Freshman Mouton could play early on UNLV defense

'Aggressive' Mouton practicing with first team as nickelback

UNLV coach Tony Sanchez never made it a secret that he expected freshman Darius Mouton to play right away.

And it's looking even more likely Mouton will be on the football field when UNLV opens its season Sept. 5 at Northern Illinois. He might even be starting.

Mouton ran first team at nickelback in Tuesday morning's practice at Rebel Park.

"He's fighting for that job," Sanchez said. "He's aggressive. He's fast. He's got a great skill set."

One of the reasons Mouton (5 feet 10 inches, 165 pounds) signed with UNLV was because of the chance to play immediately. He also said he was sold on the Rebels' new coaching staff in choosing UNLV over Colorado and Iowa State.

"On my visit, I felt like this place was really comfortable for me and I could really fit in with the team," Mouton said. "The coaches, I love how they were cooperating with me and staying in contact with me."

He not only is the latest in the pipeline from Houston but also from North Shore High School. Former Rebels standouts Tim Cornett and Devante Davis went to North Shore, as did UNLV wide receivers coach Cedric Cormier.

And it was Cormier who recruited Mouton, though the coach doesn't often relive his high school days.

"He tries not to bring it up," Mouton said. "I ask him because they've got his picture on the Wall of Fame."

Cormier wanted Mouton for a reason, and so did Sanchez.

"The biggest thing about freshmen coming in is the level of maturity, the level of competitiveness, coachability, things like that because it's hard," Sanchez said. "It's a transition. He's picked up on that quick. He knows how to practice."

* DEFENDING THE TURF — UNLV's offense has had its moments in training camp, and it did again in the first day of practice in full pads.

But the defense again made a few more plays, coming through especially strong in a goal-line drill.

On one play, junior linebacker Tau Lotulelei rushed in and batted down senior quarterback Blake Decker's pass. Later, senior running back Jamal Overton had a brief path to the end zone, but junior linebacker Trent Langham blocked it and stood his ground to keep Overton from scoring.

"That's my responsibility," Langham said. "Everybody's got to take care of their responsibility. That's what I did."

* KICKING IT — UNLV ended practice with a drill in which Decker would throw a quick pass, and the wide receiver would down the ball to set up an end-of-game field goal.

Senior Jonathan Leiva got the first chance, and his 50-yard attempt fell just short. Then junior Nicolai Bornand drilled a kick from 42 yards.

The team ran the drill once more, and instead of Leiva taking the field, it was Bornand again. He made a 31-yarder.

"I don't know who the best kicker is," Sanchez said. "I'm scratching my head, too. They make them, they miss them. They've got to compete like everybody else."

Sanchez said it hasn't been decided whether one player will win the job or if one kicker will handle short field goals and the other kicks from long distances.

Bornand had split his time between being a kicker and linebacker, but now is all in on special teams.

* SCHEDULE — UNLV has its first two-practice session, going at 8:10 a.m. today at Rebel Park and then at night at Sam Boyd Stadium. As with most practices, the one in the morning is open to the public. The night practice is closed.

The Rebels will be off Thursday before returning for another double session Friday. Both will be at Rebel Park, at 8:10 a.m. and 6:30 p.m., and will be open.

Contact Mark Anderson at manderson@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2914. Follow him on Twitter: @markanderson65.