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2018 UNLV

4–⁠8 (2–⁠6 Mountain West Conference), coached by Tony Sanchez.

Schedule and results

UNLV in 2018, game by game: lost at No. 15 USC 21–43; won vs. UTEP 52–24; won vs. Prairie View A&M 46–17; lost at Arkansas State 20–27; lost vs. New Mexico 14–50; lost at Utah State 28–59; lost vs. Air Force 35–41; lost at San José State 37–50; lost vs. No. 20 Fresno State 3–48; won at San Diego State 27–24; lost at Hawai’i 28–35; won vs. Nevada 34–29+29−45Lost 21–43 at No. 15 USC-22No. 15 USCWon 52–24 vs. UTEP+28UTEPWon 46–17 vs. Prairie View A&M+29Prairie View A&MLost 20–27 at Arkansas State-7Arkansas StateLost 14–50 vs. New Mexico-36New MexicoLost 28–59 at Utah State-31Utah StateLost 35–41 vs. Air Force-6Air ForceLost 37–50 at San José State-13San José StateLost 3–48 vs. No. 20 Fresno State-45No. 20 Fresno StateWon 27–24 at San Diego State+3San Diego StateLost 28–35 at Hawai’i-7Hawai’iWon 34–29 vs. Nevada+5Nevada
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 1at15USCL 21–⁠4316%
Sep 8vsUTEPW 52–⁠2476%
Sep 15vsPrairie View A&MW 46–⁠1770%
Sep 22atArkansas StateL 20–⁠2730%
Oct 6vsNew MexicoL 14–⁠5062%
Oct 13atUtah StateL 28–⁠5922%
Oct 19vsAir ForceL 35–⁠4143%
Oct 27atSan José StateL 37–⁠5058%
Nov 3vs20Fresno StateL 3–⁠4817%
Nov 10atSan Diego StateW 27–⁠2412%
Nov 17atHawai’iL 28–⁠3537%
Nov 24vsNevadaW 34–⁠2935%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Beat Nevada 34–⁠29; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 9th in the Mountain West Conference.

In program history: The 26th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 56 on file).

Record
4–⁠8
Conference
2–⁠6 tied for 9th in Mountain West Conference
AP final
Unranked
Points
345–⁠447
Coach
Tony Sanchez
Elo
1359 −68 this season
SP+ rating
-11.1 No. 106 of 130; offense No. 50, defense No. 116, special teams No. 128
SRS
−12.0 No. 108 of 130 in FBS
Returning
78% of last season’s EPA, No. 31 of 130
Recruiting class
No. 99 roster talent No. 96 in FBS
Offensive coordinator
Barney Cotton
Defensive coordinator
Tim Skipper
Offense
Multiple
Defense
3–⁠4

How good, play by play

  • Offense88th of 130
  • Defense120th of 130
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted89th of 130
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted125th of 130
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.0539%1.3788th of 130
Defense0.2446%1.35120th of 130
Opponent-adjusted0.07 off
0.23 def		40% off
47% def		—89th off
125th 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
Offense3.7own 2917% allowed
Defense4.4own 3216% caused

CORE rating -14.2, 113th of 130 (offense -1.1, defense 13.0).

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. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsMax Gilliam QB1,394 yds
Passing touchdownsMax Gilliam QB14 TD
Rushing yardsLexington Thomas RB1,071 yds
Rushing touchdownsLexington Thomas RB12 TD
Receiving yardsBrandon Presley WR434 yds
Receiving touchdownsTyleek Collins WR6 TD
TacklesDalton Baker DB109 tkl
SacksRoger Mann DL4.5 sacks
InterceptionsJavin White LB4 INT

Top recruits in the 2018 class

Kenyon Oblad PRO★★★No. 1299
Phillip Hill S★★★No. 1572
Tyleek Collins WR★★★No. 1645
Moa Heimuli DT★★★No. 1639
Bryan Catchings OG★★★No. 1684

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

The 2018 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks13.00.842
Running backs13.00.803
Receivers42.80.803
Offensive line22.50.763
Defensive line33.00.822
Linebackers32.30.784
Defensive backs22.50.802
Whole class162.70.800

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 102

The 2018 roster

102 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2018 line; 60 have a stat line. See the roster

2018 Mountain West Conference standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Fresno State7–⁠112–⁠218
Utah State7–⁠111–⁠222
Boise State7–⁠110–⁠323
Nevada5–⁠38–⁠5
Hawai’i5–⁠38–⁠6
San Diego State4–⁠47–⁠6
Wyoming4–⁠46–⁠6
Air Force3–⁠55–⁠7
UNLV2–⁠64–⁠8
Colorado State2–⁠63–⁠9
New Mexico1–⁠73–⁠9
San José State1–⁠71–⁠11

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