UNLV at San Diego State: Position-by-position breakdown

QUARTERBACKS

Dalton Sneed fared well in his first start for UNLV, showing off a dual-threat skill set in a win over Fresno State. San Diego State starter Christian Chapman, a redshirt sophomore, is completing 61 percent of his passes this season with seven touchdowns and two interceptions.

Edge: San Diego State

RUNNING BACKS

Donnel Pumphrey, who played at Canyon Springs High School, has been a force for the Aztecs this season, averaging 187.5 rushing yards and 7.7 yards per carry. He’s supported by Rashaad Penny, who has 188 yards on 40 carries. The Rebels’ strong duo of Lexington Thomas and Charles Williams is better than most Mountain West backfields, but maybe not San Diego State’s.

Edge: San Diego State

WIDE RECEIVERS

UNLV lost Darren Woods Jr., its second-leading receiving, for the season with a knee injury this week. Without him, and with Devonte Boyd drawing a lot of attention from opposing defenses, the Rebels will need a number of younger players to emerge in the passing game. San Diego State’s top two receivers, Mikah Holder and Eric Judge, have combined for 439 yards.

Edge: San Diego State

OFFENSIVE LINE

UNLV has to take pride in how strong up front the team has been this season. The Rebels rank ninth in the country in rushing offense and are tied for second in fewest sacks allowed with two. The Aztecs have allowed nine sacks.

Edge: UNLV

DEFENSIVE LINE

San Diego State allows less than 100 rushing yards per game and is one of the better run-stopping units in the nation. The Aztecs also have 10 sacks, with four from senior Alex Barrett. UNLV has been decent against the run, but still struggles to pressure opposing passers.

Edge: San Diego State

LINEBACKERS

The Aztecs have relied on members of their secondary to make tackles more often than the Rebels have this season. UNLV’s leading tacklers are linebackers Tau Lotulelei and Ryan McAleenan; five of San Diego State’s top six tacklers are members of the secondary.

Edge: UNLV

SECONDARY

Both teams are similar in terms of passing yards allowed per game, ranking in the bottom fourth of college football. San Diego State has generated more turnovers on the back end, though, with seven interceptions from six players.

Edge: San Diego State

SPECIAL TEAMS

The Aztecs’ punt and kick return game has been stronger than the Rebels’, and UNLV has fared slightly better in punt coverage. Other than that, the teams are nearly even in net punting average, and both have attempted only four field goals.

Edge: Push

INTANGIBLES

San Diego State lost at South Alabama last Saturday and will return home looking to prove that the slip-up was a fluke. The Aztecs dropped out of the national rankings after the loss, but will try to prove on their home turf that they belong there again.

Edge: San Diego State

HANDICAPPER’S TAKE

Bruce Marshall (goldsheet.com): San Diego State 40, UNLV 17 — Perhaps UNLV’s next uniform combo should be to dress like South Alabama after the Jaguars upset San Diego State for a second straight year. True, Rebels redshirt freshman quarterback Dalton Sneed’s Doug Flutie act worked in his starting debut vs. Fresno State. But the learning curve is steeper vs. Rocky Long’s various blitz packages. And this might not be the best week to run into an angry Aztecs team, whose star running back, Donnel Pumphrey, could inflict severe damage, as he has the past two seasons when gaining a combined 306 yards rushing in two one-sided San Diego State wins vs. UNLV. The Aztecs are 10-1 against the line in Mountain West regular-season action.

Ben Gotz is a sports reporter at the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Contact him at bgotz@reviewjournal.com or follow him on Twitter @BenSGotz.