Las Vegas Sun

March 19, 2024

UNLV football:

Rebels trying not to panic in the wake of ugly 1-3 start to season

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Steve Marcus

UNLV Rebels quarterback Blake Decker (5) warms up before the UNLV Rebels’ home opener against the Northern Colorado Bears at Sam Boyd Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 6, 2014.

It didn’t have to be this way. At halftime in TDECU Stadium, two teams that didn’t play well went into halftime trying to figure out what they wanted to change in a six-point game.

They had the same amount of time, and neither side possessed a discernible advantage in momentum. It was basically all square with 30 minutes to play, and Houston responded with such a whooping that it was difficult to remember this outcome was ever even in doubt.

When it finally came to an end, the Cougars had carved up the Rebels for 399 yards on the ground while UNLV cut off its own legs with 11 penalties for 171 yards. That was more than the Rebels’ offense tallied on the ground (170 yards) or through the air (143 yards) in a 47-14 beating that killed any optimism in the air after UNLV’s second-half rally in last week’s loss.

The Rebels (1-3) have been outscored 165-74, and they've allowed three of their four opponents to run for at least 331 yards.

“From fundamentals to how we’re calling it to flat making plays. We’ve just got to play better,” UNLV coach Bobby Hauck said.

Outside of their opening touchdown drive, the Rebels rarely looked like a capable team, and only Houston’s own stutter start kept the road team in it. Much like the Northern Colorado victory two weeks ago, UNLV marched down the field with relative ease to open the game and then was barely heard from the rest of the way.

Quarterback Blake Decker overshot receivers. He pulled the ball to run often, sometimes before plays could really develop. That plus the penalties was far more than they could overcome.

“Dumb mental mistakes and dumb plays on my part that stalled drives,” Decker said.

The Rebels had two potentially big first-half drives die before they could get points, and their second-half possessions didn’t mean much in the grand scheme of things. Decker finished 12-of-28 for 113 yards with two interceptions before Nick Sherry came in and added another interception in garbage time.

The lone bright spot, Houston native Keith Whitely, averaged 5.9 yards per carry with a touchdown, but more than half of his yards came on that first drive. Fellow Houstonian Devante Davis came into his homecoming with an injured wrist and might have hurt more than that in the third quarter when Decker led him off his feet and right into a big hit. Davis caught the pass, his only catch of the night, for no gain and didn’t return to the game.

“We’re pretty beat up,” Hauck said. “He’s one of them.”

Senior receiver Marcus Sullivan sat out last week’s game with a leg injury. Tonight, he returned the opening kickoff, then didn’t play the rest of the night. In the second quarter, the game came to a halt when junior safety Peni Vea stayed on the ground with an apparent neck injury after making a tackle.

Vea was removed on a stretcher, and ESPN later reported that he was conscious and moving all of his limbs at a local hospital. Vea was expected to be released and able to fly back to Las Vegas either tonight or Sunday.

“That’s ultimately the most important thing here,” Hauck said. “I think he’s going to be OK.”

Even if all of those guys plus the handful of other Rebels who had to leave the game at certain points were healthy, it probably wouldn’t have mattered much. It’s one thing to point out the missed opportunities in a close loss, but a Houston team that amassed 259 combined rushing yards in its first three games topped that number in the second half alone.

“They committed to (the run),” Hauck said. “We didn’t think they would; they did.”

Don’t expect any major changes on offense. The problems are bigger than any one position and, while it was limited action, Sherry didn’t do anything to convince people that he should be given the job once again.

“I don’t think that panic in the middle of the season is a good course of action,” Hauck said.

At least it’s an action. The Rebels appeared to give up on this game long before the clock hit zeros, and things don’t figure to get any easier with next week’s trip to San Diego State, one of the league’s few seemingly competent teams.

The biggest thing that might save the Rebels from another two-win kind of season is the Mountain West, which as a group looks worse and worse every week. Maybe. Or maybe not, seeing as UNLV’s only victory so far was a one-point nail-biter against a team that went to Northern Iowa today and lost by 39. The rest of Houston’s season likely isn’t going to make this loss look any better either.

Last year, the Rebels had their ups and downs but were consistent in a few areas. They were one of the least penalized teams in the country, and now a roster built of mostly the same pieces can’t even get that right. Add it to the list.

“We look like a whole different outfit right now,” Hauck said.

That’s one way to put it.

Taylor Bern can be reached at 948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Taylor on Twitter at twitter.com/taylorbern.

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