New Mexico’s different looks may give nightmares to Rebels

Steve Guiremand

Thursday, Nov. 9, 2000 | 10:41 a.m.

Excuse UNLV offensive line coach Rob Boras if his eyes are a little more bloodshot this week.

Sleep has been at a premium for the talented and energetic young assistant from Glen Ellyn, Ill.

"I had nightmares on Sunday night," Boras said. "Normally I don't get them until Wednesday night."

Blame New Mexico head coach Rocky Long and his unique blitz-from-all-angles defense for Boras' insomnia.

The Lobos (5-5, 3-2), who face UNLV (4-5, 2-3) on Saturday at Sam Boyd Stadium in a game that is crucial to both teams' bowl hopes, have amassed a Mountain West Conference-leading 45 quarterback sacks and lead the league in two other key team defensive categories -- rushing defense (105.4 yards per game) and pass efficiency defense (101.94).

"They're a difficult team to prepare for just because you have no clue what they're going to do," Rebel offensive tackle John Greer said. "They line up in a lot of different places and come at you with different people. Sometimes they'll have three linebackers in a gap. You never know where they're going to be."

"You have different things that you have to prepare for," UNLV coach John Robinson said. "It's extreme like the Chicago Bears defense was back in 1985 with Buddy Ryan. It's a little like feast or famine. They're coming to get you and you may have to curtail some things. But you also have to try and take advantage of the weaknesses they have."

Don't expect to see the Lobos line up in a basic 4-3 or 3-4 defensive front on Saturday.

"It's different in that they play three defensive linemen and they say three linebackers, but it's really almost like five linebackers," Boras said. "They're gap sound. They're going to hit every gap. You just don't know who is blitzing and where they're coming from. They have eight, sometimes nine guys on the line of scrimmage. They normally only rush five or six, but you don't know which of those eight or nine will be coming.

"They bring edge blitzes. They bring inside blitzes. They twist their blitzes. It is confusing."

Greer said the Lobos remind him a little of Air Force.

"They're a little smaller than most teams we play, but they're very quick and agile," he said. "I'd compare them to an Air Force type of team. They're not necessarily going to hit you, but they can get around you real well. You just have to get on people quickly and stay on them."

Boras says that Long has added to his defensive schemes this year which makes preparing even tougher.

"The thing that impresses me with New Mexico's defense is that it evolves each year," he said. "This year they added a new front which adds a whole new wrinkle to what they do. As a coach, you're trying to figure out if you can break their code. But the thing with them is that there just might not be a code to break."

Turner worked on rehabbing a sprained right ankle he injured in last week's 38-16 loss at Utah. He spent the final few minutes at practice watching in sweats with an ankle brace on.

When asked if Turner would play Saturday, Robinson replied simply, "I don't know."

If the 6-2, 210-pounder can't play, it would be a big loss for the Rebels. Turner leads UNLV and is fifth in the Mountain West Conference with 44 receptions for 652 yards (14.8 avg.) and seven touchdowns.

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