Rebels blitzed by Washington State, 59-7

PULLMAN, Wash. -- It was just eight miles down the road from here that UNLV suffered a stunning 23-point loss at Idaho last season.

Those were the glory days.

The Rebels weren't even close to being that competitive Saturday, letting Washington State running backs and wide receivers run free, making the Cougars' quarterback look like a Heisman Trophy candidate and failing to build on the promising offensive strides made the previous week.

UNLV's 59-7 loss to Washington State at Martin Stadium provided more questions than answers for a Rebels program that at best is stuck in neutral.

The loss was the fourth-worst in school history, and only Tim Cornett's 95-yard kickoff return for a touchdown with 5:29 left prevented a shutout.

"We looked like the team that everybody picked to finish in the bottom of the Mountain West," coach Bobby Hauck said. "It's not who we want to be, but it's who we looked like today. Frankly, we're kind of where (the Cougars) were two years ago.

"I didn't think they'd hang it on us like that today."

This game figured to be a springboard for the winner, and maybe the Cougars (2-0) are headed in the right direction. They had only five victories over the previous three years, but finished last season playing well.

If this game was a bellwether for UNLV (0-2), then there is little hope for the rest of the season for the Rebels, who went 2-11 last year and now have lost 11 in a row on the road. Combined with the season-opening 51-17 loss at Wisconsin, this performance raises further questions about the program's overall health.

"That's my job to be concerned with that," Hauck said. "I hate it when we get beat like this. One of the things I said to the guys in the locker room is we're making progress, because the guys hate it, too."

UNLV will have a difficult time beating anyone if it continues to play as it did against the Cougars. The Rebels play their home opener Saturday against Hawaii, and their pass defense must improve dramatically to have a chance of winning.

Washington State quarterback Marshall Lobbestael, filling in for injured starter Jeff Tuel (broken collarbone), completed 18 of 21 passes for 274 yards and four touchdowns.

By halftime.

Lobbestael finished 24 of 32 for 361 yards and five touchdowns, and the Cougars outgained UNLV 610 yards to 158.

Washington State scored touchdowns on its first five drives before UNLV's defense recorded its first stop of the season against an opposing starting offense.

UNLV's young offense showed potential in the Sept. 1 loss at Wisconsin, but that unit did little against the Cougars. Quarterback Caleb Herring completed 11 of 20 passes for 60 yards, and the Rebels gained only 98 yards on the ground.

"We didn't match their intensity today," Herring said. "Offensively, we were waiting for the play to happen. We didn't go after it and make things happen.

"Intensity is something that we should have. Every football team should have it no matter what the situation is, and those teams that don't have it on any given day get beat, and that's what happened to us today."

Cornett echoed Herring's concerns.

"I think we underestimated them," Cornett said. "We came in (after) what we did (offensively) against Wisconsin thinking it was going to be given to us.

"After a while, people started to put their head down. I was trying to get the team riled up. People wanted to give up. I think that's something the coaches will address next week at the start of practices, that we need more intensity, because momentum can change games. That's what I feel we lacked out there today."

Contact reporter Mark Anderson at manderson@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2914. Follow him on Twitter: @markanderson65.