First-half turnovers doom UNLV against Air Force
UNLV quarterback Cameron Friel barely had time to see the Air Force defender, let alone brace for the hit.
Less than two minutes into the second quarter, Friel dropped back for a play-action pass. As he spun around to find a target, Air Force linebacker TD Blackmon flew through the Rebels’ offensive line and laid a hard hit on the sophomore signal-caller, who coughed the ball up.
Blackmon recovered the fumble. Three plays later, Air Force was in the end zone, celebrating. Again.
UNLV fumbled three times in the first half of Saturday’s 42-7 loss to Air Force at Allegiant Stadium. All three were converted into Falcons touchdowns, with two of them coming inside the Rebels’ 20-yard line.
“Disappointed in the way we took care of the ball, offensively,” UNLV coach Marcus Arroyo said. “We put ourselves behind the sticks.”
Friel was responsible for two of the fumbles. His first came when he was stripped on an option play, the second after the sack by Blackmon. Junior running back Courtney Reese fumbled during a kickoff return.
The early deficit was too much for the Rebels (4-3, 2-2 Mountain West) to overcome.
“You can’t put yourself behind the eight ball versus a team which is that effective,” Arroyo said.
Filling in for starting quarterback Doug Brumfield — who Arroyo confirmed Saturday is in the concussion protocol — Friel struggled. He completed eight of 10 passes for 108 yards and threw an interception.
The Hawaiian sophomore’s best throw of the game came right before halftime, as he connected with sophomore wideout Ricky White for a 31-yard touchdown. Friel lofted the pass right over the outstretched hand of the Air Force defender into the arms of White, who tight-roped the right sideline into the end zone for the Rebels’ only score of the game.
White led all UNLV receivers with four catches on seven targets for 58 yards. The former Michigan State receiver has made at least four catches in six of his seven games as a Rebel. However, Saturday was his first touchdown since UNLV’s 58-27 win against North Texas on Sept. 17.
Outside of White, though, the Rebels didn’t get many contributions. No other UNLV players had more than two catches. Junior running back Aidan Robbins was second on the team with 22 receiving yards, despite leaving the game early in the second quarter with a knee injury.
Robbins had 30 rushing yards on eight attempts before he was removed, and Reese and junior Jordan Younge-Humphrey filled in with mixed results. Reese had UNLV’s longest rush of the game, a 26-yard run up the left sideline, but neither were able to ignite the Rebels’ stagnant offense.
While UNLV’s offense struggled for a second consecutive week, its defense also failed to contain Air Force’s option offense.
Air Force’s first touchdown was a 60-yard run by junior John Lee Eldridge III, but the Falcons (5-2, 2-2) got a career game from senior running back Brad Roberts, who scored four touchdowns and rushed for 144 yards on 29 carries. Eldridge also broke the century mark, adding 116 yards on just eight attempts.
“Option football, it’s effective,” Arroyo said. “They do a really nice job. They’re calculated, and did a nice job up front. That’s what they do.”
Air Force attempted just three passes in the entire game. The Falcons ran 79 plays to UNLV’s 35 and outgained the Rebels 420-179.
UNLV next faces Notre Dame at 11:30 a.m. Saturday in South Bend, Indiana.
Contact reporter Andy Yamashita at ayamashita@reviewjournal.com. Follow @ANYamashita on Twitter.