Know the Foe: UNLV
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Memphis is only a day away from starting its season with a Week Zero matchup against UNLV. The game will be played in Las Vegas and will be a massive early-season non-conference game between a pair of teams with College Football Playoff aspirations.
Dan Mullen enters his second season with the program after a 10-4 season last year that resulted in a trip to the conference championship game and a loss in the Frisco Bowl. With Boise State leaving for the PAC-12, the Rebels look to be the favorites in the Mountain West.
Mullen brought in quarterback Jackson Arnold from Auburn during the offseason, and after going most of the week without naming a starting quarterback, he named Arnold the starter during his weekly radio show on Thursday. Arnold spent time at Oklahoma and Auburn before landing with UNLV, and he threw for 1,309 yards, six touchdowns and two interceptions in 2025.
He spent fall camp in a QB battle with Alex Orji, who missed nearly all of the 2025 season with an injury after transferring from Michigan. Mullen said earlier in the week that he plans to play both quarterbacks, and it will be interesting to see if Orji gets in against the Tigers.
In the backfield, the Rebels returned running backs Jai’Den Thomas and Jaylon Glover. Thomas ran for 1,068 yards and 12 touchdowns last season, while Glover added 384 yards and a touchdown on 64 carries.
The two running backs will be a force against most defenses this season, and it will be a tough test for the Tigers’ defensive line.
The receiver group will be interesting to watch. UNLV added a few transfers, but they will be asking several receivers for more production in 2026.
Junior Taeshaun Lyons could be a guy that makes a jump after recording 241 yards and three touchdowns last year.
On the offensive line, the Rebels return a pair of starters in left tackle Will Thomas and center Austin Boyd, and they added several transfers, including a pair from Power Four programs.
Defensively, Mullen returns only three starters from last years team, but linebacker Blesyng Alualu-Tuiolemotu will be a name to watch at the linebacker position. The junior recorded 61 tackles and five tackles for loss as a sophomore.
Lucas Conti also returns on the defensive line after finishing 2025 with 22 tackles, four tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks.
The secondary will be another group to watch on Saturday. Jake Pope, who spent time at Alabama and Georgia, returns after starting all 14 games last year, and the Rebels added SMU transfer Kyron Chambers.
Pope finished last season with 81 tackles, second on the team, and an interception, and he enters 2026 as one of the defensive leaders. The Rebels lost a lot from the secondary, and it will be interesting how this new group will fare in the first game of the season.
UNLV has a lot of talent, but there are still some questions defensively, which will make this an interesting matchup Saturday night.
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