Win would put UNLV in realistic position for bowl berth

FRESNO, Calif. — It's easy to say that winning Friday night would mean UNLV takes needed momentum into its bye week.

Sure, there is some truth to that, but such a statement misses the greater point.

Winning means UNLV has something genuine to play for heading into the final five games of its football season rather than the nearly annual exercise of playing for pride and playing out the string.

So the Rebels will have a sense of urgency when they play Fresno State at 7:30 p.m. at Bulldog Stadium. ESPN2 will televise the game.

"It's a big game," UNLV coach Tony Sanchez said. "Where we are in our program and the building process we're going through, it's important to go out and fight and get these wins."

UNLV's goals — competing for the Mountain West title, going to a bowl — would be all but out of reach if the Rebels lose. A victory doesn't guarantee either, but at least gets the Rebels closer to those dreams.

Bowl eligibility would be in the conversation if UNLV, a 6-point favorite, beats Fresno State (1-5, 0-3 MW). That would put the Rebels (2-4, 1-1) just one game under .500, meaning they would need to win three of their final five games to get to the postseason.

Win or lose, winning the West Division won't be easy because UNLV still has Boise State on its schedule, an almost sure defeat, and it's a lot to ask for a two-loss team to take even the weak West.

"It's another conference game, and we can't let another one slip in conference," UNLV quarterback Kurt Palandech said of facing Fresno State. "We want to be competing for the top, and to do that, you've got to win every game in conference."

This isn't the same Fresno State team that won the Mountain West championship two seasons ago and came within an eyelash of making a Bowl Championship Series game. Fresno State is losing by an average of 22.3 points per game, third worst in the country.

The Bulldogs are on their fourth starting quarterback, with redshirt freshman Kilton Anderson getting the call for the second game in a row. He might have to try to win a scoring contest against UNLV with a Bulldogs defense that allows 211.2 yards rushing per game and 233.5 yards passing, with opposing quarterbacks completing 70 percent of their throws.

With those numbers, it's as if Fresno State has traded places with UNLV.

But how much of the old UNLV has Sanchez, in his first season on the job, expunged from the system? If it's true that part of being a good program is taking care of business against lesser competition, a convincing victory will further validate times are indeed changing.

"It amazed me how fast the whole team has bought into this whole huge change that came about and the level of trust we have in the coaches," Rebels tight end Jake Phillips said.

The pressure will be on Palandech to deliver in his second start in a row. He has been up and down this season, but threw two touchdown passes in the fourth quarter of Saturday's 33-27 overtime loss to San Jose State.

If Palandech falters, Blake Decker could be called upon to take his place. Decker didn't play against the Spartans because of an injured left shoulder but is close to healed, and Sanchez said he wouldn't hesitate to put him in the game.

Whether it's changing quarterbacks or changing strategies, Sanchez and his staff need to do whatever it takes to win.

He knows what a victory would mean going into the open week. It would build on what has been accomplished and set the standard for what's expected the rest of the way.

"We haven't been successful in every one of our games, but we haven't embarrassed this university," Sanchez said. "We've played well in every single one of them. There have been multiple games where we had a chance to win at the end. Our kids don't quit."

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