UNLV Survives 38-31 Scare From Idaho State in Dan Mullen's Debut

It wasn't particularly pretty, but the UNLV Rebels will start the 2025 season 1-0 after defeating the Idaho State Bengals on Saturday afternoon at Allegiant Stadium. The Rebels found enough big offensive plays in the later parts of the game to overcome the 10-0 hole they found themselves in to start the second quarter.

Here's what stood out from the Rebels' victory.

Dan Mullen's Tenure Starts With A Bang

Following the departure of former head coach Barry Odom for Purdue, UNLV lured former Florida and Mississippi State head coach Dan Mullen out of the broadcasting world to take over the head coaching job of the Rebels. His debut in Allegiant Stadium had plenty of fireworks.

UNLV utilized two quarterbacks in the game, going with the tandem of Anthony Colandrea and Alex Orji. Colandrea completed 15 passes on 21 attempts for 195 yards and a touchdown, while Orji completed three passes on three attempts for 37 yards. Colandrea also carried 13 times for 93 yards, while Orji rushed six times for 34 yards.

Both offenses in this game finished with over 500 yards. It's a mixed bag of takeaways for a UNLV secondary that picked off four passes (three in the second half) but allowed 395 yards through the air.

A Career Day for Jai'Den "Jet" Thomas

The highlight of the day for UNLV was clearly the play of star junior running back Jai'Den "Jet Thomas. Thomas rushed for career high of 147 yards, including a career-long 70-yard touchdown run. Thomas found the end zone three times on the day. He also caught two passes for 16 yards.

Thomas further demonstrated that he'll be instrumental to UNLV's success this year, whatever form that takes.