It was minutes after UNLV football had concluded its practice Friday when running backs coach Quinton Ganther assembled his unit around him. He had a message. It wasn’t a new one.
“It’s not that it wasn’t a great practice — I don’t want to put that narrative out there,” Ganther said. “It was a good practice. But we strive to be the best at all times. There is accountability in reaching that standard.
“There is no negotiating the standard. There are non-negotiables.”
Why the need to remind his running backs of this?
“We put a ball on the ground,” Ganther said. “So we had to take care of that. The standard is the standard.”
He coaches one of the more talented positions on the Rebels, running backs who have more than proven their worth across their careers.
UNLV returns its top rusher in Jai’Den “Jet” Thomas and fellow senior Jaylon Glover, fourth on the team in yards last season.
They are expected to be among the top duos in the Mountain West this year, a 1,000-yard rusher in Thomas and a more-than-capable complement to him in Glover.
There are still others in yet another deep running backs room for the Rebels. It was the same in 2025. It wasn’t just up to Thomas to make plays.
Has experience
Ganther knows the position as well as anyone, a two-time all-Mountain West player at Utah before spending six years in the NFL with four teams.
He knows the sort of ability that exists within UNLV’s backfield.
It all begins with Thomas, eighth all-time in rushing yards at UNLV with 2,457 and fifth in career rushing touchdowns with 31.
He also will return kickoffs this season, a move that could ultimately aid in his pursuit of an NFL roster spot.
“Jet can be so versatile,” Ganther said. “But to play at the next level, he’ll have to return kicks and find special teams value. That’s exactly what I had to do. To make a roster, you have to want to do special teams. It takes an attitude — a want-to dominate those one-on-one battles. I think he’ll want to do that.”
Thomas is heavier now, weighing in the 190s and yet still feeling as quick as ever. He’s trying like heck to keep the bulk on, saying steak and pasta and all sorts of carbohydrates are on his daily menu.
But that’s not to say there isn’t daily competition within the room. Glover was slowed by an ankle injury to begin last season and finished with 384 yards and a score over 64 carries. He wants more now. Wants to make a bigger difference.
“(Thomas) and I are competing, don’t get me wrong,” Glover said. “But, obviously, Jet is going to get his and rightfully so. There might be (days) where I have a big game and he doesn’t and ones where he has a big game and I don’t. We just want to see each other win. I’m happy however it goes.”
There is also this: The running backs have every chance to take early pressure off whoever emerges as a new starting quarterback between Auburn transfer Jackson Arnold and returner Alex Orji.
The offense is the offense. What is going to be called will be called. But that’s not to say those standing behind the quarterback can’t make enough plays to allow whoever is throwing the ball time to ease into a season.
The mechanics
“Hey, when in doubt, hand the ball off,” Ganther said. “That’s how you take pressure off. But we also have to be efficient in the way we’re seeing defenses and our keys. We have a lot of different run plays as far as gaps and zones.
“We have to be certain about the coaching points of each run play. When we understand that, we’ll be pretty dang good.”
They call themselves the mechanics, because when things go wrong, they fix them. Just do their job and don’t complain or throw their hands into the air. Move on to the next play and get better.
He called them over after practice and had a word and reminded them about the non-negotiables.
“I expect guys to be there they’re supposed to be and I want them to be a tight group that cheers for one another,” Ganther said. “I want them to be a group that pushes each other and helps us win a lot of football games. You can expect a lot of enthusiasm and good play.”
The standard is the standard.
Contact Ed Graney at egraney@reviewjournal.com. Follow @edgraney on X.
