LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) -- UNLV boasts more than one player on the Maxwell Award Watch List for the first time ever as senior running back Jai'Den "Jet" Thomas is a repeat honoree and is joined this time by new quarterback Jackson Arnold.
 
The Rebel duo is part of a list of just 81 players released Monday by the Maxwell Football Club in Philadelphia vying for the trophy that is presented at the end of every season to college football's overall player of the year. Presented since 1937, the honor is named after Robert "Tiny" Maxwell, a former standout at Swarthmore College, renowned sportswriter and football official.
 
UNLV is one of just 14 programs in the nation with more than one player on this year's list. Thomas (Atlanta, GA) is the first Rebel player to earn a repeat spot on the Maxwell preseason list while Arnold (Denton, TX) is the first UNLV quarterback to be included since Armani Rogers in 2018. Thomas was previously named Preseason First Team All-Mountain West as he enters his fourth season ranked eighth in school history in career rushing yards (2,457) and fifth in rushing touchdowns (31). Arnold transferred to UNLV from the SEC after previously starting at both Auburn and Oklahoma.
 
Semifinalists for the Maxwell Award will be announced November 10 while the three finalists will be unveiled November 24. The winner of the 90th Maxwell Award will be announced as part of the ESPN
Home Depot College Football Awards Show held on December 10. The formal presentations of the Maxwell Award will be made at the Maxwell Football Club Awards on March 13, 2027, at the Coca Cola Roxy Theater in Atlanta, Georgia.
 
New Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Fernando Mendoza was the winner of the 2025 Maxwell Award.
 
Under the direction of second-year head coach Dan Mullen, the Rebels will kick off their 59th season of football August 29 by hosting Memphis in a highly anticipated Week Zero national matchup on FOX TV. 
 
Season tickets, mini-plans and single-game tickets for the six-game 2026 home schedule are available now by visiting unlvtickets.com or calling (702) 739-FANS (3267). For information on all-inclusive VIP club seats or suites at Allegiant Stadium, contact the Premium Sales office at premiumseating@unlv.edu or by calling (702) 739-FANS (3267).