Tuesday, Sept. 2, 2003 | 9:32 a.m.
Editor's note: The key matchup of each UNLV football game will be previewed in the Las Vegas Sun this season and followed up after the game by an examination of how it turned out.
To nobody's surprise, the UNLV defense put untested Toledo quarterback Bruce Gradkowski in a pressure cooker during the Rebels' 28-18 season-opening victory at Sam Boyd Stadium Friday night.
Only this time the steam came from a slightly different source.
Although strong safety Jamaal Brimmer, the Mountain West defensive player of the year, had his usual outstanding game and kept Gradkowski wary by storming the line of scrimmage, it was outside linebacker John Andrews who brought the most serious heat.
Andrews made seven solo tackles and forced a Gradkowski fumble that defensive end Leon Moore returned 25 yards for a touchdown to get the Rebels into the game, after Toledo had marched 80 yards upon receiving the opening kickoff.
That was the only time UNLV was able to get to Gradkowski, who was making his first start. But the Rebels were able to hurry him throughout the night and did not allow him time to set up and explore the vertical passing game.
Gradkowski completed 14 of 27 passes for just 124 yards while Cedric Stevens, the other quarterback in the Rockets' shuttling system, was 3 of 7 for 21 yards. Neither Toledo quarterback was intercepted but neither was a significant factor in the outcome, either.
"Our defense showed its speed and its ability to put pressure on the quarterback," UNLV coach John Robinson said. "Now, I don't think they are the offensive team they were last year. But there was some quickness showing there."
You didn't need a radar gun to detect that the Rebels were the faster team. But they also showed some smarts, keeping mental mistakes to a minimum and Toledo receivers in front of them.
"Coming out from last year, we knew we messed up with certain reads," said Brimmer, who made seven tackles, including two for losses. "We just really concentrated on making the reads and they helped us make the plays. You saw it. We just made the plays we didn't make a last year (in a 38-21 loss at Toledo)."
As for pressuring Gradkowski, Brimmer maintained the company line, that the Rebels didn't blitz him any more or any less than they would a veteran quarterback.
"I think that's the key every game, we try to get pressure on the quarterback and when they do catch the ball, try to be in a good spot (to prevent a long gain)," Brimmer said.
"That's what hurt us last year. Last year, a lot of guys were wide open, running up and down the field."
Like Gradkowski, Joe Miklos, the Rebels' other safety, was making his first collegiate start. After clearing the butterflies out of his system following the Rockets' opening drive -- Miklos was hit with a 15-yard personal foul for a marginally late hit and said he became confused when Toledo put a man in motion -- he settled down and played center field, allowing Brimmer to attack.
Milkos' biggest contributions were stopping both of Toledo's two-point conversion tries and combining with linebacker Ryan Claridge to force a crucial Toledo fumble after the Rebels had taken a 21-18 lead late in the fourth quarter.
"I thought (the front seven) played awesome. Awesome," said Miklos, a sophomore from Concord, Calif., who was recruited as a linebacker. "They put pressure on the quarterback which helps us make plays in the secondary. We've got some new guys up there, too, and they stepped up huge.
"They were running a bunch of screens but the guys up front took care of the screens."
Gradkowski looked sharp early, completing all three of his passes on the Rockets' 80-yard, 10-play march to open the game. He scrambled 11 yards for a first down and completed the drive by tossing a 12-yard scoring pass to tight end Andrew Clark.
But Toledo offensive coordinator Rob Spence said the combination of a young quarterback and a quick and aggressive Rebels defense made it hard for the Rockets to sustain an offense.
Toledo managed just 239 yards, with 80 of those coming on the opening drive.
"We tried to make it a simple (game) plan and build from there," Spence said. "UNLV is a tough team to plan for because they have such a good defense."
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