QB Rosen gets headlines, but UCLA brings complete team to Las Vegas
UCLA freshman quarterback Josh Rosen has garnered the headlines, and rightfully so.
He was the Walter Camp national offensive player of the week and the Pac-12 Conference’s top offensive player after passing for 351 yards and three touchdowns in the Bruins’ 34-16 season-opening victory over Virginia on Saturday.
And now Rosen and the Bruins will play UNLV (0-1) at Sam Boyd Stadium at 7:30 p.m. Saturday. CBS Sports Network will televise the game.
But 13th-ranked UCLA is about more than just about its quarterback.
This is a team that returns 18 starters, though top defensive lineman Eddie Vanderdoes was lost for the season with a torn anterior cruciate ligament.
Oddsmakers don’t give the Rebels must of a chance, making them 28½-point underdogs.
“On paper, there’s no real validity that we’re going to win this game,” UNLV coach Tony Sanchez said Tuesday. “But we don’t play on paper. We don’t play in the media.”
He understands the challenge, though, before his Rebels.
Running back Paul Perkins and wide receiver Jordan Payton are playmakers who present plenty of problems. Perkins rushed for 1,575 yards and nine touchdowns last season, averaging 6.3 yards per carry. Payton caught 67 passes for 954 yards and seven TDs.
UCLA also puts one of the the Pac-12’s top offensive lines on the field, led by tackle Caleb Benenoch, center Jake Brendel and guard Alex Redmond.
On defense, tackle Kenny Clark, linebacker Myles Jack and cornerback Fabian Moreau could end the season as first-team all-conference players.
“They’ve got a lot of speed in the secondary,” UNLV quarterback Blake Decker said. “They’ve got some big boys up front. Their linebackers flow to the ball really well, and they make a lot of plays. They play really aggressive because they seem like a confident defense, but at the same time, we’re confident in our guys.”
Expectations are low for UNLV for the second week in a row. The Rebels were 23½-point underdogs at Northern Illinois, but led 17-3 late in the first half and were driving for a potential tying touchdown late in the game.
After the unexpected performance against Northern Illinois, there is growing excitement among locals to see UNLV play UCLA.
Sanchez said about 22,000 tickets had been sold for the game, and he hoped momentum would grow as Saturday drew closer and push the number closer to 30,000.
“For that to be a regular-season game, that’s a big deal,” Sanchez said. “It’s not the Vegas Bowl. It’s a Rebel football game, so that’s exciting. It’s important that we go out and we play well and we keep this energy going.”
The last time the Rebels played before more than 30,000 at home was Sept. 4, 2010, when Wisconsin visited. It was Nov. 11, 2011, that they even played before more than 22,000 at Sam Boyd, when 26,281 watched the Rebels against Boise State.
UCLA is a team worth watching, too.
It is a program that could be spending New Year’s Eve playing in a national semifinal, and to impress the playoff committee, the Bruins could use a strong showing against UNLV.
They have the athleticism to provide that kind of performance.
“They’re an extremely fast football team,” Sanchez said. “When you look at them, you see their athletes all over the place. They run well at every darn position.
“They’re the 13th-ranked team in the country for a reason. They’ve developed a great program, and coach (Jim) Mora’s done a great job. We’re excited. We’re fired up about practice. We’re fired up about competing against these guys, and we’re glad they’re coming to our house. We’re looking for a scrap.”
Contact Mark Anderson at manderson@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2914. Follow him on Twitter: @markanderson65.
Check our GameDay page for all the news leading up to the UNLV-UCLA game.
