UNLV offense looks for big plays against Fresno State

UNLV football coach Marcus Arroyo has made it clear he’s not into moral victories, but he knows the program isn’t going to turn around in a day.

It’s going to take a slow, steady process of implementing traits that translate into wins. Progress in that area, even more than the Rebels’ record, probably will tell the story of the season.

“I refuse, and we refuse, to compromise those fundamentals and expectations, and I’m proud of the improved effort and execution from Week 1 to Week 2,” Arroyo said. “Now we’ve got to build from here.”

The Rebels will look to continue their improvement and avoid their first 0-3 start since 2015 when they host Fresno State at 12:30 p.m. Saturday at Allegiant Stadium.

While the UNLV offense showed marked improvement from the season-opening 34-6 loss to San Diego State to the 37-19 loss to UNR, there is plenty of work to do.

The Rebels have struggled to produce long rushing or passing plays. Charles Williams leads the running game with 179 yards and a 4.6 yards per carry average, and his long of 25 yards against UNR is one of only three plays longer than 20 yards for the team.

UNLV has a similar issue passing the ball. Eight receivers have caught at least one pass, but none has an average per catch of 10 yards or more. Steve Jenkins has a receiving score in both games, and Tyleek Collins had one against UNR.

Collins’ 26-yard reception against UNR is the Rebels’ longest play of the season.

The lack of big plays means it has taken methodical drives to score. All five of the Rebels’ scoring marches have taken at least eight plays, four of which lasted 11 or more. They also had a drive of 13 plays against San Diego State and 16 against UNR that were both stopped on downs.

That they’ve sustained drives and not turned the ball over is a plus, but the methodical marches have allowed more chances for a negative play or a penalty.

Limited practice time

Because of the limited practice time before the season and between games, Arroyo said about 65 percent of the offense is installed. He said he wants to add to that, but would rather the offense run a percentage of its plays well than the entire playbook poorly.

“You don’t install a bunch of new stuff in two days of pads and one day of walk-through (each week),” Arroyo said. “You’ve got to be conscious of that. I probably would have made that mistake as a young coach. You want to put all this stuff in and think it’s cool, and then you don’t do any of it effectively.”

It’s also not easy to find consistency, Arroyo said, when managing the flow of the roster is a daily issue.

“One contact trace or one injury on a small roster, you can change the game plan in a second,” he said.

Last season against Fresno State, UNLV committed five turnovers in a 56-27 loss.

The defense will need to know where Fresno State running back Ronnie Rivers lines up on each play. The Bulldogs like to move Rivers around, and he has 174 yards and three touchdowns rushing and six catches for 77 yards and a score receiving.

“When you can put the running back as a weapon in the run and pass game, the ability for that guy to be multiple is a weapon,” Arroyo said. “They do a nice job with him. He’s a really good player.”

Contact Jason Orts at jorts@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2936. Follow @SportsWithOrts on Twitter.