UNLV’s athletic department will celebrate each decade at the stadium in the first five home games, beginning with a look back at the 1970s for the Aug. 31 opener.
Mark Anderson
Mark Anderson has been at the Review-Journal since January 1999. He covered UNLV football for 17 seasons before moving to the men’s basketball beat in January 2016, and was president of the Football Writers Association of America in 2016. Before coming to the R-J, he covered UNR football for five seasons at the Reno Gazette-Journal and was the high school sports reporter for the Tallahassee (Fla.) Democrat from 1988-94. He is a native of Tallahassee and a graduate of the University of Florida.
The 6-foot-10-inch center is the fourth member of UNLV’s 2020 class and the third with Las Vegas ties. He will attend a prep school in Arizona this academic year.
The Rebels will go through two 30-minute halves with a running clock Saturday night at Sam Boyd Stadium in their most consequential scrimmage of the preseason.
UNLV coach Tony Sanchez chuckled at negative comments from Reno-based Nevada Sports Net regarding the helmet the Rebels will wear in the Aug. 31 season opener.
Junior Drew Tejchman signed with UNLV in 2017 so he could play wide receiver. But he switched to safety late last season, and Tejchman is a projected starter.
The second back into a game will depend on the opponent and what kind of offense the Rebels are in at the time and not necessarily a reflection of the depth chart.
UNLV’s quarterbacks didn’t have much time to throw or many passing lanes to throw into in practice Thursday morning at Rebel Park. The Rebels returned to practice after taking off Wednesday.
UNLV put on the full uniform on Tuesday night when the Rebels practiced at Sam Boyd Stadium. They usually practice in the morning at Rebel Park on campus.
Sophomore wide receiver Randal Grimes signed with Southern California in 2017 out of Desert Pines High School. He transferred to UNLV on July 1.
A foot injury cost UNLV defensive lineman Nick Dehdashtian all of last season, and now he is competing at defensive end and tackle. He suffered the same kind of injury in high school.
UNLV had its longest football practice this training camp, going nearly 2½ hours on Monday morning at Rebel Park. They go into full pads Tuesday evening at Sam Boyd Stadium.
With Max Gilliam out until next month with an injured foot, Kenyon Oblad has taken advantage of his opportunity. Oblad became the state’s career passing leader while at Liberty.
UNLV went into half pads Sunday for the first time this training camp, and coach Tony Sanchez said he liked the effort. He also praised freshman wide receiver Steve Jenkins.
The senior defensive end/outside linebacker is coming off a junior season in which he recorded 13½ tackles for loss that included four sacks.
UNLV’s wide receiver position is highly competitive. But the Rebels suffered a loss in the secondary, and end/linebacker Gabe McCoy will miss the opener because of an eligibility issue.