Rebels get lift from Sneed
Dalton Sneed spent the 2015 UNLV football season on the bench while redshirting as he watched injuries and inconsistent play mount up over the course of the year. He watched helplessly as the Rebels concluded their season with just three wins.
After starter Johnny Stanton went down with an injury this week, Sneed finally got his opportunity to show what he can do on Saturday, and his performance has UNLV fans excited.
The Rebels failed to score in the opening quarter against Mountain West Conference opponent, Frenso State, but Sneed got the offense rolling after that. UNLV scored 21 in the second quarter and 24 more points in the second half to route the visiting Bulldogs, 45-20.
This was the second consecutive season that the Rebels have started league play 1-0.
The play of the night, and maybe the turning point of the entire contest, came in the third quarter. Sneed appeared as though he was going to be sacked in the end zone for a safety, but somehow dashed out of the pile and sprinted toward the sideline to his right.
There's where the majority of quarterbacks around the country would've been satisfied. Not Sneed. While looking as if he was going to be happy with the first down, Sneed suddenly zoomed up field. It looked as if it caught all the Bulldog defenders off guard because no FSU player even touched Sneed as he raced for a 91-yard touchdown.
That score gave UNLV a 28-10 lead and all the momentum.
Fresno State closed the gap to 11 in the fourth quarter before two David Greene rushing scores capped the victory.
In total, UNLV racked up nearly 500 yards of total offense, including 364 yards on the ground. Freshman running back Charles Williams, who is from the Fresno area, had a careerr-high 153 yards on 18 carries.
Critics can look at Sneed's performance and say that he only passed for 129 yards, with nearly half of that coming on one toss to Elijah Trosclair (61 yard TD reception). However, the fact that Sneed didn't turn the ball over, and really didn't throw a bad ball, gives reason for optimism.
UNLV's defense holding FSU to a pair of field goal attempts is also a positive sign for a group that has allowed many big plays over the past couple of games. Bulldog signal caller, Chason Virgil, put up pretty big numbers (296 yards passing), but the Rebels only allowed two scores, which is a big step in the right direction.
This week will get a little bit tougher, however. The Rebels will be heading on the road to face reigning MWC champ, San Diego State. The Aztecs should come into this game with something to prove after being knocked out of the national rankings with a loss at South Alabama.