UNLV football does many things well. But Boise State can target this area
Boise State football’s next opponent does a host of things well.
UNLV marches into Boise this weekend with a spotless 6-0 record and, subsequently, a lot of statistical excellence that shows why the Rebels are among the nation’s last 11 undefeated teams.
Their scoring offense ranks 19th in the nation, at 38.2 points per game, and is led by dual-threat quarterback Anthony Colandrea, who’s averaging 223.8 passing yards and 53.8 rushing yards per game. UNLV’s third-down conversion rate ranks 22nd in the nation (48.6%), while the defense is holding teams to just 25%, which is the fourth-best mark in the country.
“They’re the No. 1 defense in our conference on third downs,” Boise State coach Spencer Danielson said Thursday. “So you might get some yards, but when they get you to third down, it’s a problem.”
And that’s not even delving into stats such as UNLV’s plus-nine turnover margin, their 6.6 yards per play (top 20 in the country) or their 30th-ranked rushing offense.
That shows Boise State (4-2, 2-0 Mountain West) will have a lot to contend with.
But there is a glaring chink in the armor for the Rebels (6-0, 2-0), and that’s its run defense. UNLV ranks 122nd in the country out of 134 teams, allowing 189.8 yards per game.
The reason that number is so high is simple: last week’s gashing by Air Force.
Through the first five games of the season, UNLV was allowing an average of 142.2 rushing yards per game — certainly far from shut-down defense, but not as atrocious a ranking as now.
In a 51-48 win last weekend that required a field-goal miss by the Falcons (1-5, 0-4) to avoid overtime, UNLV surrendered 428 rushing yards. Air Force and its triple-option offense average 276 per game, including 268 yards rushing against Boise State, but the 428 is a whole other level.
“They’ve played the Air Forces just like we’ve had, they’ve played teams that are going to run the ball a ton,” Danielson said. “So sometimes those stats can be skewed.”
Still, UNLV has not kept a single opponent under 100 rushing yards this season — its best game was giving up 102 against Wyoming.
That plays into the hands of a Boise State team that enjoys running the ball and can unleash its trio of running backs: Dylan Riley (494 yards), Sire Gaines (349) and Malik Sherrod (220). The Broncos’ rushing offense ranks 35th in the nation, averaging 190.8 yards per game.
The Rebels’ defense is a weak spot overall, too. They allow 255 yards passing per game, which ranks 117th in the nation. Giving up 30 points and 445 total yards per game puts UNLV at the bottom of the Mountain West rankings, above only Air Force, which has the absolute worst defense in the nation statistically.
Boise State quarterback Maddux Madsen could be in line to lead a very potent attack Saturday — something the Broncos have been doing in home games routinely. In Madsen’s 10 starts the past two seasons at Albertsons Stadium, BSU is averaging 44.1 points per game, and has scored more than 40 seven times.
“It’s a huge offensive thing; part of our mindset is establishing a run game,” Madsen said this week. “And so we’ll start with that and throw the ball off of it.”
Boise State vs. UNLV
- When: 1:30 p.m. Saturday
- Where: Albertsons Stadium (33,000, turf)
- TV: FS1 (Dan Hellie, Petros Papadakis)
- Radio: KBOI 670 AM/KTIK 93.1 FM (Bob Behler, Pete Cavender)
- Records: Boise State 4-2, 2-0 Mountain West; UNLV 6-0, 2-0
- Series: Boise State leads the series 11-3
- Vegas betting line: Boise State by 13.5
- Weather: 65 degrees, sunny, 5% chance of rain
