Las Vegas reps eye win in ‘Battle of the Rebels’

Steve Guiremand

Friday, Oct. 27, 2000 | 10:24 a.m.

With visions of a bowl game still dancing in their heads, John Robinson's UNLV Rebels take a break from Mountain West Conference play on Saturday and travel to Oxford, Miss., to play SEC heavyweight Ole Miss.

It's being billed as the Battle of the Rebels. It is believed to be the first time in NCAA history that two teams nicknamed Rebels have squared off on the football field.

For rebuilding UNLV (4-3), the game gives the school a chance to garner some national respect for both the school and the Mountain West Conference, which has taken its share of lumps this year in interconference matchups.

"It's important for our conference to go down there and play well," Robinson said. "It kind of gives us a peek into the future and what playing the big-timers is like."

It also gives UNLV sophomore quarterback Jason Thomas a chance to showcase his abilities for the media in SEC country.

"It's a good experience for us to go down there and play an SEC team like Mississippi with all the football tradition they have down there," Thomas said. "Football is strong down there. It's a good chance for us to show what we're doing out here on the West Coast."

Thomas, who would rank second in the nation in pass efficiency if he had six more passing attempts, could be throwing the ball more than usual on Saturday.

Thomas said Ole Miss (4-2) likes to press wide receivers with man-to-man coverage the bulk of the time.

"They're big and fast and strong and very athletic," Thomas said. "But they give you a chance to beat them because they play one-on-one a lot. They feel they have the better athletes. They just line up and say, 'Beat us.' Hopefully we can do that."

An upset of Ole Miss would give UNLV five wins with four games to go. Robinson's Rebels need to win three of their last five games to get the necessary seven needed to be bowl eligible this year.

"That's the main goal," Thomas said. "We still control that part of our season."