QB Johnny Stanton back in groove as UNLV opens vs. Jackson State

Johnny Stanton’s college football career hasn’t turned out the way he expected. But the UNLV junior quarterback still has plenty of time to author a success story.

A junior college transfer who began his career at Nebraska, Stanton will begin writing a new chapter Thursday night, when he’ll make his first career Division I start for the Rebels in their 7 p.m. season opener against Jackson State at Sam Boyd Stadium.

It’s not exactly what Stanton envisioned four years ago, when he entered his senior year at Santa Margarita High School in California with scholarship offers from Oregon, Wisconsin and Nebraska. He was fresh off competing in Nike’s Elite 11 prep quarterback camp with the likes of Los Angeles Rams rookie Jared Goff and Southern California’s Max Browne.

After Stanton was named the Rebels’ starter Sunday, he texted Browne, who also will make his first career start Saturday against No. 1 Alabama.

“I texted him, ‘Hey, go kick ‘Bama’s tail and good luck,’ saying both of us are getting our first starts this week,” Stanton said. “He texted back and said, ‘Do it for the No. 4s,’ because we’re both No. 4s.”

After leading Santa Margarita to the state title his junior year, Stanton was dealt a major blow his senior year when he suffered a season-ending torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee.

He got lost in the shuffle at Nebraska, where he redshirted in 2013 and played in only two games (five snaps) in 2014 before falling to fifth on the depth chart under Cornhuskers coach Mike Riley. Last year, Stanton transferred to Saddleback College in Mission Viejo, California, where he accounted for 39 touchdowns and earned first-team All-American honors.

“I was finally able to get some reps in the game, and I finally got to feel like I was the guy again over at Saddleback,” Stanton said. “I got my mojo back. I lost my mojo after getting hurt.

“Those 2½ seasons not playing took it out of me. Last season I was able to get it back, and hopefully this season I can expand on that.”

UNLV second-year coach Tony Sanchez said once Stanton gets comfortable, which could take a couple games, he has the chance to be a special player.

“He’s got a howitzer. We haven’t had a guy that can make throws like that in a while,” Sanchez said. “The biggest thing for him going into this game is he does not have to put the team on his shoulders. He’s got tremendous receivers around him, he has a loaded backfield, a good offensive line and a solid defense.

“He has to go out and just do his job and get the ball to the athletes.”

The Rebels are looking for their first win in a season opener since 2009.

“I don’t think there’s a kid on our roster that’s been 1-0 since they’ve been a Rebel, and that’s gotta stop,” Sanchez said. “You’ve got to go out there and get that first W. It’s a big, important deal to a football team after all that hard work in the offseason, especially ending the way we did last year.”

UNLV, which went 3-9 last season, lost its finale 35-28 when a two-win Wyoming team completed a 64-yard TD pass with 2:20 remaining.

“A lot of kids talked about the bad taste in our mouths the way we came off that field after that game at Wyoming, and we’re ready to get rid of that taste,” Sanchez said. “We’ve been chewing on it for too long.”

The Rebels are 37-point favorites over Jackson State, a Football Championship Subdivision school. UNLV annihilated Idaho State, 80-8, last year for its third consecutive win over an FCS opponent, but Sanchez isn’t taking the Tigers lightly after the Rebels lost to Southern Utah in 2011 and Northern Arizona in 2012 and barely beat Northern Colorado in 2014.

“It wasn’t too long ago when all these (FCS) teams were coming in and walking away with W’s or us winning last-second games,” he said. “Last year, we kind of exorcised that. That was a good thing to see. We need to do it again, but it needs to become a consistent thing where we beat the teams we’re supposed to beat, because for a long time we hadn’t done that.”

NOTE — Senior free safety Kenny Keys is suspended for the first quarter of Thursday’s game for an unspecified violation of team rules.

Contact reporter Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0354. Follow him on Twitter: @tdewey33