Photo credit: UNLV Football
LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) – Freshman quarterback Jayden Maiava ran for two touchdowns and threw for another to help UNLV (8-2/5-1) to a 34-14 triumph over Wyoming (6-4/3-3) and reach eight wins for the first time in 23 years before 25,568 fans at Allegiant Stadium Friday night.
UNLV improved to 5-0 at home for the first time since going 6-0 at Sam Boyd Stadium in 2000 and has now won nine of its last 11 games played at Allegiant.
The Rebels stormed to a 21-0 lead in the first quarter before a lost fumble at midfield led to a Wyoming rally as the Cowboys pulled to within a touchdown at halftime. The Pokes could not get any closer, however, as UNLV’s defense threw a second-half shutout.
Linebacker Jackson Woodard led all tacklers with 11, including 1.5 TFL while Cameron Oliver had a key pass breakup and hauled in his third interception of the season to keep Wyoming out of the end zone at the end of the second quarter.
REBEL OF THE GAME:
Maiava opened the scoring with a 10-yard run and then took another one in from a yard out just four minutes later on his way to leading the Rebels with 40 net yards on 11 attempts. His five-yard touchdown pass to tight end Kaleo Ballungay ended a UNLV scoring drought late in the third quarter to highlight his night of 17-of-24 passing for 232 touchdowns and zero sacks. The graduate of local powerhouse Liberty High School improved to 6-1 as a starter.
STAT OF THE GAME:
All-America candidate Ricky White’s eight receptions for 144 yards not only marked the junior’s fourth 100-yard game in the last five outings but also made him the eighth Rebel in history to reach 1,000 yards in a season and first since Devante Davis in 2013.
QUOTABLE:
“That’s a good win and we are now 8-2 and in the hunt for a conference championship, so I’m so proud of our team and our players, and really on a short week, also for what they did after we got back from New Mexico. We put the schedule out in front of them and they did a tremendous job showing maturity, willingness to continue to improve our program — and I thought this week was our best week of preparation. It was the most physical week that we’ve had.
“Still, we haven’t played our best ball, but I’m excited about the progress that we continue to make and there’s a hunger in the locker room to continue to prepare the way that you’re supposed to — to have a chance to win in November.”
-UNLV Head Coach Barry Odom
NOTABLE:
-Groza Award semifinalist Jose Pizano scored 10 points vs. Wyoming, hitting both of his field-goal attempts to go with four extra points. The Super Senior tied Nick Garritano (1994) for most field goals in a season by a Rebel, improving to 21-of-22 after 10 games
-All-America kick returner candidate Jacob De Jesus finished with 122 all-purpose yards: 73 on kickoff returns, 12 on punt returns and 37 on four receptions
-UNLV won the turnover battle 2-1
-The Rebels remained stellar in the red zone, going 5-for-5 (vs. just 1-of-2 for WYO)
-UNLV had three sacks and allowed zero
-This marked the first meeting between the programs since 2020 when fans were not allowed inside Allegiant during the pandemic
-The school’s original football team was reunited on the field during halftime. The 1968 Rebels went 8-1 while playing at old Cashman Stadium
NEXT FOR THE REBELS:
UNLV heads out for its final road game of the season when it plays Air Force on Saturday with a Las Vegas start time of 12:30 pm PT. The game will be televised nationally by CBS Sports Network. The team’s regular-season finale is set for November 25 when San Jose State comes to Allegiant Stadium for a noon kick.
