Rebels know it will take huge upset to win at Boise State

BOISE, Idaho — This week last year, New Mexico, a 30-point underdog, stunned Boise State 31-24 on the Broncos’ signature blue turf.

On the same day — Nov. 14, 2015 — Holly Holm knocked out Ronda Rousey in one of the biggest upsets in UFC history.

All it will take for UNLV to keep its bowl hopes alive is a similar performance in Friday’s nationally televised game (6 p.m., ESPN2) against No. 22 Boise State at Albertsons Stadium. The injury-depleted Rebels (4-6, 3-3 Mountain West) are 29-point underdogs to the Broncos (9-1, 5-1).

“We have no idea what we’re favored by,” Boise State football coach Bryan Harsin said. “That type of stuff, guys that look into that, that gets you beat in a hurry.”

After UNLV outlasted Wyoming 69-66 in triple overtime Saturday in the third-highest scoring game in FBS history, the Rebels believe anything is possible.

“That helped everybody believe,” UNLV center Will Kreitler said. “A lot of teams, when they get into the position we were in, they kind of just back down and start worrying about next season. But our guys kept our composure and went out and played the hardest game that we’ve played all year.

“If we can carry that into this week, we’ve got a shot.”

The Rebels might have caught Boise State looking ahead to its regular-season finale at Air Force if not for their thrilling win over Wyoming, which revived the Broncos’ hopes of advancing to the conference championship game. Tied atop the Mountain Division with Wyoming and New Mexico at 5-1, Boise State needs to win its final two games and have the Cowboys lose to either San Diego State or New Mexico to claim the division crown and a spot in the league title game against the Aztecs.

“That kind of reinvigorated Boise, because all of a sudden it gives them a lot of possibilities,” UNLV coach Tony Sanchez said. “Obviously, we’ve got to win two in a row — we’re focused on this one, though — to go to a bowl game, and that’s still a big team goal.

“We’ve kind of put our backs against the wall, but that’s the mission. The mission is (beating) Boise to keep that dream alive.”

The fact Wyoming is the only team to beat Boise State this season might be cause for optimism for the Rebels, but the Cowboys also cruised to a 38-17 win at Colorado State, which led UNLV 35-0 at halftime en route to a 42-23 win.

“It shows the margin of error in this conference is so small,” Sanchez said. “This is a winnable game, and it’s also a losable game, and I think every game in the Mountain West is the same exact way.”

Despite the Broncos’ newfound opportunities, Harsin said they’re completely focused on UNLV, a team they’ve defeated four consecutive times, including 55-27 last season in Las Vegas.

“If you start thinking about the championship game now, I don’t care what league or conference you’re in, that team right in front of you better be what you focus on,” he said.

Boise State has been virtually unbeatable on its blue turf since 2000, going 101-6 (.944) for the nation’s best home winning percentage during that span. The Broncos also are 115-14 (.892) in league play since 2000 for the country’s highest conference winning percentage and are third in all-time winning percentage (.726) behind Notre Dame (.730) and Michigan (.731).

The Broncos are the nation’s highest-scoring team (39.9 points per game) since 2000 as well and are averaging 36.5 ppg this season behind quarterback Brett Rypien, receivers Thomas Sperbeck and Cedrick Wilson and running back Jeremy McNichols, who leads the country in touchdowns with 22.

The Rebels, averaging 34.4 points a game, lost their fourth starting receiver to a season-ending injury when Devonte Boyd broke his arm against Wyoming and will rely on four freshman wideouts, including backup quarterback Dalton Sneed, who will see his first action at the position. In addition to defending the deep ball better, Sanchez said the key will be UNLV’s running game, which produced 401 yards Saturday for the sixth-highest total in school history.

“We’ve got to be able to lean on our running game again,” he said. “With all these different injuries and different guys playing receiver, they know what we want to do. And we’re going to have to be tough enough to be able to run the football against them.”

Receiver Jericho Flowers, a converted cornerback who scored two touchdowns Saturday, said the Rebels have a shot.

“Football is a tricky sport. It depends who comes out and plays,” he said. “If we come out how we did in the Wyoming game and start fast and finish fast, then we’ll have a chance to win.”

Contact reporter Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0354. Follow @tdewey33 on Twitter.