Rebels’ season ends in disappointment, as Aztecs pull off 42-21 upset

By Ryan Greene

Saturday, Nov. 22, 2008 | 8:30 p.m.

Final, San Diego State wins 42-21

SAN DIEGO -- Well, forget about watching scoreboards for the next two weeks, waiting to find out which conferences will fill their bowl allotments and which won't.

For the Rebels, it no longer matters.

An 84-yard pick-six by Corey Boudreaux sealed UNLV's fate late on a chilly San Diego evening, as the Rebels finished their up-and-down 2008 season in the dumps with a 42-21 loss to now-2-10 San Diego State.

The Rebels' defense was picked apart by SDSU freshman quarterback Ryan Lindley, who threw for 387 yards and 2 TDs on 35-of-50 passing. UNLV's Mike Clausen's only two interceptions of the season both came in the fourth quarter with UNLV trying to erase sizable deficits. Ryan Wolfe had 11 catches for 144 yards and two touchdowns for the Rebels.

UNLV was unable to get the ground game going against the nation's lowest-ranked run defense. Senior Frank Summers was lost to a right knee injury on the game's first possession, and UNLV mustered just 33 rushing yards against a defense that allowed 267 per game coming in.

Stay tuned to www.lasvegassun.com/rebels for full postgame coverage, including reactions, stories, photos, stats and video.

3:24, fourth quarter, San Diego State leads 42-21

SAN DIEGO -- Mike Clausen's first turnover of his UNLV career came at a pretty desperate time, as UNLV was scurrying downfield trailing by 14 with under four minutes to play.

And it couldn't have hurt any more.

A ball picked off by Aztec safety Corey Boudreaux was returned 84 yards for a touchdown, and it now looks like UNLV's 2007 season will end on a cool, empty night at Qualcomm Stadium.

4:16, fourth quarter, San Diego State leads 35-21

SAN DIEGO -- With the clock no longer their friend, the Rebels now find themselves in quite the pickle. Tyler Campbell's second touchdown run of the game just put the Aztecs up 35-21 with only 4:16 left to play.

The key play came on a fourth-and-one near midfield, where Campbell got the ball just far enough to get a first down via a measurement. The Rebels from there were unable to get a stop. Outside of an 18-yard pass from Ryan Lindley to Alston Umuolo, the Aztecs kept in on the ground, and milked 5:32 off the clock in the process.

Now, it's going to take an Arizona State-sized run of good fortunes for UNLV to salvage bowl eligibility.

9:48, fourth quarter, San Diego State leads 28-21

SAN DIEGO -- There are plenty of hands on the hips on the UNLV sideline, as they're again figuring out how to slow Ryan Lindley.

San Diego responded to UNLV's second touchdown of the night with a 9-play, 72-yard drive which saw Lindley go over the 30-completion and 350-passing yard barrier on the night. The capper was a 12-yard pass on a screen play to Atiyyah Henderson.

That was not the only back-breaker, though. Justin Shaw caught a pass to move the sticks on a third-and-six near midfield, and then a Geoffery Howard (questionable) pass interference call on an uncatchable ball put the ball at the markers at the 15-yard line.

But UNLV responded in a must-score situation, with Mike Clausen finding Ryan Wolfe for a 24-yard touchdwon pass - their second connection of the night for points - to again pull the Rebels within one score.

Clausen is now 21-of-31 for 263 yards and two scores. As for Wolfe, he just became the Rebels' first 1,000-yard receiver in a season since Randy Gatewood did so in 1994.

Now the defense has to get a stop, as two-score deficits are hard to erase once you're this deep into the game.

:17, third quarter, San Diego State leads 21-14

SAN DIEGO -- Well, the Rebels will have more than a fighting chance to secure bowl eligibility as we head to the fourth quarter in chilly San Diego. Channing Trotter made a heads-up play from the one-yard line, reaching the ball over the goal line after getting stopped shy of pay dirt, and after review it was confirmed. UNLV now trails by a touchdown.

The drive was without question Mike Clausen's most impressive of the night. He completed a 22-yard pass to Ryan Wolfe over the middle, and then threw a beauty for a 13-yard gain to a sliding Casey Flair which got the ball down to the SDSU three-yard line.

That score obviously woke the Rebels up. On the ensuing kickoff, Chris Brogdon stuck Davion Mauldin so hard that his helmet flew off.

Can the defense snatch up some of that energy? We'll see.

3:46, third quarter, San Diego State leads 21-7

SAN DIEGO -- Now the Rebels might be left to wonder 'what if?' on the heels of San Diego State's third touchdown of the night, coming on a three-yard run by Darren Mougey.

After Michael Johnson's costly drop, C.J. Cox fumbled it away, and it took SDSU almost no time to capitalize from the UNLV 29. First, Ryan Lindley hit Austin Umuolo - whose brother, Reggie, will be a freshman linebacker next year at UNLV - for 20 yards. Then, after an illegal substitution called against the Rebels, Mougey lined up and punched it in on the left side of the line.

Lindley in the process became the 14th quarterback in SDSU history to throw for over 300 yards in a game.

UNLV's ensuing drive just started with a 22-yard pass down the seam from Mike Clausen to Ryan Wolfe. The Rebs aren't dead yet. But it's getting late, and some urgency is needed.

7:00, third quarter, San Diego State leads 14-7

SAN DIEGO -- On the positive side, the Rebels' defense has made two huge stops to start the second half. But with the ball in their hands, the UNLV offense has yet to make anything happen. They're pretty much looking relegated to the short passing game right now.

You've almost got to think that UNLV didn't expect to struggle like this in terms of running the ball.

Mike Clausen just hit Rodelin Anthony and Ryan Wolfe for back-to-back first downs on their second drive of the half to get the ball near midfield. Then an opportunity to score was just blown, as Michael Johnson dropped a bomb at the SDSU 20. He would have scored if he held onto it. A play later, C.J. Cox fumbled the ball back to SDSU.

If SDSU scores on this drive - which will start at the UNLV 29 - it could be over. A UNLV back hadn't fumbled the ball away in 441 carries. It just might not be the Rebels' night.

Halftime, San Diego State leads 14-7

SAN DIEGO -- It's difficult to decide which is more surprising: UNLV's inability to run the ball so far tonight or its struggles against the SDSU pass attack.

Frank Summers was shown quite a bit of respect by the SDSU players and coaches, with several of them stopping to man-hug the injured Rebels' running back as he limped off the field towards the locker room at the half. He was lost for the night to a knee injury on the game's opening drive.

With C.J. Cox and Mike Clausen running the show on the ground, the Rebels have 35 yards on 18 carries against a defense that allows 267 per game.

When they've had the ball, the Aztecs haven't run it so well, either, but boy is Ryan Lindley flinging it around through the air. The frosh has 229 yards on 20 completions, with sophomore target Vincent Brown having 103 yards on six grabs.

Clausen's started slow in each of the past two weeks, but tonight's been a bit different for some reason. His passes over the seam have floated over receivers' heads, though he's still a decent 8-of-13 for 104 yards and a score.

Not sure what to make of this second half in terms of a prognostication. If UNLV's defense sets the tone on the opening possession, they're in decent shape since they're used to coming from behind of late. But a score right off the bat, and SDSU's confidence continues to grow and the Rebels might be facing a disastrous finish to the season which was resurrected over the past two weeks.

Stay tuned.

4:06, second quarter, San Diego State leads 14-7

SAN DIEGO -- The Rebels have needed come-from-behind efforts to defeat their last two opponents. Why should this week be any different?

If UNLV is to attain bowl eligibility, they'll need to first erase a 14-7 deficit created by a one-yard Tyler Campbell touchdown run, which capped an 86-yard SDSU drive. His touchdown plunge was merely a footnote, though, compared to some of the big plays freshman quarterback Ryan Lindley helped create.

First, he hit sophomore Vincent Brown for a 14-yard gain, giving him 103 yards on six grabs so far tonight. Then, after a 27-yard pass to Roberto Wallace while on the run, he floated a pass over two Rebel defenders to Alston Umuolo for 12 yards down to the UNLV one-yard line.

UNLV sorely needs an answer before the half. Plain and simple.

Lindley's 17-of-23 for 212 yards and a score.

8:39, second quarter, game tied 7-7

SAN DIEGO -- On paper, it looked like it could have turned into a shootout, but the Rebels' regular season finale tonight at San Diego State has been anything but that. In front of a brutally sparse crowd, UNLV and SDSU are still tied, 7-7, mid-way through the second quarter.

The thing to remember at this point is that UNLV QB Mike Clausen has proven in his first two career starts that he's a slow starter. So far tonight, he's 6-of-9 for 71 yards and a score, but hasn't had much of a run game to work alongside. With Frank Summers out for the night, C.J. Cox is the primary back by default. So far, he has just 11 yards on six carries.

The defense is at least coming up with stops, and you'd have to figure that given recent history, Clausen will power things here at some point. The key for UNLV is keeping SDSU from getting anything going.

It's a very unusual atmosphere tonight, as you can hear the echoes in this place. A very empty NFL stadium. In fact, from our open-air press box, which is located in the corner of the end zone, you can hear the Rebels band members on the other side of the stadium chanting 'RE-BELS' quite clearly.

2:58, first quarter, game tied 7-7

SAN DIEGO -- Three of UNLV's top five offensive performers over the course of the season are now on the sideline sans pads. Joining QB Omar Clayton and WR Phillip Payne is senior RB Frank Summers.

He left the game after the first series and headed to the locker room with what is being called a right knee injury. He just now re-emerged in his uniform, but with sweatpants and no pads on.

Now the bulk of the duties will fall upon the shoulders of freshman C.J. Cox. UNLV so far has just 26 yards on 11 carries against the nation's lowest-ranked run defense.

7:01, first quarter, game tied 7-7

SAN DIEGO -- For a second, the Rebels thought they had themselves another takeaway. Then, following an all-for-nothing booth review, SDSU's second drive of the game continued. It concluded with a six-yard pass from Ryan Lindley to DeMarco Sampson, who was covered by Deante Purvis. Purvis was making his defensive debut on the series.

Two snaps earlier, on an option pitch, Attiyah Henderson bobbled Lindley's pitch, and Thor Pili came up with the ball for UNLV. It was ruled an incomplete forward pass. Mike Sanford challenged the call, and after a lengthy review, the refs said that due to an equipment malfunction, it could not be reviewed.

At that point, Sanford was livid, and let the referees know how he felt. He might have done so enough to earn a make-up call at some point down the road in this one.

Either way, a touchdown's a touchdown, and UNLV now looks like it'll have it's work cut out. They'll be doing so for the time being with C.J. Cox in the backfield, as Frank Summers went into the locker room to get re-taped. He had a hip flexor strain this week that held him out of Tuesday's practice.

9:22, first quarter, UNLV leads 7-0

SAN DIEGO -- A little bit of trickery, and just like that, UNLV leads San Diego State, 7-0, in the first quarter at Qualcomm Stadium.

Both teams went three-and-out on opening drives, and after a Casey Flair punt return to midfield, the Rebels got to work. They faced a fourth-and-three from the Aztecs' 33-yard line, and instead of trying a 50-yard field goal, split four receivers out wide. Three were sent to the left.

Before the snap, C.J. Cox moved from the backfield over to behind the trips on the left, and as the ball got to Mike Clausen's hands, he faked a screen to the freshman back. The entire Aztecs defense bit, and Clausen flipped a pass over the middle to Ryan Wolfe. The junior wideout shot down the seam and evaded one tackle en route to a 33-yard score. On that play, he became the Rebels' all-time receiving yardage leader.

It was a gutsy call on fourth-and-three, but against a defense that's struggled like this one, risk-taking is probably highly advised.

Pregame

SAN DIEGO -- So much for the perfect storm.

Colorado State came from behind today in Laramie to defeat Wyoming, 31-20, bumping the Rams up to bowl eligible status at 6-6.

By the perfect storm, I mean a series of three things which would have had to have happened this weekend in order for UNLV to lock up an almost-guaranteed trip to the New Mexico Bowl.

Those three things are (er, were) ...

-UNLV defeats San Diego State (kicking off in roughly an hour here at Qualcomm Stadium).

-Wyoming defeats CSU.

-Utah takes down BYU, goes undefeated and lands a BCS bowl berth.

Now, of course, this doesn't mean the New Mexico Bowl is out of the question, and it doesn't mean tonight is the end of the Rebels' season. Should UNLV down SDSU and Utah hangs on, it's assumed the New Mexico Bowl would take CSU, given that they took out the Rebels in the regular season meeting. But CSU could also get sent somewhere else as an at-large.

What that earlier result means is that UNLV's bowl fate might not be known for about two more weeks after tonight.

Again, all assuming that UNLV wins. And on paper, it's hard not to make assumptions right now.

It's going to be a cool, crisp night here at Qualcomm. I'm already a fan of the place because of the open-air press box, but this trip means even more to several of the Rebels who hail from SoCal.

Add that in with how wretched the Aztecs' defense is and the momentum the Rebels come in here with, and, well, 6-6 is a high likelihood.

One final pregame note: It appears as though Omar Clayton and Phillip Payne will not dress out for the Rebels tonight. Clayton, UNLV's sophomore QB who suffered a torn MCL on Nov. 1 in a loss to TCU, has yet to return to practice. His being out is not very surprising. As for Payne, the frosh receiver took limited reps this week, but will not suit up as he recovers from two concussions suffered in a three-week stretch. His absence might not have a major impact, given how well Rodelin Anthony and Jerriman Robinson have combined to perform in his place the past two weeks.

That said, on to tonight's three big predictions ...

1) San Diego State's gonna make the Rebels work for this one. For as lopsided as some expect this one to be, don't forget that UNLV hasn't won a game by more than 10 points this season (that was an opening night 27-17 victory over Utah State). With as much as San Diego State throws the ball, you'd have to assume the Aztecs will find their way into the end zone at least twice. If this one gets out of control, I'm saying it doesn't happen until after halftime.

2) Frank Summers gets at least 30 touches. If not, I'd be utterly shocked.

3) UNLV 38, SDSU 21.

Talk to you after kickoff.