Burning Question No. 3: Can the offensive line go from solid to dominant?

Ryan Greene/Las Vegas Sun

UNLV offensive linemen Matt Murphy (left) and Evan Marchal take a breather during drills on Sunday night at Broadbent Park in Ely.

By Ryan Greene

Monday, Aug. 17, 2009 | 2:30 a.m.

UNLV in Ely: Day 5

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Ely Day 4: The Pass Rush and the Payne

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Both the defensive line and wide receiver Phillip Payne create buzz in the Rebels Saturday morning scrimmage in Ely.

Editor's note: UNLV coaches are looking to answer several questions while the Rebels football team practices in Ely. Reporter Ryan Greene counts down these burning questions through Wednesday.

ELY — Let UNLV's offensive line stand as proof that sushi — yes, raw fish, seaweed, rice, etc. — leads to better blocking.

Well, OK, the correlation is a little indirect, but it's there.

The most experienced unit on the Rebels' roster each week finds its way to Sushi Factory up in the Henderson foothills. It's there where the beefy linemen chow down on all-you-can-eat sushi.

"Oh, they love us," junior right tackle Evan Marchal said with a grin.

This helps form the bond.

The bond helps form the end result, which is a line that in 2008 was oh-so-solid.

Now the veteran corps wants to take the next step.

"That's the one thing that we're trying to get accomplished and that's what we want to become, is a dominant offensive line," o-line coach Gary Bernardi said. "We were a good, consistent offensive line (in 2008)."

The proof came in the numbers — at least they did in the passing game, which is of course the staple of any spread offense.

The Rebels' offensive line was 15th in the nation in sacks allowed, surrendering just 14 over the course of 12 games.

Quarterback Omar Clayton was allotted enough time in the pocket to become the nation's 29th-highest rated passer, throwing only four interceptions in 258 pass attempts over nine games played.

Perfection is too much to ask, but a unit as experienced as the Rebels' offensive front is refusing to rest on "solid."

"Even though we didn't give up so many sacks, we did give up some hits on him," senior right guard Joe Hawley said of Clayton. "Omar's a tough quarterback. He took them and got back up, but we want to protect him more."

Ryan Greene/Las Vegas Sun

UNLV offensive lineman Joe Hawley lets his massive beard get some air during a breather on Thursday morning at Broadbent Park in Ely.

The UNLV line is also making it a goal to become more well-rounded in terms of providing better run-blocking.

The Rebels picked up 1,460 rushing yards on 404 attempts — good for 91st in the country out of 119 teams.

"Generally, most of the kids come here working from a three-point stance, but we work in a two-point stance," Bernardi said of players coming from traditional offenses in high school to playing in the wide-open spread, where linemen have more spacious splits between them and play more upright. "Most of the kids grasp that pretty quick. It's a matter of staying healthy and having continuity. Up until last year, we had a hard time keeping continuity."

But now? The Rebels' continuity up front would make several teams in the Division-I ranks jealous.

Four of UNLV's starters up front — Marchal, Hawley, junior left tackle Matt Murphy and junior center John Gianninoto — started last season. The only departure is that of Johan Asiata, who is currently in training camp with the Chicago Bears, and the only injury issue the Rebels dealt with up front was Marchal's ankle, which slowed him some during the season's second half.

Ryan Greene/Las Vegas Sun

UNLV's offensive linemen prepare to clash during drills on Thursday morning at Broadbent Park in Ely.

"There's a lot of communication that goes on in that group, and they need to work together, because there's a lot of bullets flying around and they have to work together," UNLV coach Mike Sanford said.

Added Hawley: "If me and Evan mess up a switch call or something, we can talk it out. I can talk to Murph. I can talk to Gio. We all get along."

Plenty of the cohesiveness — they easily admit — comes from the fact that they don't spend much time apart.

Gianninoto, Marchal and Hawley all share an apartment. When they're not at practice — or on a weekly sushi binge — they're watching movies, playing video games or, well, just hanging. Murphy lives in the same apartment complex, just a few doors down.

"I think it's all because of that," Marchal said. "If you don't hang out with the person, then you're not open to communicate as well as we are. Since we do everything together, we have nothing to hide, nothing to fear."

Sanford and Bernardi agree that nowhere on the football field is communication between members of a unit more important than on the offensive line. All of the code you hear barked out from under their facemasks and all of the fingers pointed across the line before the snap? It's not for show.

When trying to figure out UNLV's intricate offense, opposing defenses will present several looks, send all kinds of blitzes and even bluff with some blitz looks before backing off.

Those lines of communication aren't just opened through experience, but also by busting the chops of each other off the field.

In other words, being a member of an experienced offensive line means thick skin has been developed over the years.

"We go out to dinner, we carpool everywhere, because we're smart like that," Murphy said. "We do get in each other's faces sometimes, but it's all good-hearted, to make sure you're on the straight, doing the right thing.

"It's not like we worry about it. We make fun of each other — you give some, you take some. They probably make fun of me because I was fat when I came in and they called me chubby. You get over it, poke a little fun at them and life goes on."

The only newcomer on the offensive line is by now a part of the group, as the incumbents have gone out of their way to make sure he makes it to all group functions — sushi included.

Redshirt freshman Sean Tesoro will be manning the left guard post.

"I think at the beginning, he was intimidated, just being a freshman," Marchal said. "He was coming into that role, and we'd all been there before maybe a year or two ago. We'd been in action and he hadn't. The first day we scrimmaged in the spring, he was probably, as coach Bernardi would say, crapping down his leg.

Ryan Greene/Las Vegas Sun

UNLV offensive line coach Gary Bernardi, center, offers instruction to his pupils following a two-minute offense drill on Sunday evening at Broadbent Park in Ely.

"Once he got in the mix of it and saw how we communicate, I think he fit in really well. He understands it, and day to day, he gets better."

The efforts the veterans made to get Tesoro up to speed came as no surprise to Bernardi, who loves to praise the character of his elder linemen, and it gives him confidence that it'll be the same in a year, when, barring injuries, the Rebels will again return four starters up front.

But both he and the line hope that by then, they're coming off of a campaign that can be classified a step above "solid."

"The kids — we have really good kids," he said. "If we can keep up health-wise, I think we're gonna have a chance to be a pretty good group."