Rebels look for edge vs. bowl-experienced Arkansas

Steve Guiremand

Wednesday, Dec. 20, 2000 | 9:59 a.m.

For John Robinson's UNLV Rebels, it's a good thing that tradition doesn't count for any points in Thursday night's Las Vegas Bowl matchup with the Arkansas Razorbacks.

If it did, the Rebels would be blown out.

Consider:

Call it a battle of the haves and the have-nots.

"I guess you could say we're kind of the new kids on the block," Robinson admitted.

So does tradition and previous bowl experience give the Hogs an advantage going into Thursday night's game?

"Sure it's an advantage," Robinson said. "They been through the bowl routine before. But I think our Hawaii trip was a little like a bowl game for us in terms of dealing with distractions and stuff like that before a big game."

But Robinson believes UNLV has an edge being able to play the game in their home stadium. UNLV is 5-0 at Sam Boyd Stadium this year, including a 34-13 dismantling of Air Force on regional TV. Meanwhile, Arkansas is just 1-3 on the road this season.

"I think it is an advantage for us this year," Robinson said. "Next year if we played here I don't think it would be. But we ended the season with a couple of road games, including that long trip to Hawaii, so its nice to be able to stay at home this time."

But when it's all said and done, Robinson believes it won't be tradition or home field advantage that decides Thursday night's contest.

"I think it will come down to who plays the whole game," Robinson said. "Who can hang in there when things are going against you. Some people point to turnovers as deciding a game like this. Well, we had five turnovers in the first half against New Mexico but we kept hanging in there and battled and still found a way to win the game at the end. I think this game could be very similar."