Special Teams Shines As The UNLV Rebels Knock Off The Wyoming Cowboys To Remain Undefeated

It wasn't pretty, but the UNLV Rebels got the job done to knock off the Wyoming Cowboys to move to 5 - 0. It was a bit of an offensive struggle on a snow-covered field in Laramie, Wyoming, but the Rebs came away with a big win in which the special teams stepped up in a major way. UNLV knocked off the Cowboys by a final score of 31 - 17 to start their Mountain West season off at 1 - 0.

First Quarter

In the first quarter, Wyoming jumped out to an early lead after kicking a field goal off of a quick Anthony Colandrea fumble, but then it was all UNLV from there. They would score 17 straight points. Keyvone Lee ran in a six-yard touchdown, and Jaden Bradley blocked the following punt, which Kayden McGee brought back for a touchdown.

Second Quarter

The second quarter started with Bradley doing it again, channeling his inner-Ricky White III. He blocked another punt, and this time took it back to the house himself! Wyoming also punched one in during the second quarter, and we headed into the half with a Rebels lead of 24 - 10.

Third Quarter

There was no scoring in the third quarter. It was a defensive struggle, highlighted by a Quandarius Keyes interception to end the Cowboys' final drive of the quarter.

Fourth Quarter

The action picked up a bit in the fourth quarter. At 6:20 in the quarter, running back Jai'Den Thomas caught an eight-yard touchdown pass from Colandrea to essentially put the game away. Wyoming would score another TD with less than two minutes to go in the fourth quarter, but it was a meaningless score that brought the game to its final score of 31 - 17.

Stats

Colandrea struggled in the crazy Wyoming weather, throwing for just 102 yards and one TD, while completing 11 of 20 pass attempts. The good news is, he continued to protect the football through the air and didn't throw any interceptions. On the ground, he did fumble the slick football twice, but only lost one of them. He finished the game rushing for 32 yards on 11 carries.

Thomas was averaging over nine yards per carry in the first half, but the Cowboys managed to slow him down in the second half of the game on the ground. He finished the game with 16 carries for 96 yards, which was still 6.0 yards per carry. Through the air, he caught two passes for 17 yards and the game-sealing touchdown.

Bradley was the star of the game with his two blocked punts and his return touchdown. However, he was also the team's leading receiver, catching five passes for 65 yards.

Big Defensive Plays

The defense stepped up in this game and continued to make big plays. Defensive back Mumu Bin-Wahad was the star of this game, leading the team with seven tackles and recovering a fumble forced by Samuel Harris. Jalen Lee also recovered a fumble, and Keyes picked off a pass. Surprisingly, the team did not record a sack in this game.

What's Up Next?

With the Rebels winning another game to remain undefeated, UNLV will return back to Las Vegas next Saturday to take on the Air Force Falcons, who looked better than expected against Navy in Week 6.