UNLV’s undefeated season came to an end in Boise on Saturday afternoon, as the Rebels fell 56-31 to the defending Mountain West champion Boise State Broncos. Despite a strong first half and multiple big plays from the Rebel offense, the Broncos’ offense exploded and led the way to victory.
OFFENSE
The UNLV offense was once again productive, piling up 476 yards, but the mistakes in the second half and stalled drives slowed them down from competing with Boise State’s offense.
Quarterback Anthony Colandrea had
himself another great game with 215 passing yards and two touchdowns, while also rushing for 87 yards and a touchdown. Colandrea made lots of noise in the second quarter, finding wide receiver Jaden Bradley for a 35-yard touchdown and then scrambling for an 8-yard touchdown to bring the Rebels within four points of the Broncos before halftime.
Colandrea made a crucial mistake in the third quarter, throwing an interception to Boise State defensive back A’Marion McCoy, who returned it to the house for 60 yards. That play flipped all the momentum the Rebels’ offense had, and it couldn’t catch up to Boise State.
Running back Jai’den Thomas opened the scoring for UNLV with a one-yard touchdown run in the second quarter. He had 38 rushing yards, with an average of 3.5 yards per carry, which is below expectations for Thomas. Running back Jaylon Glover had six carries, and he made the most of every carry. He averaged 18.7 yards per carry and had two 35+ yard rushes.
Wide receiver DeAngelo Irvin had the most receiving yards for the Rebels, with 90. Bradley only had one reception, which was his 35-yard touchdown. Wide receiver Troy Omeire caught a 17-yard touchdown late in the fourth quarter, but by that point, it was too little too late for the UNLV offense.
DEFENSE
Defensively, UNLV had no answer for Boise State. The Broncos had 558 total yards and averaged about 10 yards per play. Boise State scored touchdowns on four straight drives, and UNLV couldn’t keep pace.
Running back Dylan Riley was simply unstoppable against the Rebels’ defense. He ran for 201 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries, averaging 13.4 yards per carry. This included a 49-yard touchdown run in the second quarter and a 65-yard run. UNLV had no answers for him.
Quarterback Maddux Madsen was also pretty efficient, going 14-for-23 for 253 yards and four touchdowns. He connected on his touchdowns with running backs Sire Gaines and Malik Sherrod and wide receivers Chris Marshall and Latrell Caples. As a whole, the Boise State offense had seven touchdowns.
The Rebels’ defense allowed 294 rushing yards and 264 passing yards, and couldn’t execute when it mattered most, which has been the trend throughout the season for the defensive unit.
There were still a few bright spots for this defense. Defensive back Laterrance Welch got his third interception of the season, continuing UNLV’s dominance of getting takeaways. The team only had one sack, which was by defensive lineman Tunmise Adeleye.
Ultimately, Boise State’s offense was too much to handle, as the Broncos scored 56 points, which is the most they have scored all year.
WHAT’S NEXT?
UNLV gets to regroup after its first loss of the season as it enters a bye week before returning home to Allegiant Stadium to take on the New Mexico Lobos on Saturday, November 1.
