Special teams a major concern for Robinson, struggling Rebels

Steve Guiremand

Wednesday, Sept. 12, 2001 | 10:37 a.m.

Inadequate special teams play has been one of the key reasons for UNLV's 0-2 start this season.

It also may have been the main reason the Rebels didn't garner a share of the Mountain West Conference title last season.

It was two blown PATs -- one shanked and one blocked -- that ultimately proved to be the difference in UNLV's 20-19 loss at Colorado State last year. If the Rebels had won that contest, they would have finished in a three-way tie for first place with CSU and Air Force.

Now, the question is: Will shoddy special teams play cost the Rebels another chance at beating Sonny Lubick's Rams (1-1) on Friday night (provided the game is played as scheduled) at Sam Boyd Stadium?

UNLV has been plagued by poor long snaps on punts and placekicks. The team is ranked 101st in the nation in net punting with a dismal 30.09 average. And normally reliable placekicker Dillon Pieffer, who coincidentally got his first break after Ray Cheetany's nightmarish performance in Fort Collins a year ago, is just 1-for-3 on field-goal tries.

So is UNLV head coach John Robinson worried his special teams could let him down again on Friday night?

"I'm worried every game that I've ever coached that something like that could happen," Robinson said.

"We're struggling now. We're trying to get a rhythm established so that we can get over this hump and then be effective."

Robinson said he planned to keep walk-on freshman Gary Cook as his No. 1 punter despite his 34.4 average. He also believes that junior Eddie Freas will become a solid long-snapper. And Pieffer will continue to handle placekicking duties.

"It's not as though I can go on the waiver wire and pick up a snapper," he joked.

Van Pelt, who has split time with starter D.J. Busch in the Rams' first two games of the season, was asked by coaches if he would mind moving to running back, wide receiver or even special teams this week.

Van Pelt's reply? Thanks, but no thanks.

"He's a great athlete," Colorado State quarterbacks coach Dan Hammerschmidt told the Denver Post. "He can be a QB. But if he wants to be on the field a lot, it will be somewhere else. D.J. proved he can run the offense. He showed he could throw the deep ball. The offensive tempo was good. Bradlee did his stuff well, too."

"I don't think I've had a fair shot, and there's no blame anywhere," Van Pelt said. "The coaches are solidifying the offense and have one quarterback. I can't blame them, but I don't think I've gotten the opportunity D.J. has gotten."

Van Pelt will remain as a backup to Busch, and Hammerschmidt said there will be a package of plays designed for him every game.