2018 College Football Team Previews: UNLV Rebels
UNLV Rebels
Location: Las Vegas, NV
Coach: Tony Sanchez (12-24) 4th Season
Stadium: Sam Boyd Stadium (Capacity: 35,000)
CSJ Projections:
9th: Mountain West (4th West Division)
2nd: Nevada
103rd: FBS
115th: Division I
2017 In A Sentence: It was a season of what might have been for the Rebels where they finished 5-7 but had three losses that on paper likely should have been wins in FCS Howard, BYU, and in-state rival Nevada–a win in any of those three would have meant a bowl bid.
Biggest Shoes to Fill: WR Devonte Boyd set a school record with 14 career 100-yard receiving games. The Rebels’ passing game was lacking in 2017 but Boyd made the best of his opportunities where he managed 34 catches for 612 yards and three scores. He was signed by the NFL’s Cincinnati Bengals as a college free agent and per sources has a good chance to make the team.
Key Player: RB Lexington Thomas in the Rebels switch to a more running attack was a key beneficiary to the change. The now-senior was named to the All-MWC first team after 1,336 yards and 17 touchdowns. The Rebels will need him to produce again, along with help from his signal caller in sophomore Armani Rogers, who is more of a running quarterback.
Fearless Prediction: UNLV will again improve on both sides of the ball and should make its first bowl game since the 2013 season. The schedule helps the Rebels as it avoids three of the top MWC Mountain division heavy weights in Boise State, Colorado State, and Wyoming.
Originally from LaMoure, North Dakota, Kent is a 1996 graduate of North Dakota State University. His prior writing experience is over 15 years having previously worked with D2football.com, I-AA.org, and College Sporting News before coming to College Sports Journal in 2016. His main focus is college football is the Missouri Valley Football Conference within the Division I FCS. And in 2017, he began also to look at the FBS Group of Five conferences of the American Athletic, Conference USA, Mid-American, Mountain West, and Sun Belt.
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