UNLV’s Decker seeking to prove himself with fresh start under Sanchez

By Taylor Bern

Tuesday, March 17, 2015 | 2 a.m.

Senior quarterback Blake Decker said there were a lot of positives that came out of the 2014 season, though he knows the Rebels’ record wasn’t one of them.

UNLV never really gave up and some of the losses could have gone the other way with a couple more plays the Rebels’ way. But they didn’t, and 2-11 is 2-11, something Decker still puts on himself.

“I credit that a lot to me, to poor play and turning the ball over in situations that I couldn’t turn the ball over,” he said. “… I can’t look back on it and not be frustrated, not have that propel me into this spring and next season to, if I get that chance to start and play, know that I’ve got a lot of doubters for prove wrong, especially here in Vegas.”

Coming off a season when he ranked second in the country in interceptions (18) and, not coincidentally, finished 13th in sacks allowed (34), Decker is trying to finish his career by showing he’s more than what UNLV fans saw last season. And he’s doing it while learning a new offense for the fifth time in his career, this time under first-year Rebels coach Tony Sanchez.

UNLV opened spring practice Monday with some of Sanchez’s expected flair. While crowds of local recruits looked on — something that was rarely seen here under coach Bobby Hauck — the new speaker system’s playlist was eclectic, including AC/DC, Eminem and The Lumineers, and the drills had some good pace with players constantly swapping between reps with the first and second teams.

“Overall a B-,” Sanchez said of his first practice as a college coach. “It wasn’t a terrible day and it by far wasn’t going to be our best day.”

No one has a job yet, Sanchez has said, but he won’t be shy about handing them out once they’re earned.

“My intention is that as soon as the cream rises to the top and you see the guy who can be your No. 1, you go ahead and make that decision,” Sanchez said.

Particularly at quarterback, the status quo lately has been to hold off on any announcements until the summer. That could still turn out to be the case, but the possibility of an earlier decision puts some emphasis on trying to stand out as soon as possible in the three-man competition among Decker, junior college transfer Kurt Palandech and redshirt freshman Kevin Thomson.

“I wouldn’t expect them to have any different mentality than I have, which is that I’m going out there like I’m the guy and I’m going to be the guy,” Decker said.

Decker has been the guy at several different stops, though it usually goes better than 2014 did. Decker guessed that last year was the most games he had lost combined since Pop Warner, and injuries from all of the hits took their toll.

But one advantage he has, if it can be called that, is that Decker has never had the same offensive system for consecutive seasons. He played a year at Phoenix College before serving a two-year mission and then learned BYU’s system for a redshirt season. The Cougars moved on without him, so Decker went and starred at Scottsdale Community College before transferring to UNLV.

The consistent inconsistency means having a new coach and new terminology is the norm, and Decker thinks he can use that to adapt and prove himself sooner than later.

“You learn how to learn, if that makes any sense,” he said.

Decker and the Rebels are hoping that that learning process is infectious, because as much as Decker might still blame himself he was far from the only reason for UNLV’s struggles. And learning from those mistakes would be more of a positive than most anything that came from last season.

Taylor Bern can be reached at 948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Taylor on Twitter at twitter.com/taylorbern.