By james art The program broke the single-game attendance record, showed what college football can be like in Las Vegas, experienced the wild atmosphere such a setting can create.
It was a historic night for UNLV football.
The Rebels just lost to a team that played better, that’s all.
Boise State showed it was better Friday night in a 29-24 victory at Allegiant Stadium.
That’s where a crowd of 42,228 was announced to watch the top two teams in the Mountain West trade blows for 60 minutes. That’s where the 17th-ranked Broncos made more plays when it mattered most.
“It was a big game,” UNLV coach Barry Odom said. “Boise is a really good team, but so is UNLV. I’m devastated for our team that we couldn’t win this. We have a really good team.
“There is no consolation. We lost the game. I’m disappointed as a head coach that I couldn’t put us in a position to win. They are a good team built the right way. We knew we would have to win every inch. I hate that we didn’t.”
Give the Broncos all the credit: They took possession with 8:09 left in the fourth quarter on a five-point play and never let the ball go again. Things ended in three knees, an anticlimactic finish to what was a back-and-forth affair.
However, Odom has preached since taking over the program last year that the key to being considered a good team is winning in November. To finish the season strong.
The Rebels (6-2, 2-1) still have a lot to play for and a favorable conference schedule remains, suggesting a 10-2 record is more than possible.
Rematch?
This might not be the last time we see a battle between UNLV and Boise State (6-1, 3-0). After all, there will be a league championship game in which the Broncos also defeated the Rebels last season.
“I’m not sure we were quite ready for it, to be honest,” Odom said. “But I thought we were done tonight. This is the growth of our team. Our program. We’ve been in the arena enough to be battle-tested. I knew we were going to come out swinging and it was going to be a great game.
The Rebels will look back and notice several areas that will ultimately cost them. An interception just before halftime that Boise State turned into seven points for a 20-10 halftime lead. Expensive fines at the most inopportune times. Game management misjudged when and when not to call a timeout, which also hurt UNLV in a loss to Syracuse.
The fact that UNLV allowed six sacks on Friday.
You can’t overstate the importance of the early loss of UNLV kick returner/wide receiver Jacob De Jesus to injury and all those hidden yards he delivers on special teams.
However, the Rebels did a more than admirable job of slowing down Boise State star running back Ashton Janty. He had 128 yards, but needed 33 carries to get them.
And so a loss came in front of a huge crowd, a sea of red (and blue on the Boise State side) to witness it. Las Vegas showed what college football can be at Allegiant Stadium.
This showed that the city is not devoid of such an atmosphere.
The key is to continue that support at that level.
“They were charging us”
“I knew it was going to be (big),” Odom said. “You could feel it all week. You can feel it on campus. We are here. We are a program that will be on the national stage. There is a lot of sweat equity from a lot of people in this program.
“I am very grateful to the city of Vegas for what they have done for us. They refueled us. There will be a point where every week it will be like that. We’re not there yet, but we’ll get there. I know it can happen.”
A historic evening for the program.
They just lost to a team that played better, that’s all.
Ed Graney, winner of the Sigma Delta Chi Sports Writing Award, can be reached at [email protected]. He can be heard on “The Press Box,” ESPN Radio 100.9 FM and 1100 AM, 7 to 10 a.m. Monday through Friday. Follow @edgraney on X.
Next up
Who: UNLV of Hawaii
When: 18:00 November 9
Where: Clarence TC Ching Athletics Complex, Honolulu
Television: CBSSN
Radio: KWWN (1100 AM, 100.9 FM)