Mountain West Conference Football Report, Nov. 21

UNLV CAN RELATE TO HAWAII'S GROWING PAINS ON OFFENSE

Norm Chow is attempting to do at Hawaii what Bobby Hauck is in the process of trying to accomplish at UNLV.

Both football coaches are taking wide-open offenses - the run-and-shoot at Hawaii; the spread at UNLV - and turning them into more traditional sets.

Hauck is in his third season of that transformation, and the offense clearly is better even if the team's record is not.

Hawaii's offense and record clearly are worse, but Chow is in his first season, and sometimes a coach needs to tear down before he can rebuild.

"I think we're very similar in things that we're trying to get accomplished," Chow said. "Bobby has done such a terrific job there in getting a style of ball he would like to play."

UNLV (2-10, 2-5 Mountain West Conference) hopes to avoid a third consecutive two-win record when the Rebels close their season with an 8 p.m. PST game Saturday at Hawaii.

But the Rebels have increased their scoring average from 18.4 and 17.3 points the past two seasons to 23.0. Their yardage averages have gone from 274.2 and 273.7 to 381.7.

Hawaii enters at 1-9 overall and 0-7 in the conference, with an offense that averages 18.3 points and 281.9 yards. The Warriors went 6-7 last season, averaging 31.5 points and 404.2 yards.

"They're starting over a little bit," Hauck said. "You've got to go with what you believe in. You try to mix and match a little bit with the folks you've got, but it takes a little time to get that going.

"They're making strides. Certainly from September till now, they've made a lot of strides."

TALK OF THE LEAGUE

First-year Fresno State coach Tim DeRuyter knows a little something about his opponent Saturday - Air Force.

He played linebacker for the Falcons from 1982 to 1984, receiving a management degree from the academy. DeRuyter also served as Air Force's defensive coordinator under Troy Calhoun from 2007 to 2009, the last two seasons also as associate coach.

"Troy did a bunch of stuff for me personally," DeRuyter said. "He gave me a chance to be on his staff, and I learned a ton from him. There are some personal feelings there, but more than that, it's our guys playing for a potential conference championship."

DeRuyter would seem to have a lot of inside knowledge about Calhoun's coaching philosophy and how the Falcons operate. But Calhoun pointed out DeRuyter's experience inside the academy football offices might not apply to this game.

"I think you have to change every year," Calhoun said. "You have to rebuild your system, at least you do at the Air Force Academy, to make sure that it fits your personnel. Then really from week to week, you have to do the same thing. You better make sure you're altering your game plan. You've got a few wrinkles from week to week, which we always try to do."

AROUND THE MWC

UNLV redshirt freshman quarterback Nick Sherry is doubtful for the Hawaii game with what is believed to be a back injury. That means junior Caleb Herring is likely to receive his second straight start. He passed for a career-high 268 yards in Saturday's 28-23 loss to Wyoming. ... Air Force has accepted a bid to play in the Armed Forces Bowl on Dec. 29 in Fort Worth, Texas. The Falcons will play a team from Conference USA. ... Colorado State has four defensive touchdowns, all in the past two games. ... New Mexico has 21 sacks. The Lobos had 10 last season.

UNLV INJURY REPORT

POS. PLAYER AREA STATUS

DL Alvin Amilcar Undisclosed Out

OL Brett Boyko Leg Out

OL Patrick Carroll Back Out

DL David Green Undisclosed Out

OL Alex Novosel Back Out

DB John Therrell Arm Out

DL Tyler Gaston Back Doubtful

QB Nick Sherry Undisclosed Doubtful

DB Fred Wilson Arm Doubtful

LB John Lotulelei Leg Questionable