Estandia expects to rebound from disappointing ‘04 season

Steve Guiremand

Thursday, Aug. 11, 2005 | 9:37 a.m.

Like many UNLV football players, Greg Estandia is glad to put a disappointing 2-9 season in 2004 in his rear-view mirror.

The 6-foot-8, 255-pound senior tight end was supposed to play a big role in the Rebels offense in John Robinson's final year as head coach. Former offensive coordinator Bruce Snyder, who coached All-Pro tight end Todd Heap at Arizona State, built much of his offensive game plan around Estandia to take advantage of his soft hands and all-around athletic ability.

But Estandia wound up redshirting after he injured his knee on the final play of the final practice of fall camp. It was the start of an injury-plagued season to forget for the Rebels.

"Last year everything that could have gone wrong went wrong," Estandia said. "It wasn't the coaches. We had bad luck. That's the truth. And we couldn't fight through all that bad luck. It was one of the hardest years I've ever had to go through."

If there was a positive to come out of redshirting, it's the fact that Estandia figures to play a prominent role in new head coach Mike Sanford's shotgun spread offense, lining up everywhere from the slot to split end and tight end.

Talk about your matchup problems. Pity the poor corner or linebacker who has to try to cover the 6-foot-8 Estandia in man-to-man coverage.

But there's a big "if" attached to Estandia these days.

After sitting out last season with the knee injury and most of spring practice with a calf injury, the big question is "if" Estandia can stay healthy, what kind of year will he and the Rebels have?

"It's very important that he stay healthy," Sanford said. "He's had a great summer. He's worked really hard. He's gotten into great shape. He's lifted. He's been a leader. He's done everything you want a guy to do. Now we want him to practice and to stay healthy. That's big."

Estandia, who was elected one of the team's two offensive captians this year by his peers, said he's reporting to camp in much better shape than a year ago.

"Part of the problem was that last year I had toe surgery right before the season started so I didn't get as much conditioning in," Estandia said. "This year I've been here all summer conditioning. I feel a lot better. I feel a lot stronger."

Estandia, in fact, owns three team conditioning records for his weight group, including one for his 34-inch vertical jump.

"He has a lot of ability," Sanford said. "He's had some big moments in his career but the big thing he's going to do this year for us and for his career is be consistent."

And that means avoiding the injuries that sidelined his career last year.

"That's the plan," Estandia said. "But I also want to perform when I'm out there so I'm not going to hold anything back. I'm just going to go out and play as hard as I can every play."

Both Crandal, who started nine games at right tackle in 2003, and Del Castillo, who played in just four games in an injury-plagued career, had recent surgeries for back injuries.

Meanwhile, junior college transfer John Guice, who locked up a starting cornerback spot with an impressive spring, will likely be sidelined until at least the weekend because of a sprained ankle.

The team will hold its first practice in full pads on Saturday morning at 8:45. That is also the last practice that will be open to the public during fall camp.

Select players and members of the school's cheer and dance squads will also be signing schedule posters from 2 to 3 p.m. on Saturday afternoon at both the Boulevard mall (at Brookstone Court) and the Galleria mall (at Gap Court) in Henderson.