Sanchez wants to see how Rebels respond after beating UNR

The tweet was sent Sunday evening from the account of UNLV football, a picture of players under dark skies and bright lights executing practice drills. The attached message was simple.

It read: Back to work. We're on to San Jose State.

I hold true the belief that it is much harder for an NFL team to go 0-16 than 16-0. Too much parity. Too many average quarterbacks to believe any franchise can be pitiful enough to last a season without winning at least one game.

I'm serious. Detroit is going to get somebody soon. It's not 2008.

I also support this notion: It's often tougher dealing with success than failure, no matter how small a portion the former might be.

UNLV is again in possession of the Fremont Cannon, and it's a sparkling shade of red after a 23-17 victory at UNR last week, the second straight win under first-year coach Tony Sanchez after the Rebels began the season 0-3.

It wasn't 24 hours after the Rebels bolted a rainy Mackay Stadium with just a second win in 11 years against their in-state rival that Sanchez had all thoughts focused on another.

The tweet said as much.

"It's about getting back to watching film, working, alignment, assignment, technique, fanatical effort, footsteps, hand placement, where are your eyes," Sanchez said. "I think when you focus on the details, it calms guys down and they realize, 'Wow, we're getting right back to work.' When you watch our guys work, it's intense and purposeful and a million miles an hour. They're not worried about last week. It's a new task."

It's a difficult one.

San Jose State is up next in a West Division schedule of the Mountain West there for the taking for any program capable of playing consistently well over the next eight weeks, a Spartans side that will arrive at Sam Boyd Stadium tonight for a 6:05 kickoff as a 3-point favorite and featuring the nation's second-leading rusher in senior Tyler Ervin.

He is also second nationally in all-purpose yards.

He's a handful.

But as much as winning at UNR and bringing the cannon home was significant for UNLV, how it responds seven days later could go a long ways in determining how quickly Sanchez might build the Rebels into a conference contender.

It was a question Sanchez would not and should not have addressed during his press conference Tuesday, the fact a weekly ESPN postseason update actually predicted UNLV would play in this year's Famous Idaho Potato Bowl in Boise on Dec. 22.

I know. It's too early.

It's ridiculously early.

But any national attention the Rebels have received since Sanchez was hired has centered solely on him, on how an incredibly successful coach from Bishop Gorman High might make the transition to the college game.

The fact anyone outside Las Vegas would believe at this point the Rebels might earn a postseason berth speaks to how down the Mountain West is, but also to what they believe UNLV's potential could be over 12 games.

"Things like that are important because it helps recruiting when people are talking about your team in a positive light," Sanchez said. "It's not just about a high school guy who got a college job. It's about performance and having some success and winning and bringing the cannon home and all of those things. I've told the boys from the beginning, this game has never been about coaches. It's about the players, and it always will be."

There are no promises attached to next year's schedule. Mountain West teams that are down now could be up then. Sanchez might have a rebuilding plan of several years in mind, but opportunity exists Saturday in a conference void of a solid team beyond Boise State.

But if the Rebels are to win a third straight game and depart 2-0 in conference to meet a truly awful Fresno State side on Friday, they must beat San Jose State while being led by a backup quarterback.

Kurt Palandech receives his first career start for the Rebels as senior Blake Decker nurses an injured left shoulder, but while Sanchez insists he wants Palandech to attack and perhaps throw more than UNLV has all season, the idea that the sophomore can win a game with his arm is suspect at best.

And yet, seven days after Sanchez made like Edwin Moses and hurdled a barrier to personally greet those UNLV fans that traveled north and witnessed victory against UNR, the Rebels have every chance to remain players in a divisional race.

It's not yet the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl, but it's also the second week of October and local conversation hasn't completely shifted to another sport.

"We know basketball season is a big deal here at UNLV and always will be," Sanchez said. "We want football season to be one too. We want two powerful engines going at the same time."

It starts with living in the moment, and forgetting all about a sparkling red cannon for now.

I'm guessing the first sight of Tyler Ervin will help with that.

— 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 p.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. On Twitter: @edgraney.