UNLV coach Mike Sanford, foreground, stands with quarterback Shane Steichen (15) and other team members while refusing to leave the field for 15 minutes after the Rebels' 16-10 loss to Iowa State on Saturday at Ames, Iowa. Sanford wanted the officiating crew to return and review the game's final play, but he and the Rebels waited in vain. Photos by The Associated Press.
UNLV's Rodelin Anthony, right, makes a reception in front of Iowa State defender DeAndre Jackson in the second half Saturday at Ames, Iowa. Iowa State beat the Rebels 16-10 after a controversial finish.
UNLV backup quarterback Shane Steichen, right, is tackled by Iowa State defender Brent Curvey during the second half. Steichen came off the bench after Rocky Hinds' right knee injury and completed 19 of 27 passes for 180 yards and a touchdown.
Iowa State running back Stevie Hicks, center, looks for yardage near the goal line between UNLV defenders Beau Bell, left, Mil'Von James and Jay Staggs in the first half Saturday.
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AMES, Iowa -- Even Iowa State coach Dan McCarney had run out of patience.
He shook the hands of UNLV players and assistant coaches, but couldn't find head coach Mike Sanford.
"I stood out there waiting for a long time," McCarney said.
So did UNLV. As Sanford ran to the officials' locker room, hoping to persuade them to review the final play -- a catch clearly out of bounds by UNLV wide receiver Aaron Straiten -- the Rebels stood on the sideline Saturday at Jack Trice Stadium as if Iowa State would come back out of its locker room for at least one more play.
Instead, the Cyclones showered while Sanford kept his team on the field for about 15 minutes, all to no avail in a 16-10 loss.
"I thought the play should've been reviewed," Sanford said. "Nowadays in college football, we have instant replay for a reason. It was a catch on the boundary, and I just felt like I needed to get an answer that the game was over."
Word obviously did not get to Sanford, but it did reach UNLV athletic director Mike Hamrick, who said he spoke to referee Gerald Wright of the Mountain West Conference and replay official Tom Ahlers of the Big 12.
"The Big 12 replay official indicated to me he did review the play, and it was out," Hamrick said. "And the referee indicated to me that he stayed on the field to wait to see if there was a buzz to stop it and replay it."
No buzz came.
"I deemed it a reviewable play, reviewed it, and did not overrule the play," Ahlers said.
The commotion was a odd capper to a night on which UNLV lost quarterback Rocky Hinds to a right knee injury three plays into the second quarter. He will have an MRI on Monday to determine his status for next Saturday's game at Hawaii and beyond.
Sanford and Hinds were hopeful the injury was not serious, and Hinds wasn't walking with a noticeable limp.
Shane Steichen relieved Hinds and nearly led the Rebels (1-1) to victory after they fell behind 16-3 to the Cyclones (2-0) with 6:51 left in the third quarter.
Steichen, who completed 19 of 27 passes for 180 yards, threw a 3-yard touchdown to Ryan Wolfe with 10:55 left in the fourth quarter to get the Rebels within 16-10.
Then Steichen nearly brought the Rebels back all the way with a 16-play drive that began at UNLV's 20-yard line with 8:15 remaining.
"It was pretty exciting, but it's always tough to lose, especially in a game like this where there's so much at stake," Steichen said.
It was made even tougher by the ending, which was wacky even before the final play.
As the seconds ticked down, Steichen completed a 3-yard pass to Casey Flair to Iowa State's 11. Ahlers buzzed the referee that he was reviewing the play to see if Flair fumbled, but Steichen spiked the ball with 2 seconds left before the whistle blew.
"Because we buzzed them and challenged the play before the spike, the spike was negated," Ahlers said.
Such a ruling could cause a problem in the Mountain West and Big 12 conference offices. The rule says once the ball is snapped, there is no review of the previous play.
Nevertheless, officials waited for about 10 minutes before a determination was made. Five seconds were put back on the clock, which began ticking and went down to 1 second when Steichen got the snap.
He scrambled to his right and threw high to Straiten in the back of the end zone. Straiten made a sensational one-handed catch, but came down out of bounds by at least 2 feet.
