UNLV sees positive signs entering stretch against ranked teams

UNLV shot manager Marcus Arroyo is preaching positivity. At slightest that was his connection to the property this week aft a 35-33 double-overtime nonaccomplishment to Eastern Washington successful the play opener astatine Allegiant Stadium.

“It’s astir intolerable not to admit the maturation and the bully worldly we saw successful a batch of the guys and a batch of the things we did,” Arroyo said. “Real resilient. They didn’t flinch.”

Time to spot if it translates connected the road.

The Rebels play Saturday astatine Arizona State, the opening of a two-game agelong against ranked Power Five foes earlier the Sept. 24 Mountain West opener against Fresno State. The Sun Devils are ranked 23rd aft a 41-14 drubbing of Southern Utah successful their opener.

“Week 2 is simply a large week for maturation successful a batch of ways, depending connected what benignant of situation and scenery you’re going into,” Arroyo said. “We’re going connected the roadworthy for the archetypal clip successful our programme successful a truly hostile environment. With a crowd. With a truly bully shot team. A well-coached shot team. … That’s going to beryllium a situation successful itself. But past you’ve inactive got to execute what wins and hole the things from the week before.”

Arroyo was speedy to constituent retired the positives from the nonaccomplishment to the Eagles. The Rebels erased a 14-point shortage successful the 4th quarter. They forced 3 turnovers against 1 of the champion offenses successful the Football Championship Subdivision.

Senior kicker Daniel Gutierrez converted each 4 of his tract goals to support the Rebels wrong striking region arsenic the discourtesy foundered successful the archetypal half. They scored connected each 5 of their trips to the reddish zone.

Conversely, the Rebels mishandled a kickoff, resulting successful mediocre tract presumption to commencement the 2nd half. They besides committed a costly turnover precocious successful the 4th fourth and struggled to find a bushed connected discourtesy for overmuch of the archetypal 3 quarters earlier turning to sophomore backmost Doug Brumfield, who helped cardinal the comeback and volition commencement Saturday.

Those benignant of mistakes won’t alert against a Sun Devil squad that boasts 1 of the Pac-12’s champion quarterbacks successful inferior Jayden Daniels and 2 susceptible moving backs successful elder Rachaad White and sophomore Deamonte Trayanum.

Daniels has 23 touchdown passes and 2 interceptions successful his career, and White and Trayanum each ran for 2 touchdowns past week.

“They’ve got 2 large backs who tally hard. Their backmost is bully arsenic well,” UNLV linebacker Austin Ajiake said. “The bully happening astir assemblage shot is that each crippled is winnable. You saw that past weekend. A clump of upsets. We spell into each crippled reasoning we person a chance.

“The coaches ever archer america that the biggest maturation comes betwixt Week 1 and Week 2. We’re conscionable opening to amusement what we’re susceptible of.”

Contact newsman Sam Gordon astatine sgordon@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BySamGordon connected Twitter.