UNLV optimism derailed in loss to 45-point underdog Howard

The optimism built by UNLV coach Tony Sanchez for a legitimate bowl run this season was mostly erased in about 3½ hours during Saturday night’s 43-40 loss to FCS member Howard.

UNLV was a 45-point favorite at Sam Boyd Stadium, and the fallout was swift and visceral among UNLV supporters and nationally for what’s being judged as the biggest upset in college football history according to point spreads.

Sanchez, who is 7-18, said Sunday he didn’t want to comment until his weekly news conference on Tuesday, but said minutes after the game he understood how the loss might affect his program.

“I feel bad for all those UNLV fans who have struggled for a long time,” Sanchez said. “The season is not over. At the end of the day, this is a week-to-week business. It’s my job to get everybody back on track and going.”

UNLV’s loss adds even more weight to Saturday’s 4 p.m. game at Idaho, a trip already considered important because it figured to be a barometer on where the season would head.

Perhaps the Rebels win at Idaho and find the spark to get their season on track and make a run to a bowl. Or they lose at Idaho — where oddsmakers expect the betting line to move by a touchdown and make the Vandals 5½-point favorites — and face the likelihood of an 0-3 start after a game at Ohio State two weeks later.

In addition to pulling off such a huge upset, Howard received a $600,000 paycheck, the kind of money typically given to a season-opening opponent not expected to be much of a challenge.

Bruce Bayne, former president of the UNLV Football Foundation, said because football is only now being properly funded, many supporters want to make sure Sanchez has time to turn around the long-struggling program. But Bayne expressed concern about being too cautious. 

“We have all the things we need now academically to be a Tier 1 university,” Bayne said. “Now we need an athletic program that pushes us over the top, that allows us to enter into a different conference. (Athletic director) Desiree (Reed-Francois) has that same vision and that same view, so let’s find a coach we can do that with. I’m not sure Tony’s that guy.”

UNLV gave Sanchez a three-year extension on March 6 that takes him through the 2021 season. He makes $600,000 annually, with the school responsible for a $300,000 annual buyout through the end of the deal.

Saturday’s defeat created a stir not only in Las Vegas but around the nation from ESPN to prominent newspapers and websites.

“Inside of a football building, inside of an athletic building — it doesn’t matter what sport you play — we don’t listen to all the outside noise. You can’t worry about that stuff,” Sanchez said after the game.

“There were plenty of teams that got upset and had bad games. There were a lot of teams that were in jeopardy of losing to (FCS) teams this week, and we’ve all got to respond, especially the ones that ended up on this side of it. Nobody knows where you should end up. We expect to win a game like this. I would definitely understand the frustration of the fans. I would definitely understand the frustration of Rebel supporters in a game like this.

“The only thing that’s going to fix it is going out and winning the game next week.”

An attempt to reach Lorenzo Fertitta, the biggest supporter of Sanchez being hired at UNLV from Bishop Gorman High School, was unsuccessful.

Longtime booster and former two-time UNLV Football Foundation president Chuck Davison said he didn’t want to comment.

“Hopefully, with somebody in finance that supports athletics and makes budgets that make sense to be competitive, I’m confident that things can change,” Bayne said. “I felt that (Reed-Francois) has a definite concept and idea of what it takes to win and even win at another level. So I’m hopeful, and though last night was devastating, there could be a new dawn on the horizon with new leadership in the athletic department.”

Contact Mark Anderson at manderson@reviewjournal.com. Follow @markanderson65 on Twitter.