Sam Morris

UNLV quarterback Omar Clayton runs during the first half of the game against UNR. Clayton has been a bright spot for the Rebels in the first half of the season.

By Ryan Greene

Thu, Oct 9, 2008 (7:42 a.m.)

Six games down, six to go. Some memorable moments, some forgettable. Some good things to point out, and some, well, not so good.

It's time to grade the UNLV football team unit by unit as it enters the bye week at 3-3 with bowl hopes still alive.

Quarterbacks

The Grade: A-

Inconsistency has been a theme almost across the board for UNLV through six games, but one position where that couldn't be further from reality is at quarterback. Mike Sanford named Omar Clayton as the team's starter on the first day of training camp, and it appears to have been the right move. From that point on, his confidence has visibly grown by the day. He's done nothing but produce for the Rebels, with a passer rating of 143.70 through six games, and 14 touchdowns to just two interceptions. He's showing plenty of faith in his arm and his receivers, and not tucking and running too soon -- a problem several dual-threat quarterbacks are prone to.

The other promising note with Clayton at the season's mid-way point is his health. After being knocked out in the season's 10th game last year with a broken hand, he's stayed in one piece so far, despite having taken a tough late hit in each of the last three games.

The coaching staff has also done a good job of working freshman Mike Clausen into the mix. Though he looked like he might have been pressing Clayton for some snaps in camp, Clayton's set himself apart as the clear-cut guy. Clausen has attempted nine passes this season and looked sharp.

Quick second-half projection: There's no reason to believe Clayton can't duplicate his first half. Expect the whole "giving Clausen a series or two each week" thing to go by the wayside for the time being. If it ain't broke, well, you know the rest.

Running backs

The Grade: B+

Frank Summers is the Mountain West's fifth-leading rusher with 515 yards and four touchdowns through six games, and he is on pace to rush for 1,000 yards. That's a goal both he and the offensive line set before the season began.

The only problem has been an inability to, at times, get Summers consistently involved in the offense. Granted, the large majority of that isn't Summers' fault. Sometimes it's the pace of the game (against UNR or Utah) just not allowing it. Summers' numbers are pretty darned good for a big, bruising back working out of a spread offense. It's sort of a unique situation in that regard.

But overall, Summers has been as dependable as expected. He's even made a nice contribution as a receiver, with 104 yards and a score on seven catches.

Behind Summers, the Rebels have seen flashes from freshman C.J. Cox (eight carries, 49 yards), while sophomore Channing Trotter's been slowed by injury after a decent start in the season's first two games.

Quick second-half projection: Summers probably will hit four digits, though the intriguing thing to watch will be to see how much more Cox gets worked into the regular offense. He's pretty dangerous on the sweep.

Receivers

The Grade: A

This may be the easiest position on the board to give an excellent grade to. Coming into the season, everyone knew this was the strength of the offense, and it's been nothing short of that.

Ryan Wolfe is tied for seventh in the nation with 41 receptions, while Casey Flair's been dependable with 27 grabs and a trio of scores. The big story, though, is that they now have a solid third wheel in true freshman Phillip Payne. The Western High product emerged early and has stayed pretty consistent. So far in his initial foray into college ball, he has 18 catches for 245 yards and a team-leading six touchdown grabs (including at least one in each of the Rebels' first five games).

The fact that junior Jerriman Robinson's begun to emerge in recent weeks only adds more quality depth. If this corps earned an 'A' grade after six more games, it probably wouldn't come as a surprise to anyone.

The nice intangible has been the ability of Michael Johnson and Wolfe to run the ball on the perimeter on speed sweep plays. Anything that keeps a defense on its heels is a good thing.

Quick second-half projection: It seems that defenses are wising up to Payne's talent in the red zone, as he's a huge reason why UNLV is 18-of-18 inside its opponents' 20-yard line this season. Expect Robinson's numbers to continue to climb as Payne receives more defensive attention, while Wolfe and Flair will remain steady as always.

Offensive Line

The Grade: B-

Injuries have made things sort of tough up front, most recently, a pair of ankle sprains (on the same leg) to right tackle Evan Marchal. They've only allowed opponents six quarterback sacks so far, keeping Clayton pretty safe.

Of course, the inconsistencies in the run game have several responsible parties, with the offensive line included in that mix.

Quick second-half projection: The bye week may be more important for the offensive line than anyone else. This is a veteran group that is dependable when at full strength. Getting back to full strength is probably the big focus before Air Force comes to town.

Defensive Line

The Grade: C+

Things took an adjustment right off the bat when Jacob Hales, the line's top returner, went down with a dislocated elbow during camp. He's been effective since returning, but his snaps have been limited, as he's another Rebel using the bye week to heal up.

The likes of Isaako Aaitui (team-high 4.5 tackles for loss), Thor Pili (14 total tackles), Malo Taumua and Martin Tevaseu have helped hold things steady, but a problem for the guys up front so far has been consistently infiltrating the backfield. They'll be held largely accountable for UNLV's efforts to better stem their opponents' run game in the second half.

Quick second-half projection: A healthier Hales could be the key to everything. At the very least, the line will continue to be good. But with the way the run defense has struggled as a whole, it needs to be great.

Linebackers

The Grade: C

It was hard enough for the Rebels' linebacking corps to adjust following the graduation of Beau Bell. The loss of Starr Fuimaono in the season's second week to a torn ACL only added to preseason depth worries.

The biggest bright spot has been junior Jason Beauchamp, who after a switch to the strong side spot, now leads the MWC in tackling, with 65 stops and four for a loss in six games. Ronnie Paulo recovered from an early injury and has been pretty good in the middle, while freshman Nate Carter, thrust into a starting role on the weak side, is still learning on the job.

The grade isn't necessarily the result of what these three have done, but more a combination of that and the situation as it is. Also, missed tackles have become an issue more and more since the first half against Iowa State on Sept. 20.

Quick second-half projection: The missed tackle woes have to be cured pretty quickly as the Rebels' first opponent out of the break, Air Force, has the Mountain West's top rushing offense. Freshman Beau Orth, who has come up with huge plays in limited reps, could play a big role in the next six weeks against multiple wide receiver sets.

Secondary

The Grade: D

Mike Sanford and his staff made quite the statement by saying that none of the starters in the secondary from the season's first six weeks have guaranteed jobs when the season resumes next Saturday.

The defensive backs -- surprise, surprise -- are also battling injury issues. Geoffery Howard has a sprained toe and Quinton Pointer is still getting used to playing with a brace on his elbow. At the safety spot, depth was a known issue coming into the season.

The thing is that for the season's first three-and-a-half games, things went pretty well in the defensive backfield. A big reason for that was consistency. That has to be found again. And quickly.

The 214.2 yards per game allowed through the air aren't necessarily as big of an issue as the secondary's need to help out better in run support.

Quick second-half projection: Getting healthy is unbelievably important here. Sanford & Co.'s message to the defensive backs may have put the scare into the current starters. Time will tell. It's hard to project how things will pan out here.

Special Teams

The Grade: A-

In terms of kickers, the job-by-committee has worked out as well as expected. With Ben Jaekle handling kickoffs and distance field goals (4-of-6) and Kyle Watson handling the short stuff (3-of-3 on field goals, 17-of-17 on PATs), there's no need to change a thing.

The pleasant surprise so far has been senior third-string quarterback Dack Ishii, who now has a strong hold on the punting gig. He's averaging 43.6 yards per kick (fourth in the league) on 30 attempts, has a long of 63 yards and has stuck 10 kicks inside the opponents' 20-yard line.

In terms of returnmen, they've been consistent, and that's all you can ask for. Speedy freshman Michael Johnson could be a treat to watch should he find a good amount of open real estate to run through when he gets the ball in his hands.

Quick second half projection: UNLV's steadiest unit remains that way. No reason to believe otherwise.

Coaching Staff

The Grade: C+

Winning three out of the first six games was a huge accomplishment for this staff, under pressure coming into the season to snap a four-year streak of two wins per campaign. The grade dipped back down into the C-range, though, with losses in two straight winnable games in which the Rebels led in the first half.

The best sign right now is that the staff is still as positive as it was on Day One. That's huge considering that some players have mentioned how disappointed they are in being 3-3 right now as opposed to 5-1 or 4-2. If that outlook and optimism can carry into the second half, with the way the schedule lays out, six wins are still very attainable.

Quick second-half projection: Mike Sanford's job will be safe for '09.

Overall First Half Grade: C+

Above average, with a bitter taste left over from the trip to Fort Collins. But, still, plenty of positives to hang a few hats on if the season were to end today.

Overall Second Half Projection: Each year, there's a logjam of teams at 6-6 -- a.k.a. bowl eligible -- who are campaigning for a limited number of bowl game berths. Bowl committees look at certain things, and one of those is how you finish a season, not necessarily how it started.

That's where the schedule plays into UNLV's favor. What are arguably the Rebels' three most winnable games left on the slate -- at home for New Mexico, Wyoming and at San Diego State -- are their last three. While a road win at then-No. 15 Arizona State has lost some luster since the Sun Devils haven't won a game since then, the way UNLV pulled it off still left an impression.

The other thing committees probably will look at is attendance at home. UNLV had a golden opportunity to capitalize on the fringe fan base against Nevada, but a 49-27 home loss did them no favors. A win against Air Force is probably needed to secure better-than-average home crowds for the final three home games of the season.

The key during the bye week is fixing the leaks on defense. The offense and special teams are both steady, so all eyes will be fixed on one certain unit when play resumes on Oct. 18.