Rebels fight back, but defense their downfall
It was Central Michigan all over again, or so it appeared.
Just like in the third week of last football season, UNLV found itself in the third game of this one staging a furious rally from a large deficit.
The end result wasn’t the same, however, with the Rebels losing 48-34 to Northern Illinois on Saturday at Sam Boyd Stadium, but maybe they found an effective offense that will carry on to the rest of the season.
That will mean more today when UNLV (1-2) turns its attention to Saturday’s game at Houston, but the Rebels weren’t looking at the positives following the tough loss to Northern Illinois (3-0).
“Our guys are really down,” Rebels coach Bobby Hauck said. “We thought we were going to win this game. We went into this game thinking we were going to get them.”
The Rebels nearly did after rallying from 28-5 down early in the third quarter. It was similar to last season when UNLV erased a 21-0 deficit to defeat Central Michigan and in the process found a quarterback in Caleb Herring. The Rebels built on that turnaround to make the Heart of Dallas Bowl.
Against Northern Illinois, they came all the way back from 23 points down to tie it with 9:18 left in the game. Shaquille Murray-Lawrence, who started at running back after not even playing the first two games, ran for a 9-yard touchdown, and Blake Decker completed a two-point pass to Devante Davis to make it 34-34.
After the Huskies answered with a touchdown, UNLV almost tied the game again, driving to the Huskies’ 7-yard line with about 5½ minutes remaining. But Decker’s pass to Davis in the end zone was tipped into the air, and Northern Illinois safety Marlon Moore made a sensational one-handed catch for the interception.
Decker and Davis each took responsibility for the turnover.
“I need to make a better decision there,” Decker said.
“I’ve got to make that play,” said Davis, who caught six passes for 150 yards and two touchdowns.
Northern Illinois then drove 80 yards on 10 plays to take a 14-point lead and seal the victory, and that was the story of the game. When the Rebels needed to most, they couldn’t get the Huskies off the field.
The Huskies converted both third downs on that drive, and they were 15 of 19 for the game.
“We’d play two good downs, and we’d get out there and it’s a bunch of people missing individual assignments,” said UNLV linebacker Marc Philippi, who made 12 tackles. “It’s really disappointing when you have them third-and-8, third-and-10, and they get the first down. You’ve got to have a short memory when you’re a football player and forget about it.”
Northern Illinois gained 616 yards, with Drew Hare passing for 285 yards and three touchdowns and rushing for 74 yards and a TD. Cameron Stingily rushed for 102 yards and two touchdowns, and Da’Ron Brown caught six passes for 138 yards and a score.
This was the second time in three games the Rebels have given up more than 600 yards, and no matter what kind of improvement the offense makes, UNLV will not be competitive this season if that number doesn’t come down.
But its offense finally discovered signs of life.
UNLV scored two touchdowns in its first 2½ games and had three in the third quarter alone Saturday. The Rebels scored 29 points in the second half — they had 31 points for the season up until that time — and totaled 299 yards in the second 30 minutes.
Decker passed for 397 yards, the highest total for a UNLV quarterback since Jon Denton threw for 401 yards in 1997 against San Jose State.
“I’m not huge on moral victories,” Decker said. “I think you play football to win. We can take a look at what we did well, and there are things to build on, but it’s frustrating not pulling that out in the end.”
Contact reporter Mark Anderson at manderson@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2914. Follow him on Twitter: @markanderson65.
