CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2015 UNLV

3–⁠9 (2–⁠6 Mountain West Conference), coached by Tony Sanchez.

Schedule and results

UNLV in 2015, game by game: lost at Northern Illinois 30–38; lost vs. No. 13 UCLA 3–37; lost at Michigan 7–28; won vs. Idaho State 80–8; won at Nevada 23–17; lost vs. San José State 27–33; lost at Fresno State 28–31; lost vs. Boise State 27–55; won vs. Hawai’i 41–21; lost at Colorado State 35–49; lost vs. San Diego State 14–52; lost at Wyoming 28–35+72−38Lost 30–38 at Northern Illinois-8Northern Illino…Lost 3–37 vs. No. 13 UCLA-34No. 13 UCLALost 7–28 at Michigan-21MichiganWon 80–8 vs. Idaho State+72Idaho StateWon 23–17 at Nevada+6NevadaLost 27–33 vs. San José State-6San José StateLost 28–31 at Fresno State-3Fresno StateLost 27–55 vs. Boise State-28Boise StateWon 41–21 vs. Hawai’i+20Hawai’iLost 35–49 at Colorado State-14Colorado StateLost 14–52 vs. San Diego State-38San Diego StateLost 28–35 at Wyoming-7Wyoming
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 5atNorthern IllinoisL 30–⁠3817%
Sep 12vs13UCLAL 3–⁠3721%
Sep 19atMichiganL 7–⁠2822%
Sep 26vsIdaho StateW 80–⁠855%
Oct 3atNevadaW 23–⁠1729%
Oct 10vsSan José StateL 27–⁠3354%
Oct 16atFresno StateL 28–⁠3142%
Oct 31vsBoise StateL 27–⁠5520%
Nov 7vsHawai’iW 41–⁠2161%
Nov 14atColorado StateL 35–⁠4927%
Nov 21vsSan Diego StateL 14–⁠5225%
Nov 28atWyomingL 28–⁠3553%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Lost to Wyoming 35–⁠28; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 9th in the Mountain West Conference.

In program history: The tied 32nd-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 56 on file).

Record
3–⁠9
Conference
2–⁠6 tied for 9th in Mountain West Conference
AP final
Unranked
Points
343–⁠404
Coach
Tony Sanchez
Elo
1324 −39 this season
SP+ rating
-16.2 No. 116 of 128; offense No. 98, defense No. 120, special teams No. 81
SRS
−10.8 No. 101 of 128 in FBS
Returning
74% of last season’s EPA, No. 41 of 128
Recruiting class
No. 106 roster talent No. 113 in FBS
Offensive coordinator
Barney Cotton
Defensive coordinator
Kent Baer
Offense
Multiple
Defense
4–⁠3

How good, play by play

  • Offense97th of 128
  • Defense109th of 128
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted101st of 128
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted117th of 128
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.0240%1.2497th of 128
Defense0.1848%1.20109th of 128
Opponent-adjusted0.03 off
0.18 def		40% off
48% def		—101st off
117th def
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense3.4own 312% allowed
Defense4.0own 312% caused

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsBlake Decker QB1,713 yds
Passing touchdownsBlake Decker QB12 TD
Rushing yardsKeith Whitely RB711 yds
Rushing touchdownsXzaviar Campbell RB5 TD
Receiving yardsDevonte Boyd WR904 yds
Receiving touchdownsDevonte Boyd WR7 TD
InterceptionsTim Hough DB4 INT

Top recruits in the 2015 class

Justin Polu OG★★★No. 1232
Darius Mouton CB★★★No. 1891
Dalton Sneed PRO★★★No. 2095
Salanoa-Alo Wily DT★★★No. 2134
Brandon Presley WR★★No. 2224

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2015 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks13.00.799
Running backs22.00.776
Receivers22.00.777
Offensive line22.50.808
Defensive line32.30.785
Linebackers12.00.788
Defensive backs52.20.776
Whole class162.20.784

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Roster 101

The 2015 roster

101 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2015 line; 29 have a stat line. See the roster

2015 Mountain West Conference standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
San Diego State8–⁠011–⁠3
Air Force6–⁠28–⁠6
Boise State5–⁠39–⁠4
Colorado State5–⁠37–⁠6
New Mexico5–⁠37–⁠6
Utah State5–⁠36–⁠7
Nevada4–⁠47–⁠6
San José State4–⁠46–⁠7
Fresno State2–⁠63–⁠9
UNLV2–⁠63–⁠9
Wyoming2–⁠62–⁠10
Hawai’i0–⁠83–⁠10

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.