the year
-The Rebels saw their streak of not trailing in a game snapped at 15 when CSU scored a TD to take a 10-3 lead in the second
-Each team had one turnover – a fumble by UNLV and an interception by CSU – to keep the Rebels at plus-nine in turnover margin this season
-CSU did not score points of its turnover, which means UNLV opponents have scored just seven total points off six takeaways this fall
-UNLV scored a touchdown off its turnover, giving the Rebels 40 points off turnovers this fall
 
NEXT FOR THE REBELS:
UNLV starts back-to-back road trips with a visit to Fresno State next Saturday night. The game will be televised by FS1 and kick off at 7:30 p.m PT.