Rebels finally find offense, will need it to keep up with Houston

HOUSTON — Finally, after 2½ games, UNLV’s offense found what it had been missing.

The Rebels scored 29 second-half points in a frantic rally last Saturday before losing 48-34 to Northern Illinois at Sam Boyd Stadium.

Though the Rebels were down immediately following the defeat, they came away from the game knowing those final 30 minutes provided tangible hope moving forward.

“Going back and looking at the film, we did a lot of good things as an offense,” UNLV quarterback Blake Decker said. “Obviously, there are still a lot of things we need to correct and mistakes we need to clean up a little bit this week, but there’s a lot that we can build on, so it’s exciting.”

Tonight will show whether what happened in the second half against the Huskies truly means anything when UNLV plays at Houston at 5 p.m. PDT. ESPN3 will broadcast the game online.

If the Rebels (1-2) build on that second-half performance from last weekend, they will make Houston (1-2) fight for the victory. But if this turns out to be the same UNLV team that scored 31 points in the first 10 quarters, it probably will be a long night at TDECU Stadium against a Cougars passing game that is showing signs of getting in rhythm.

“They look like they have skilled athletes everywhere,” UNLV coach Bobby Hauck said. “Defensively, they’re giving up 20 points a game. So it’s obviously a good football team. We’re going to have our hands full. We’re going to have to play very well to go in there and get a win.”

The game begins a three-week stretch on the road, and the Rebels probably will be underdogs in each one. They need to win at least one game during this span to keep the season from quickly slipping away.

Should the Rebels find a way to beat Houston, a three-touchdown favorite, that could be the catalyst they need for a successful season.

For that to happen, UNLV needs more than its offense to build on last week. Its defense must step up and make plays after giving up more than 600 yards in two of the first three games.

Even against Northern Illinois, however, the Rebels’ defense showed signs it could improve, forcing 19 third downs. The problem is the Huskies converted on an astonishing 15 of them.

“You leave the field on Saturday pretty darn down thinking you just got run over,” UNLV defensive coordinator Tim Hauck said. “You come back and look at the tape and say, ‘Hey, we fought them tooth and nail on first and second downs, and third down, we just can’t get off the field.’ We can’t allow the quarterback to scramble for six first downs.

“Watching the tape, I felt a heck of a lot better about it because our guys are playing hard. They’re playing well in most circumstances. Now we’ve got to get it to the next level and play every down like we do three-quarters of the time.”

The Rebels have the difficult task of trying to defend Houston quarterback John O’Korn and wide receivers Deontay Greenberry and Daniel Spencer.

O’Korn was named the American Athletic Conference Rookie of the Year last season after passing for 3,117 yards and 28 touchdowns. It was the best freshman season for a Cougars quarterback at a school that has produced many outstanding players at that position. O’Korn began slowly this season before throwing for 307 yards and three touchdowns last week at Brigham Young.

Greenberry and Spencer each has recorded a 100-yard receiving game this season, and they are moving up the school’s career lists. Greenberry is 10th with 2,051 career receiving yards, and Spencer is 17th with 1,718 yards.

For UNLV to win, the Rebels probably will have to keep up with Houston’s offense and win a shootout.

Such a scenario didn’t seem possible until the second half against Northern Illinois.

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