UNLV football runs up 3-1 record by beating UTEP

By Mike Grimala (contact)

Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023 | 10:31 p.m.

El Paso means “The Pass” in Spanish, but UNLV opted to keep the ball on the ground Saturday, using a dominant rushing attack to defeat UTEP, 45-28.

The win improves UNLV to 3-1 on the season; the Scarlet and Gray will head into the Mountain West portion of the schedule riding a wave of momentum and needing just three more wins to qualify for a bowl game for the first time since 2013.

UNLV did not play a perfect game, or really anything close to it. Barry Odom’s squad committed 10 penalties, with several of them extending UTEP scoring drives, and the passing game faltered at times, including a regrettable fourth-quarter interception thrown by freshman quarterback Jayden Maiava. But they were able to paper over the miscues by bullying UTEP in the trenches, as UNLV racked up 306 rushing yards on the night.

Jai’Den Thomas was the star performer, carrying 13 times for 100 yards and four touchdowns. The true freshman tied the school record for touchdowns in a single game and now has seven scores on the season.

Senior Vincent Davis also carved up the Miners defense, gaining 97 yards on 13 carries.

When UTEP closed within a touchdown, trimming UNLV’s lead to 35-28 midway through the fourth quarter, senior Courtney Reese followed perfect blocking for a 32-yard touchdown run to clinch the victory.

For the game, UNLV averaged 6.4 yards per rush and tallied six touchdowns on the ground, which Odom credited to well-executed blocking.

“We established the run up front, established the line of scrimmage,” Odom said. “I thought our offensive line did a nice job.”

Junior quarterback Doug Brumfield did not play due to the rib injury that knocked him out of last week’s game against Vanderbilt. That set the stage for Maiava to make a statement in his first career start, but another freshman had designs on stealing the show.

Thomas scored twice in the first quarter, then added another TD run late in the first half to send UNLV into the break with a 28-14 lead. Another 1-yard scoring run early in the fourth quarter gave the Scarlet and Gray some breathing room and gave Thomas a spot in the team record book, as he tied the program high.

Outside the victorious locker room, Thomas was happy to hear that UNLV ran for more than 300 yards as a team.

“We showed great effort today,” Thomas said. “Our goal was 250, so 300 was over our goal. Shout out to my O-linemen and coach [Vance] Vice.”

Though it wasn’t a smooth 60 minutes of football, there were several drives where UNLV appeared to be in complete control, using a fast tempo and multiple backs — staples of the team’s new go-go offense — to punish the overmatched UTEP defense. Four UNLV running backs notched at least six carries, and three of them scored touchdowns.

Thomas said when the go-go is humming, the entire backfield benefits.

“The go-go offense is very unique,” Thomas said. “It’s new for me and new for everybody. Two-back set, everybody gets to eat.”

Defensively, UNLV once again thrived on big plays. The Scarlet and Gray forced UTEP into nine plays that went for negative yardage, and that doesn’t include Jaxen Turner’s two interceptions or the blocked punt in the first quarter that led to UNLV’s first touchdown.

Maiava played a steady game for the most part, hitting 15-of-27 passes for 190 yards, including a couple long gains. But he made a bad decision on a third down deep in UTEP territory, forcing a ball into traffic instead of throwing it away and settling for a short field goal that would have extended UNLV’s lead to 10 points.

The throw was intercepted by defensive lineman Praise Amaewhule and kept UTEP hanging around longer than they should have.

Odom endorsed Maiava’s overall performance, however.

“I thought he controlled the game,” Odom said. “I thought he made good decisions. Obviously the interception there going in on the tipped ball, that’s a crucial mistake, but I thought he was efficient in how he took control of the offense. From start to finish I thought he played winning football.”

With nonconference play complete, UNLV will host Hawaii on Saturday in the first MWC contest for both teams.

Mike Grimala can be reached at 702-948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Mike on Twitter at twitter.com/mikegrimala.