UNLV's defensive woes continue in 40-35 loss to New Mexico
NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos...
LAS VEGAS — When UNLV’s Dan Mullen was saying how dangerous a team New Mexico was, he wasn’t just blowing smoke and trying to play possum.
He was right. Of course, he didn’t mention how his team planned to come out so flat and so sloppy Saturday at Allegiant Stadium. That one he didn’t see coming, though perhaps he should have.
It’s a good thing the Rebels had those six wins in the bank to ensure themselves a bowl game somewhere come next month. Because they sure didn’t look bowl-worthy against the Lobos, who earned their own postseason bowl berth at 6-3 following their 40-35 win.
“Too many mistakes by me,” Mullen said, pointing the finger of blame directly at himself. “It’s my responsibility to make sure we perform the way we need to perform. The consistency of how we perform is not where it needs to be. That falls on me.”
After starting 6-0, UNLV has now dropped two straight and are probably not going to make it to the Mountain West title game where it hoped to get another crack at Boise State. Instead, the Rebels, who are 2-2 in conference play, need to straighten some things out and they’re out of bye weeks. They head to Fort Collins next Saturday night to face Colorado State before returning home to host Utah State, then Hawaii.
The usual culprits were on display Saturday. The defense, which has struggled to contain opposing offenses all season, surrendered 532 yards to New Mexico’s offense, which was led by its two-headed quarterback monster of Jack Layne and James Laubstein. The Lobos had seven plays of 30 or more yards, including an 84-yard touchdown hookup late in the first half when Layne connected with Damon Bankston.
“We have to make sure we’re in the right looks and have to make sure I ask guys not to do things they can’t do,” Mullen said in trying to explain why his team is constantly giving up the big play.
With eight games under their belt and three bye weeks to address and correct things, there’s no more room for excuses. Either the quality of play improves or it doesn’t and will need to be addressed in the off-season, be it through personnel changes or changes on Mullen’s staff.
The offense sputtered in fits and starts all afternoon. Anthony Colandrea, who was listed as questionable with the flu, did start and he didn’t look as sharp as he normally does.
He had a fumble late in the first half which New Mexico converted into three points and a 31-21 halftime lead. The offense then went 3-and-out on its first possession of the second half. And while Colandrea would finish with 382 yards through the air and was 36-of-46 passing, he was outplayed by Layne and Laubstein. Layne threw for 342 yards and three TDs while Laubstein ran for 99 yards and averaged 12.4 yards in eight rushing attempts.
Yes, Colandrea was less than 100 percent physically and he deserves credit for gutting it out. But he wasn’t beating New Mexico by himself. At least not on this Saturday.
“He’s such an unbelievable competitor,” Mullen said of the junior transfer quarterback. “We weren’t sure if he was going to play or not but he wasn’t going to sit out if it were his decision to make.”
The fact UNLV could not run the ball effectively and made Colandrea one-dimensional was the other problem. Just 92 yards
on the ground and only 34 yards from Jet Thomas isn’t going to cut it.
“They committed to stopping the run,” Mullen said of the Lobos. “We didn’t execute as well with our blocking up front.”
For the announced crowd of 25,972, Saturday was bitterly disappointing. The defense’s continued struggles despite a Quandaries Keyes’ 25-yard pick-six TD in the second quarter that tied the game 21-21 remains a huge issue. And the fact UNLV found itself in a 21-0 hole makes you wonder if the Rebels have been hanging around the Golden Knights, who have been guilty of not starting their games “on time” in the words of their coach, Bruce Cassidy.
Either way, it wasn’t one of Mullen’s best moments in his brief tenure of his return to the sidelines. The fact that he’s willing to take ownership is admirable. But it’s up to him and his staff to make the necessary fixes. His runway to do so has grown much shorter.
More at NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos