Idaho State QB Sanders key to Pocatello smiling again

The law was enacted in 1948 and made it illegal to frown, grimace, scowl or offer any expression that might reflect negatively upon the good citizens of Pocatello. In short, officials desired a community full of characters similar to the one Will Ferrell played in "Elf," where smiling was their favorite.

They even held smile festivals to stress the importance of a beaming disposition, so I'm guessing the family trees of Kanye West and Sean Penn don't stretch to Idaho's fifth largest city.

Michael Sanders sounds like a kid who smiles a lot, but the junior quarterback was also born and raised in Arizona and has yet to walk to class in a wind chill of minus-20.

That time will come.

Good luck smiling then.

But nothing brings a grin to those from a Football Championship Subdivision program more than meeting a side from the major division of college football, a role UNLV will play tonight when hosting Idaho State at Sam Boyd Stadium.

The Rebels are favored by 3½ points, hardly a vote of supreme confidence from those setting lines, offshore or otherwise.

If this is a game first-year coach Tony Sanchez and his Rebels desperately need to win — and it is following an 0-3 start to the season — then they must prepare for a Bengals team that at 1-2 and playing outside the comfort of the Big Sky Conference has nothing to lose. UNLV, more than most major programs, has proven this a dangerous challenge to combat while struggling mightily against FCS teams in recent times.

Nothing is certain about the Rebels in these types of games.

"We have to earn it," Sanchez said. "They're not going to give it away. They're going to chuck the ball around the yard pretty well. That's kind of what they do."

Sanders is the one chucking it, a junior college transfer from Scottsdale (Ariz.) Community College, where he was teammates with UNLV quarterback Blake Decker and center Will Kreitler.

They must also do a lot of chucking out in the eastern part of Maricopa County, because Decker arrived at UNLV having thrown for over 4,200 yards and 47 touchdowns in one season, numbers that led all junior college quarterbacks nationally.

Sanders followed as the starter last season and threw for 3,800 yards and 38 scores, proving the only thing more definite about Scottsdale than being fined $10,000 for transplanting one of those beautiful saguaro cactuses without the proper license is that local quarterbacks can really fill a stat sheet.

"I learned a lot from (Decker) just sitting behind him for a season," Sanders said. "Blake was older than most of us, more mature. I learned a lot by how he prepared, how he handled himself on and off the field, how he walked around campus and behaved in the locker room. He was a leader who knew how to be successful. It will be great to see him and (Kreitler) and catch up.

"It's a great opportunity for our team. Every time we take the field against a (major college program), we want to showcase what we can do. Who we are playing doesn't alter what we do, but these are games we obviously enjoy."

I'm not sure how much Idaho State enjoyed losing at Boise State 52-0 last week or the fact it has one winning season in 12 years. But never underestimate UNLV's ability to find itself in deep water against such an opponent.

It's not that Northern Colorado was the worst team in college history when visiting UNLV last year, but it's a good chance the Bishop Gorman High team Sanchez was coaching at the time would have been a two-touchdown favorite against the Bears.

UNLV managed to win 13-12.

It's this kind of result that might allow Idaho State a bit of quiet confidence that tonight's game will arrive to the fourth quarter with the outcome in doubt. If so, that would likely mean Sanders has presented himself well for a program that has found success over the years turning their offense over to junior college quarterbacks.

"Those guys just seem to make the transition faster in terms of being able to read defenses and understanding the speed of the game better than a high school guy might," Idaho State coach Mike Kramer said. "(Sanders) has shown a good aptitude for the position. He has the arm strength. But he has to get better. His accuracy has to improve. We had some great drives (against Boise State) that ended up with nothing. We have to work on his release point. He's high. We have to work on his footwork. He's long. We have to work on his decision-making. He's late.

"But you also see outstanding coaching in the junior college ranks of California and Arizona with all the wide-open attacks, so it's not a surprise when those kids can come into our program or a UNLV and eventually do pretty darn well. It will be exciting to see that theory tested again (tonight). We need to play better, not just because we're playing UNLV. We just need to play better. Period."

Fact: The scoreboard, not some law in Pocatello, will determine which side smiles last.

Ed Graney can be reached at egraney@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4618. He can be a heard on "Seat and Ed" on Fox Sports 1340 from 2 to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. On Twitter: @edgraney.