Friday, Sept. 19, 2003 | 10:54 a.m.
Dean Juipe's column appears Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. His boxing notebook appears Thursday. Reach him at [email protected] or (702) 259-4084.
As I settle into my seat tonight at Sam Boyd Stadium, two things will come to mind.
First, I'll be conscious of the fact that I'll actually be in someone else's seat, refusing, as I do, to sit in sterile and vapid press boxes whenever possible. Hopefully, I'll find a vacant bench up in the rafters that's accommodating and no one will be the wiser.
Secondly, and of greater concern here, as kickoff approaches I'll be reminded that this game with Hawaii can't possibly be more fun than last week's game at Wisconsin. As a long-suffering observer of the UNLV football team -- and as we all know, UNLV has nothing but long-suffering fans and observers -- I can safely say I never enjoyed watching the Rebels more than I did in their scintillating 23-5 victory against the bumbling, shell-shocked Badgers.
The only game in my experience that compared to it was UNLV's 2000 Las Vegas Bowl win against Arkansas, which was an exciting night and a surprising outcome as well.
Impartial as I may be, I shared the team's euphoria after the Wisconsin game. It was a delightful experience and very much unexpected after the horrendous game a week earlier at Kansas.
What is it with the Rebels, anyway?
They played a so-so game against a so-so Toledo team to open the season; they played awful against a seemingly awful Kansas team a week later; and they played great, especially defensively, against the nationally ranked Badgers.
Now Hawaii's here and the ramifications are already apparent. A win tonight and UNLV is not only 3-1 and gaining a few votes in the polls, but in position to consider itself a Mountain West and bowl contender.
That's quite an upgrade from a week ago, when the stench from the Kansas debacle had fans, bookies and columnists believing the Rebels were among the worst teams in the nation.
This game tonight is going to be the one that, one way or the other, will settle the question of whether UNLV is in for a decent season or not. Hawaii provides the perfect, definitive test.
The Warriors are a predictable 1-1, having abused an Appalachian State team that used its trip to the islands as a vacation, and having been abused by a Southern Cal team that burnt out the bulbs in a 61-32 scoringfest.
Hawaii does some different things, such as dropping its quarterback deep and throwing the ball on almost every down. It has schematics, routes and plays that make it a unique offensive team (even if it has had trouble with its linemen).
But it isn't a great team overall and it arrives in Las Vegas not only six days removed from a bruising game with USC but after a lengthy, boring and tedious stay on the mainland as well. Coach June Jones said he was going to use the extended stay on the West Coast to build morale and bonds within the team, but these guys have to be eager to get home.
If only the Rebels were more predictable it could be said with some certainty that the USC/mainland factors will swing the game their way.
Bettors are leaning in that direction and have moved the line off "pick 'em" to UNLV minus 1, but it's also worth noting that the Rebels haven't covered the spread in consecutive games since beating UNR and San Diego State back to back two years ago.
The crowd should be lively, the game's on national TV and there's some built-in importance in the outcome.
If the Rebels are going to be worth following the rest of the season, they need to win this game right here. They need to extend the euphoria.
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