In a game of pure momentum, UNLV never allowed Air Force to get going in the second half and were able to turn a 24-7 deficit into a 31-27 victory and take sole possession of first place in the Mountain West Conference heading into the final week of play.
Things could not have started much better for the Rebels. On the second play from scrimmage, redshirt freshman Jayden Maiava found red hot Ricky White for an easy 78 yard touchdown to open the scoring.
Air Force, which has one of the top rushing offenses in the nation, was thwarted by the UNLV defense. Air Force stalled with four consecutive three and outs in the first quarter. The Falcons did not get a first down until 3:51 remained in the first quarter.
The Rebel offense failed to take advantage of the defensive effort. On the second series, all was well for the Rebels. Maiava connected with Ricky White and Senika McKie for passes of greater than 20 yards to put the Rebels near the red-zone. But on the next play, an ill advised pass by Maiava was picked off by safety Trey Taylor to stop the Rebel threat.
As the first quarter was coming to a close, the Air Force ground attacked gained some traction. John Lee Eldridge found the edge and raced 55 yards to knot the game at seven. But the Falcons were just getting started.
After a rare three and out by the Rebels to start the second quarter, the Falcons found their groove on the ground. Aided by a personal foul, Air Force used six run plays to cover 74 yards over the next 2:26 to take the lead on a one yard plunge by quarterback Jensen Jones.
Trying to establish the run game, UNLV was stymied again and forced to punt after a three and out. On the day, the Faclons limited the Rebels to only 114 yards, far below UNLV's average. The Falcons again moved the ball, this time most of the damage was done with a rare pass - a 35 yard pass from Jones to tight end Caleb Rillos. The drive stalled at the UNLV 10 yard line and the Falcons settled for a 27 yard field goal from Matthew Depore.
Maiava, who ended up with 339 yards on 15 of 29 passing with two touchdowns, struggled with accuracy. On the next series with the Rebels trailing 17-7, he was picked off again, this time by linebacker Johnathan Youngblood. The Falcons made the most of the short field with Jones again plunging from a yard out for a comfortable 24-7 lead.
With momentum fully on the side of Air Force, UNLV was able to slow it with an impressive, perhaps desperate, drive. Using 3:55 of game clock, the Rebels marched 75 yards in eight plays, ending with a Vincent Davis Jr 12 yard run. The key play in the drive came when UNLV was facing a 2nd and 19 after a holding call. Flushed out of the pocket, Maiava impressively scrambled for a 34 yard gain.
With only 1:41 remaining until halftime, the Falcons were able to use six runs to set up a field goal as time expired for the half. Matthew Depore connected from 42 yards out to give the Falcons a 27-14 lead.
After the half, the momentum switched for good. The Rebels came out of the break quickly. Maiava found a wide open Kaleo Ballungay who raced 84 yards before being dragged down at the Air Force one yard line. Donavyn Lester bruised his way from a yard out to put the Rebels back in the game trailing by only six.
The UNLV defense bent, but didn't break on the next Falcon drive. Again using only a ground attack, Air Force was left facing a 4th and 12 from the UNLV 38 yard line. The Falcons elected to punt. After that, the defenses for both teams tightened up, forcing three and outs before the Rebels went on their go ahead drive.
To say the Rebels earned the last touchdown of the game is an understatement. The adversity of overcoming a large deficit was concentrated within the go ahead drive. Davis busted lose for a 50 yard touchdown, but it was called back due to a holding penalty. Two plays later, Maiava found Senika McKie from 24 yards out for the go ahead score, but it was called back because of an illegal man downfield. Remaining persistent, Maiava eventually found Ballungay in the back of the end zone on a six yard toss to give the Rebels the 28-27 lead.
As the game continued into the 4th quarter, UNLV used a little fortune and a lot of faith to force Air Force into needing a touchdown to win the game. It appeared that Air Force was going to get the ball back when Maiava was sacked, but the Falcons were whistled for a targeting call on the play. The play extended the drive, but it appeared to stall again. Facing a similar situation to the Falcons just a few series earlier, UNLV faced a 3rd and 12 from the Air Force 38 yard line, the Rebels lined up to punt. However, punter Marshall Nichols threw a pass into heavy coverage, but found Kris Williams who just extended past the first down marker to continue the drive. It eventually stalled, but kicker Jose Pizano easily drilled the 39 yarder to put the Rebels up 31-27. It was Pizano's 18th straight field made field goal.
Unlike last week, UNLV was unable to extend drives and eat clock. The Falcons continued to thwart the ground attack, enabling UNLV to take little time off the clock and force short drives that ended with punts. With that, Air Force had one last chance to win the game.
Facing a first and goal from the UNLV nine yard line with 1:53 left in the game, Air Force went with what they do best, run. Two run plays netted only a yard for the Falcons as the Rebels stiffened. On third down, Air Force went to the air, but Jones couldn't connect with Rillos. Facing what would essentially be the last play of the game, Air Force called a time out and inserted a sharper throwing quarterback, John Busha.
Rillos was again the target, but Busha's pass sailed far wide in the end zone.
It's the first time UNLV has accumulated nine wins since the 1984 season. It's also the first time that UNLV will finish on top of the conference since 1994, when the Rebels and UNR Wolf Pack tied atop the conference.
UNLV closes the season with a home game at Allegiant against the suddenly hot San Jose Spartans. As far as league playoff ramifications go, there are many possibilities as to who will play and where the game will be played. One thing is certain, with a victory against San Jose, UNLV will be hosting the MWC title game. The game against Air Force may have been the most important regular season in Rebel football history, but it now takes a back seat to next week's affair.
For the second game in a row, the UNLV defense held the opponent scoreless in the second half. Going back three games, the defense has only surrendered seven points in the second halves. Air Force gouged the Rebels for 287 yards in the first half, along with the 27 points, but the defense allowed the Falcons only 87 yards on the ground in the second half.
Often overlooked, UNLV had several key contributions from punter Marshall Nichols. Forced to kick more than he is used to, Nichols averaged 47.4 yards per kick without allowing any return yards. Three kicks ended up inside the 20 yard line, but his best kick was a 50 yarder that landed at the Air Force two yard line. Nichols' pass on the punt fake to Williams to extend the drive was a critical play in the game.
The game featured the largest obstacles the Rebels have faced all year. Beside playing on the road against a league leader, beside falling behind by a large margin, UNLV was flagged for 120 yards on 10 penalties, while the Falcons were guilty of only four penalties for 30 yards.
Ricky White stayed red hot with eight receptions for 169 yards and a touchdown. White has surpassed the 100 yard receiving mark for a UNLV record tying Randy Gatewood) fourth straight game and he's done it in five of the past six games.
Defensively, linebackers Marsel McDuffie and Jackson Woodard stood out. McDuffie had 10 solo tackles, 15 total, while Woodard had nine tackles, including an important sack on Air Force's last drive.
