Wednesday, March 12, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.
THE TIMING was intentional, the incentive obvious.
With local interest in the UNLV basketball program on the upswing, particularly this week with the Rebels in the National Invitation Tournament, a Tuesday luncheon designed to promote football made sense. And the response was excellent, the Si Redd Room at the Thomas & Mack Center virtually filled to capacity.
Basketball is hot, so football is doing its best to capitalize.
Those in attendance appeared willing to embrace a notion fostered by the UNLV Sports Marketing Department, a somewhat unique concept in which members of the newly organized Touchdown Club are being asked to sell football tickets. There are various rewards for both buyers and sellers, with a stated goal of distributing 10,000 season tickets.
Last year the season-ticket count was fewer than 3,000. Two years ago it was 1,200.
About 3,000 season tickets for the 1997 season have already been sold, making 10,000 a not-out-of-the-question possibility.
Those inclined to participate in the program fall into a similar category: influential, with business contacts, and surprisingly enthusiastic toward a team that was only 1-11 in 1996.
"This shows you the potential we have," head coach Jeff Horton said afterward, referring not only to the well-heeled clientele at the luncheon but to the impact those people could have on his team, particularly if the Touchdown Club ignites a ticket-buying frenzy. "Football has been through a few tough years here, but these people know it takes time to move up."
The Rebels will be improved next season and should improve again in 1998, as Horton returns 85 percent of his team this year and another 85 percent the following year.
His incoming recruits include a senior-to-be, Rodrick Johnson, who rushed for an astounding 2,338 yards and 25 touchdowns last season at Dixie Junior College. "I told him if he only does half of that for us, we'll be satisfied," Horton said, adding that he planned to get the ball into Johnson's hands "30 or 35 times a game."
UNLV also acquired six other JC transfers "to fill some holes," as Horton said. "All seven of them could make an impact."
There are also four new assistant coaches, with a fifth to be added before spring drills begin next month. Horton said the most noticeable change will be on defense, where the Rebels will tinker with "an aggressive, eight-man front" that has its roots in the SEC.
If all these moves are positives, the Rebels will win an occasional game and maybe entice decent crowds for their five home dates. It may not be the most attractive home schedule -- Hawaii, Illinois State, TCU, Colorado State and San Jose State -- yet tickets are inexpensive and someone you know may try to sell you one.
Like Girl Scouts hawking cookies, Touchdown Club members have hit the streets, peddling not only tickets but a feel-good attitude toward UNLV football.
Expect a sad face if you reject their appeal.
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