The Nevada Wolf Pack extended its lead over UNLV to 49-27 when quarterback Colin Kaepernick scored on a 28-yard run in the fourth quarter at Sam Boyd Stadium in Las Vegas.
Kaepernick became the first Pack quarterback to rush for more than 200 yards and it marked the 14th time a quarterback has rushed for more than 200 yards.
Nevada went up 42-27 when Vai Taua scored on a 4-yard run with 11:37 remaining in the game.
After an exchange of punts, the UNLV Rebels drove 73 yards on eight plays to trim the Pack's lead to 35-27, as Omar Clayton capped the drive with a 7-yard touchdown pass to Ryan Wolfe with 7:25 left in the third quarter.
The Pack led UNLV, 35-20, after scoring on the first play from scrimmage in the third quarter. Nevada quarterback Colin Kaepernick faked a handoff and raced 66 yards for a score and went over the 100-yard rushing mark on that play.
It was the third time he has eclipsed the 100-yard mark.
At the half, Nevada owned a 28-20 lead.
Before UNLV's Ben Jaekle kicked a 52-yard field with 43 seconds left, Nevada's Courtney Randall scored on a 7-yard run to cap a nine-play, 82-yard drive with 6:33 left in the second quarter.
Nevada gained the lead for the first time against UNLV early in the second quarter, scoring twice in a span of 54 seconds.
Kaepernick scored on a 4-yard run with 13:43 left in the half, capping a 68-yard drive.
After Mike Bethea recovered a Clayton fumble at the UNLV 40, Kaepernick threw a 40-yard scoring pass to tight end Virgil Green, who was left wide open on the left side of the field. Brett Jaekle's PAT gave Nevada a 21-17 lead with 12:49 left in the half.
The Nevada Wolf Pack was trailing 17-7 to the Rebels.
After UNLV got off to an early lead, the Nevada Wolf Pack came back with a score of its own. Nevada got on the board on its third possession, as Kaepernick fired a laser to freshman Chris Wellington, who caught the ball in stride at the UNLV 30 and outraced the defense to the end zone to make it 10-7 with 6:58 left in the first quarter.
With 9:56 left in the opening quarter, UNLV capitalized on a Kaepernick fumble when Clayton passed 7 yards to Phillip Payne for a touchdown that capped off a six-play, 49-yard drive that made it 10-0.
Ben Jaekle (Brett Jaekle's brother) kicked a 47-yard field goal to give the Rebels a 3-0 lead in the first quarter.