Robinson's Rebel debut doesn't get much hype in Texas

DENTON, Texas -- A minute-by-minute account of the first game day of the John Robinson era of UNLV football:

8:30 a.m.: If Robinson is nervous about his Rebel coaching debut, you couldn't tell it by his sleep pattern. Following a Wednesday night dinner with wife Linda and his ex-USC and Rams offensive line Hudson Houck, now the offensive line coach with the Dallas Cowboys, Robinson sleeps right through to his 8:30 wake-up call. "Unless he was just pretending to snore," Linda Robinson jokes.

9 a.m.: Although writers from Sports Illustrated and the Los Angeles Times have made it to Denton for Robinson's UNLV debut, the game doesn't merit the top headline on the sports page of the Denton Record-Chronicle. That honor goes to, "Valley View looks for early test from Gunter." That would be the Valley View Eagles and the Gunter Tigers, a couple of local prep football teams who play each other tonight. A story on Robinson is buried on Page 3.

3 p.m.: Trying to get a ride on the elevator at the team's Radisson Hotel is almost impossible. Reason? Time for the pregame meal of chicken breasts, pasta, fruit and baked potatoes in a downstairs ballroom.

3:35 p.m.: The skies in Denton begin to darken and light rain showers are reported. A bad omen for UNLV? Or North Texas?

4:50 p.m.: Robinson gives his wife a goodbye kiss and boards the first of three buses which take the teams over to Fouts Field.

4:55 p.m.: Linda Robinson shows a reporter a greeting card that she drew during the day for team physician Dr. Gerald Higgins that Hallmark would be proud of. "This is how I battle my nerves," she says with a smile.

6:35: It's just 30 minutes before kickoff and Fouts Field has almost as many red-clad UNLV fans as green-clad North Texas followers. In fact, the crowd looks like your usual weeknight crowd at Cashman Field for a Stars game -- about 500. Mean Green officials are worried that a Dallas Cowboys' preseason game will cut into their gate.

7:05: North Texas wins the coin toss and defers. It will be one of the few things to go right for the Mean Green on this night.

7:10: Let the record show that the first play of the John Robinson era of UNLV football is a three-yard run off right tackle by tailback Jeremi Rudolph.

7:11: UNLV assistant sports information director Mark Wallington points out that Rudolph is the all-time Mountain West Conference rushing leader. Of course, Rudolph's carry was also the first one in MWC history.

7:40: The first quarter ends, 0-0.

7:43: On fourth-and-four on his own 44, North Texas coach Darrell Dickey gambles and fails with a fake punt as Andre Hilliard stops Moody a yard short.

7:49: Shades of USC. Robinson dusts off Student Body Left and Rudolph sprints nine yards around left end for the first touchdown of the game and the Robinson era.

7:50: Shades of Rebels past. Tim O'Reilly's PAT is blocked and UNLV has to settle for a 6-0 lead.

8:19: On the final play of the first half, Ball finally connects, this time from 24 yards out, to cut the Rebels' lead to 6-3. Still, it marks the first time since the last time Robinson was on the sidelines at a UNLV game -- Oct. 4, 1997 at USC -- that the Rebels led at halftime of a road game.

9:27: O'Reilly hits a 23-yard field goal to make it 9-3 early in the fourth quarter, but in the bonehead play of the game, Mean Green defensive tackle Zeb Cornist gets flagged for a running into the kicker penalty. Robinson elects to take the three points off the board and sends back his offense with a first-and-goal at the three.

9:30: Running out of the old Power I -- three backs lined up directly behind Vaughan -- Rudolph makes Robinson's gamble pay off, easily scoring on a three-yard run off right tackle to give UNLV a 13-3 lead.

9:40: Sophomore cornerback Kevin Thomas picks a good time for his first college interception, stepping in front Mean Green wideout LaDarrin McLane on a short out and returning Jason Attaway's pass 49-yards for a touchdown to increase the Rebels' lead to 19-3 with 8:30 left in the game.

9:54: Vaughan hits backup H-Back DeJhown Mandley with an eight-yard touchdown pass with just 31 seconds left to make it 26-3.

9:59: Final score: UNLV 26, North Texas 3.

10:11: A student manager scrambles outside the locker room to get a game ball out of the ball bag. Robinson then presents it to UNLV President Dr. Carol Harter.

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