Bringing in a local at UNLV could be winning decision

The choice has been made. The experts have spoken. Tony Sanchez has been named UNLV’s new football coach, and a substantial portion of the community has weighed in on the subject.

At last count, the considered opinions outnumbered the season-ticket holders.

In the short time since UNLV’s administration surprised no one by selecting Sanchez, the hugely successful Bishop Gorman High School coach, ahead of a roster of more experienced veteran coaches, he’s emerged as an energetic and articulate fellow with a strong work ethic and some well-placed connections in the local business community. Those are all positive traits for a coach no matter whether he’s a grizzled veteran or raw rookie.

The Sanchez appointment has already sparked a renewed push for an on-campus football stadium — “Fertitta Field” has a nice ring to it, right? — but charging ahead with a half-billion-dollar athletic edifice would be a costly mistake. The Rebels don’t need a new football stadium. Not yet, anyway.

UNLV football’s biggest problem isn’t the size of the locker rooms at the Silver Bowl, either. Nor is it the program’s “lack of a winning culture,” whatever that means.

It’s the program’s perennial inability or unwillingness to recruit and land gifted local athletes that should baffle fans and foes alike. Although no one is naive enough to believe a university team can win at a high level only with local talent, it has been a long time since UNLV invested substantially in Southern Nevada players. And that’s a shame.

Some coaches were worse at scouting the local ranks than the recently departed Bobby Hauck. Others may have been better. But none could honestly say he did a great job attracting and keeping Southern Nevada talent.

The Las Vegas area regularly produces plenty of players capable of helping the Rebels become a winning program. They just don’t end up going to UNLV.

Some make the jump to powerhouse universities, but many others wind up attending upstate rival UNR or a regional college in Utah, Arizona or California. In other words, they play for many of the schools that regularly beat UNLV to pieces.

Fattening the Rebels’ roster with local names would do more than help the team in the win column. It’s also the best way to engender fan loyalty in a program that sorely lacks it.

The best part is, Sanchez can achieve this goal. As a winning high school football coach, he probably understands the caliber and potential of the local talent as well as anyone can.

Sure, there are other ways to go. Some will want Sanchez to rush for a quick fix by bringing in a crop of junior college transfers.

They’ll probably remind him that the strategy worked well for former UNLV coach Harvey Hyde. His 1984 team won a school-record 11 games and the California Bowl.

But that would be a really bad move. Hyde was successful using transfers who were, to say the least, marginal students. In fact, UNLV was forced to forfeit those 11 wins for using academically ineligible players.

Forget a new stadium. UNLV needs a sparkling athletic dormitory that will make its burgeoning roster of Las Vegas players feel like they’ve gone somewhere special.

What do you get by establishing great relationships with local coaches and players? You get interest, initially. You get participation and trust, in time.

Eventually, you also get loyalty.

As the Rebels rebuild under Sanchez, and the coach establishes his reputation in the college ranks, it will be a lot easier to root for a home team with a roster full of familiar faces.

John L. Smith’s column appears Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday. E-mail him at jsmith@reviewjournal.com or call 702-383-0295.