Grading the Pack: ‘F’ not for ‘Fremont’ in loss to UNLV

Grading the Nevada’s 45-27 loss to UNLV on Saturday at Mackay Stadium.

QUARTERBACK: C+

Brendon Lewis rushed for 115 yards on 15 carries to become the first Wolf Pack quarterback to run for at least 100 yards since Cristian Solano (100 yards vs. UTEP on Sept. 21, 2019). He also became the first Pack quarterback to pass for at least 200 yards (he was 16-of-31 for 287 yards and two touchdowns) and run for 100 yards since Cody Fajardo had 275 passing and 100 rushing against Air Force on Nov. 15, 2014. Lewis also became the first Pack QB since Fajardo in the 2012 New Mexico Bowl against Arizona to throw for at least one touchdown and run for at least one touchdown while passing for at least 200 yards and running for at least 100 yards.

All of the above numbers, despite Lewis’ 0-6 record as the Pack starter, suggest that the former Colorado quarterback is making measurable strides. But, at the same time, it is growing more and more difficult with each loss to determine just how meaningful his numbers truly are. Is he just a quarterback compiling meaningless numbers in one-sided losses? Don’t forget the Pack has now had a lead for just 38-plus minutes all season long with all of that coming in a 35-24 loss to Texas State in Week 4.

Lewis, so far this season, is simply a guy finding loose change in the sofa cushions after the party is over. Lewis has struggled with consistency and efficiency all year, completing just 58 percent of his passes, being intercepted six times (two against UNLV) and fumbling the ball six times (though he’s only lost one). The vast majority of Lewis’ rushing yards (97) against UNLV, for example, came in the second half after the Pack built a 35-7 hole.

The offense on Saturday also had five false start penalties, turned the ball over three times and was just 3-of-13 on third down. Lewis is also on his way to becoming the second consecutive Pack starting quarterback to finish a season without a win after Nate Cox was 0-7 last year (0-8 for his career).

RUNNING BACK: C+

Sean Dollars had his best day as a Wolf Pack running back, gaining 66 yards and scoring on a 2-yard run. It was also likely not a coincidence that he also had his season high of 19 carries. But, like Lewis, Dollars has also been inconsistent and inefficient this year. He had three yards or less on 13 of his 19 carries on Saturday. Dollars now has had three yards or less on 53 of his 78 carries (68 percent) this year (23-of-30 the last two games in league play against Fresno State and UNLV). He is also averaging just 3.1 yards a carry (241 yards) this year.

To Dollars’ credit he runs as hard as any Wolf Pack back since James Butler from 2014-16 (Lewis, too, doesn’t suffer from a lack of toughness). Dollars at least got back to the line of scrimmage on 18 of his 19 carries against UNLV and has done so on 66 of his 78 carries (85 percent) this season. There just hasn’t been much room to run once he gets there.

RECEIVERS: C

Tight end Keleki Latu (81 yards) and wide receiver John Jackson (31 yards) led the Pack with four catches each. Latu, however, fumbled the ball away after a 30-yard gain to the UNLV 16 with the Pack trailing 38-20 with 9:39 to play.

Dalevon Campbell (three catches, 93 yards) had two big catches, a 43-yard touchdown in the first quarter and a 48-yard gain in the second quarter and appeared to be on his way to a big day. A pass interference penalty on UNLV’s Thomas Anderson early in the fourth quarter also prevented another big gain to Campbell. Spencer Curtis had just two catches for 27 yards after getting eight catches for 73 yards against Fresno State in the previous game.

Jamaal Bell, still the Pack’s leading receiver this year (26 catches, 247 yards) didn’t have a catch and now has just five catches for 38 yards over the last three games combined.

OFFENSIVE LINE: C

The Wolf Pack averaged 5.1 yards a carry and ran for a season-high 187 yards. But the bulk of those yards were when UNLV’s defense was playing conservatively and going through the motions with a big lead. The Pack ran for just 52 yards on 20 carries in the first half.

The Pack had a disturbing five false start penalties (not all on the offensive line) and Lewis was sacked three times (two in the first quarter) for 16 yards in losses and was also subjected to a roughing the passer penalty on UNLV’s Alexander Whitmore in the second quarter. Allowing three sacks with a mobile quarterback who rarely drops back and is merely looking to run or toss short passes is nothing to be proud of.

You can blame the majority of the inefficiency and inconsistency on the Pack offense (namely Lewis and Dollars) on this offensive line. The first three Pack plays of the game were a disaster for the offensive line (zero yards on a Dollars carry, a false start on lineman Frank Poso and a sack of Lewis).

DEFENSIVE LINE: D

The Wolf Pack defensive line was invisible for much of the afternoon. Thomas Witte led the front with five tackles, combining with linebacker Drue Watts for one tackle for a loss. Dion Washington had three tackles, 1.5 for a loss. James Hansen had a pair of tackles. Sophomore transfer (Utah Tech) Mackavelli Malotumau (6-foot-1, 290 pounds) had his first two tackles of the season in his first Pack game. But that was about it from the Pack defensive line. No quarterback hurries. No sacks. UNLV averaged 5.4 yards a carry on the ground (48 carries for 259 yards).

LINEBACKER: C

Again, we must bring up those 259 UNLV rushing yards on 48 carries. But there were some notable performances by the Pack linebackers at times. The most notable was Eli’jah Winston.

Winston, a sixth-year player (the first four at USC), turned in his best performance of the year with five tackles, two for a loss. He also had his first sack of the year (third of his two-year Pack career, second against UNLV). Winston dropped UNLV’s Courtney Reese for a 6-yard loss after a catch in the first quarter and stopped Reese for no gain in the third quarter.

Drue Watts and Tongiaki Mateioalona each had five tackles while Jackson LaDuke had four, one for a loss. Davion Blackwell had three tackles, stopping Reese for no gain after a catch on 3rd-and-6 late in the game. Marcel Walker-Burgess, though, had no tackles for the first time this season and was called for unsportsmanlike conduct in the fourth quarter.

SECONDARY: D

First the good news. Emany Johnson, who has played for the Wolf Pack since 2018, continues to leave nothing on the field. He led the Pack against UNLV with 12 tackles and now has 37 tackles over the last four games. Those 12 tackles are the most for a Pack player since linebacker Trevor Price had 13 in the 2021 Quick Lane Bowl against Western Michigan (a 52-24 loss).

The rest of the news for the Pack secondary was not as good. Once again we saw opposing receivers (namely UNLV’s Ricky White on Saturday) streaking untouched to the end zone. White took a simple pass over the middle on UNLV’s second play of the game and waltzed 59 yards for a touchdown. He later went 82 yards for another score in the second quarter. White, who had eight catches for 174 yards and two scores, just took off from where Fresno State’s Jalen Gill (eight catches, 126 yards, two scores) left off in the previous Pack game.

UNLV quarterback Jayden Maiava was 20-of-25 for 257 yards and the two touchdowns to White. Maiava, a freshman filling in for injured starter Doug Brumfield, set his season (and career) highs for completions and yards and equaled his best day with two touchdowns. His 80 percent completion rate is also his best game, having never even completed 60 percent of his passes since taking over for Brumfield in Week 3. Opposing quarterbacks have completed a disturbing 77 percent (133-of-173) passes for 14 touchdowns on the Pack defense this year. No less than 10 of those TD passes have been from 22 or more yards out.

SPECIAL TEAMS: C

Punter Matt Freem averaged just 39.4 yards on five punts. His best punt was 54 yards to the Rebel 43-yard line but the Pack punt coverage team then allowed a 34-yard return by Jacob De Jesus, setting up a Rebel touchdown. Freem also had a 26-yard punt out of bounds to the Wolf Pack 35-yard line, basically handing the Rebels an easy 25-yard field goal in the third quarter.

Jamaal Bell returned four kickoffs a combined total of 54 yards.

The Pack special teams (kicker Brandon Talton has attempted just two field goals over the last four games) is not a big reason why the Pack is 0-6 right now. But they also rarely change the momentum of games or help the offense and defense with field position. Jamaal Bell is averaging a mere 16.8 yards on his 14 kickoff returns this year. Sandy Carlos’ two punt returns against UNLV (for 12 total yards) are the first punts the Pack has returned all season (opposing teams have punted just 14 times all year).

COACHING: F

The Wolf Pack came out with no apparent emotion or intensity in its biggest game of the year in front of a Fremont Cannon home crowd of 24,578. The Pack, like it has for the most part this year, at times looked confused, lifeless, slow and overmatched. On Saturday they were a mistake waiting to happen.

UNLV scored touchdowns on four of its first five drives. The Pack scored one touchdown over its first seven drives. The Pack won the coin toss, elected to receive and proceeded to get zero yards on a run, commit a false start penalty, allow a sack, complete a pass for a 1-yard gain and then punt. UNLV then scored two plays into its first drive for a 7-0 lead. The Rebels also scored three plays into the second half for a 35-7 lead. That’s how the Wolf Pack comes out of its locker room at home in the biggest game of the year against its hated rival?

This is the second most lopsided Wolf Pack loss at Mackay Stadium in this rivalry for the Pack, behind just a 45-7 spanking in 1975 (the loss prompted the firing of head coach Jerry Scattini). Ken Wilson has now lost 16 games in a row as Pack head coach, two of them against UNLV. He’s now 14 games under .500 (2-16) for his career. The only other head coach in this state’s college football history that lost 16 games in a row (UNLV’s Jeff Horton) was fired after the 1998 season and wasn’t allowed to lose 17 in a row.

OVERALL: F

Getting blown out and embarrassed at Mackay Stadium by UNLV should never be acceptable up on North Virginia Street. UNLV has now won four of the last six Fremont Cannon games at Mackay Stadium.

Talk about unacceptable. Go ahead and take comfort in all of the empty-calorie yards and points the Pack scored after falling behind 35-7. But just remember that while Pack was padding its stats in the second half the Rebels were off putting a fresh coat of red paint on the Fremont Cannon. That’s because losers play meaningless silver linings football, reduced to digging up hollow numbers that soften the blow of another one-sided loss. Winners, at least in this state, get to paint the Fremont Cannon.

The Fremont Cannon gives college football seasons in this state meaning and purpose. This Pack season has now been reduced to simply ending this horrendous 16-game losing streak. But when that day comes just remember that the cannon is still painted red and living down south. Once again.