UNLV’s Armani Rogers, Lexington Thomas honored by MW

Quarterback Armani Rogers and running back Lexington Thomas took UNLV’s football team to within one victory of qualifying for the postseason, and they were honored Wednesday for their efforts.

Rogers was named Mountain West Freshman of the Year and Thomas to the all-conference first team.

Rogers is the fourth Rebels player to earn the conference’s top freshman award and the first since wide receiver Devonte Boyd in 2014.

“It’s a big honor that happened because of the team and coaches pushing me,” Rogers said. “I felt my first year on the field was pretty good, but the end result was not what we wanted, so we have to keep working hard and getting better.”

He set school rushing records for a quarterback with 780 yards for a season and 193 yards for a single game at New Mexico. He also passed for 1,471 yards and six touchdowns and rushed for eight TDs as the Rebels went 5-7 overall.

Thomas, a junior, rushed for 1,336 yards, averaging 6.3 yards per carry. The yardage total was the fourth highest in school history, and his 17 touchdowns tied Mike Thomas’ 1974 output for second best in a single season. Thomas’ 20 TDs in 1973 is the team record.

Senior defensive tackle Mike Hughes Jr., a Palo Verde High School graduate, was a second-team selection. He finished with 53 tackles, including seven for loss and two sacks. Hughes also blocked a kick.

Two offensive linemen, junior Nathan Jacobson and senior Kyle Saxelid, made honorable mention.

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