Dan Mullen was happy and you can understand why.
The UNLV football coach’s team not only opened Mountain West play with a 21-6 victory at Hawaii on Saturday, but his team did so in a way that the Rebels had hoped.
To tame the Rainbow Warriors and their high-powered offense, UNLV was able to control things on the ground.
The Rebels ran for 248 yards and three touchdowns.
Leading the way was star back Jai’Den “Jet” Thomas, who went for 143 yards on 20 carries, including a 50-yard scoring run.
“We continued to grind away and hit a few explosive runs that really helped,” Mullen said. “With as much as Hawaii likes to throw the ball, we wanted to control the run game, and I thought we were able to do that.
“We rotated a bunch of offensive linemen. Played two centers and three guards and three tackles. That group playing (well) was really important for us.”
A key: The two centers came through.
Starter Austin Boyd (ankle) will miss at least a few more weeks, meaning the leader of the offensive front will be watching again when UNLV visits North Texas on Saturday.
But a combination of BJ Tolo and Griffin Scroggs kept things locked down from the middle while each saw time as Boyd’s replacement.
“They each bring a little something different to the table,” Mullen said. “Week-to-week, it will be about matchups and who we’re playing. But those guys did a nice job in that situation. There is experience there.
“The comfort part for a coach is not just, ‘Oh, God, our backup center is in. Can we snap the ball?’ These guys have played in games. So for us, it’s about matchups and schemes for those two guys.”
UNLV allowed six sacks in a season-opening loss to Memphis, four coming in the fourth quarter when Boyd was injured and departed.
Hawaii only got to quarterback Jackson Arnold once, and that’s when the UNLV quarterback slipped and fell.
Truth: Memphis was much better up front defensively than Hawaii. There is a chance UNLV won’t see again this season as talented a group of tackles and ends that the Tigers featured.
But the fact UNLV held up against the rush Saturday in Honolulu can only breed more confidence in those blocking, especially with Boyd out.
“I thought the (offensive line) played its butts off,’ Arnold said. “Having to rotate centers, it’s not an easy task for either of them. But they stepped up and played a fantastic game.
“With a guy like Boyd out, that hurts. It showed in the Memphis game. But for (Tolo and Scroggs) to have an entire week to prepare, it really helped them out and got them ready mentally and physically for Hawaii.”
Containing Alejado
Bishop Gorman alum and Hawaii quarterback Micah Alejado was the league’s preseason Offensive Player of the Year.
His numbers weren’t up to such standards Saturday.
Alejado completed 17 of 41 for 176 yards and one interception. None of his receivers totaled more than 27 yards.
Mullen credited his team’s defensive backfield for such an outing.
“I think they did a great job,” he said. “Obviously, it’s a very, very different scheme than (Memphis). We knew Hawaii was going to throw the ball. With Memphis, about five times a game they were going to launch one down the field. Hawaii is going to throw some down the field, but it’s more of a calculated scheme.
“I thought our defensive backs did a really good job matching all the different pattern combinations (Hawaii) runs.”
Awards time
Speaking of defensive backs, sophomore safety Tre Fulton was named the league’s Defensive Player of the Week after posting a career-high 12 tackles, including eight solo. He also had a sack, a forced fumble and pass breakup in the end zone.
Also, defensive lineman Kal-El Togafau was named the conference’s Freshman of the Week. He had two of UNLV’s five sacks.
“For me, it’s always about doing one thing at a time and focusing on the little things and getting better at things I can control,” Fulton said. “I’ve taken pride in getting stronger and faster, which I know has helped my game on the field.”
Contact Ed Graney at egraney@reviewjournal.com. Follow @edgraney on X.
