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UNLV at West Virginia

This Saturday the UNLV Rebels will head across the country to take on the West Virginia Mountaineers, as both teams close out the non-conference portion of their schedule. The Rebels suffered their fourth loss of the season last week, as they fell to Nevada 44-26. The Mountaineers are coming off their first loss of the season, as they lost 20-14 two weeks ago at LSU. This is the first meeting between the two schools, but the Mountaineers come in winners of three straight against the Mountain West Conference. Checking out the current odds, the oddsmakers are calling for a big win for West Virginia, as the Mountaineers are favored by 28-points over the Rebels at home.

UNLV (1-4, 1-1 MWC): After grabbing their first win of the season in blowout fashion over New Mexico at home, the Rebels went right back to their losing ways last week, as they never really had a chance after the second quarter. The Rebels managed 294 yards of total offense, but only gained 80 yards on the ground. The Rebels were lucky the game was as close as it was, as Nevada had 516 yards of total offense, including 374 yards on the ground.

Quarterback Omar Clayton was the only Rebel that really did much of anything against the Wolf Pack, as he threw for 214 yards with a touchdown, and had 48 yards and  a score on the ground. Clayton is going to have to be at his best this weekend against the Mountaineers, but it might not even matter, as the Rebels defense has  been awful this season, allowing nearly 33 points a game.

West Virginia (3-1, 0-0 Big East): The Mountaineers could very easily be 2-2 on the season, as they needed overtime to beat Marshall earlier this season. West Virginia had really ran the ball well the first three games of the season, as running back Noel Devine rushed for at least 100 yards a game, but was no where to be found in the Mountaineers loss to LSU, as Devine had just 37 yards on 14 carries. Devine has really struggled to find the endzone this season, as he has just two touchdowns on the season, but both of those came in the first two games of the season.

The reason the Mountaineers are 3-1 right now, is because of the outstanding play on the defensive side of the ball, as opposing offenses are averaging just 85 yards on the ground and only 165 through the air. I have a good feeling Devine and the offense will get things going as the season rolls along, so if the defense can continue to play like it has to start the year, this is going to be a very dangerous team down the stretch.

Looking at the Odds: It is never easy dealing with a 28-point spread, but I think this is one of those games where you take the huge home favorite to cover, as West Virginia is well rested and is very explosive on the offensive side of the ball. Also with the way the Mountaineers are playing on the defensive side of the ball, the Rebels are unlikely to put a ton of points on the board, which is key when having to cover these monster lines.  My final score prediction is West Virginia 42, UNLV 13.